Yasmin Ahmad passed away at 11.25pm on the 25th of July 2009. She was 50 years old.

I don’t think I have ever felt as devastated and emotional over the loss of someone unrelated to me. I was midway clubbing when I checked my mobile and saw the horrible news. As I sat in the cab on the way home after excusing myself from my friends, the tears just came flowing naturally.

Yasmin Ahmad was one of the greatest Malaysians ever in my book, a truly selfless compassionate soul. She had a natural talent for identifying simple meaningful moments in our lives, and craft beautiful short clips and films out of them to remind us of all that we take for granted.

She has written and directed countless heart warming, funny yet tear jerking festive ads for Petronas, and a number of equally moving, internationally acclaimed and award winning films (Rabun, Sepet, Gubra, Mukhsin, Muallaf, Talentime). Her messages were plentiful and always meaningful, preaching tolerance, understanding, and above all else love. Not only did she open up our eyes to what was important, she did so by bringing us together – regardless of race or religion.

Despite never being fully accepted by her own, despite tonnes of criticism heaped on her from her fellow countrymen and despite the ridiculous amount of censorship on her movies in her homeland, she forged on ahead to show us her vision and ideas of her Malaysia. And what beautiful visions they were!

Dearest Kak Yasmin, you left us too soon. You had so much more to give, so much more to teach us. Your courage knew no bounds and I have you to thank for having never lost hope in a better Malaysia. I’ve always held your many messages on racial religious tolerance, and filial piety close to heart. You had the craziest sense of humor – and your jokes never failed to put a smile on my face. Your passing is a huge loss to the collective expression of our nation. You are irreplaceable, and I can only wish that this serves to inspire more of us, and that your work will spread on to those who’ve not had the opportunity to appreciate them. You will be dearly missed.

And to think that I only saw you just 4 months ago at your special screening of Muallaf down in Singapore..

Me, Yasmin Ahmad! & Gerardine

My heartfelt condolences go out to your family and to everyone else whom you’ve touched. From a huge fan, rest in peace Yasmin Ahmad.

Other blog tributes from friends

Clairmeiz – In Memoriam
Daphnemaia – Yasmin Ahmad (1958-2009)
Christina – To Yasmin