This article first appeared in Forum, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on February 22 - 28, 2016.
WHY do you guys waste so much time glued to the idiot box, watching other men chase a ball around the field?” If this sounds familiar, it is because this is the usual complaint we hear from women who cannot understand or simply refuse to understand why men are so addicted to football.
For many men, football is not just about that ball; it is far more than that. In fact, it is simply magic! If you do not believe it, then maybe you should go and watch the popular local box-office movie, Ola Bola, and to feel that magic!
Set in the Seventies, Ola Bola tells the story of a group of Malaysian footballers who, through team spirit, worked to become national heroes.
Trust me, you will find yourself walking down memory lane, back to the time when we all rejoiced and grieved together for what that small ball might bring us as a nation. Perhaps, just like what the movie’s tagline would like us to do — “You will believe again”.
Although the movie carries the usual disclaimer, which says “all characters appearing in this production are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental”, for many who have lived through that golden era of Malaysian football, it is not difficult to identify some of the characters in the movie — for example, “Tauke” Soh Chin Aun, defender Santokh Singh, goalkeeper “spider-man” R Arumugam, midfielder Khalid Ali and strikers Hassan Sani and James Wong.
In the movie, people of different races and backgrounds sit in front of their small black-and-white TV sets while others have their ears close to the radio to follow the football game. There are also many fighting to get a seat in the packed stadium. The film reminds us of the simpler times when football did not centre around personal egos, brand endorsements and multimillion-ringgit deals but on how the sport can bring people of different races and backgrounds together. It also highlights the most important qualities — empathy, teamwork and passion.
“Kita menang bersama-sama, kita kalah pun bersama-sama (We win together and we shall lose together).” This fiery spirit is in everyone’s heart, whether you are Malay, Chinese, Indian or Kadazan. The people cheer and pray for the same thing — a Malaysian victory.
The movie has, without doubt, succeeded in rekindling our memories of the good old days and the passion for the sport and the nation. It also reminds us of this: Do believe in ourselves again, and Malaysia will re-emerge as a force to be reckoned with in international football, and, most importantly, we, Malaysians of all races, religions and cultures, can actually live as one big community through thick and thin.
Sport, whether it is football, badminton or any other game, can bring us closer together, but sadly, politics continues to drive a wedge between some of us.
The present political atmosphere and economic condition of the country are most depressing. Banker Datuk Seri Nazir Razak has rightly captured this frustrated mood, expressing his fears for the country’s future in his Instagram post. He likened the current developments to the popular TV series, Game of Thrones.
And he writes, “So, what lies ahead? The parallels with GoT (Game of Thrones) continue. The future terrifies me: I just can’t see how our institutions can recover, how our political atmosphere can become less toxic, how our international reputation can be repaired. I think we have to pause, fix our moral compass and deal with our structural problems holistically. I believe we need National Consultative Council 2.”
Of course, a feel-good local movie like Ola Bola is not and can never be a magic wand, whereby we can simply make all the problems that are besetting the country go away.
But, at least, the message from Ola Bola is timely: As long as we do not give up and as long as we believe in ourselves, we can rediscover that magical moment depicted in the movie. Let’s believe in the magic again.
Khaw Veon Szu, a former executive director of a local think tank, is a practising lawyer. Opinions expressed in this article are his own.
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