Entertainer and singer Zainal Abidin recently sang for a cause very close to his heart. He shares the experience with MARY CHEN.Driving into Forest Research Institute Malaysia, (better known as FRIM), from the concrete jungle surrounding it, was like driving into an oasis. However, on this particular day, I was not in FRIM just to enjoy Mother Nature and the cool, fresh air. I was there to meet a man with a mission. Zainal Abidin has chosen FRIM as the venue for the video clip he and his wife, Angelina Asmawi, intends to create with a group of very special children. In between his many takes for that four-minute production, I saw a different Zainal Abidin, from the savvy, charismatic side we usually see on stage.
Well, okay, he was still as charismatic; but he was also very patient and attentive to the children with Down syndrome surrounding him. When quizzed later, Zainal smiled and said, "I tend to be extra attentive, because they are so special to me and I have such fun with them." A parent himself, Zainal feels sad when he hears of parents who shy away from kindergartens attended by special kids and don't want their children to mix with them.
"I think that is a very wrong thing to do and you don’t know what you are missing.
He added: "We need them as much as they need us. And while I am still here and able, I want to share, to laugh with them. It is not only good for them; it is also good for me. For me if I can make them laugh, it is such a wonderful sight, and today they make my day because I am with them." For Zainal, having kin with special needs is also why he feels so close to the children.
"I have one nephew and one niece with Down Syndrome. My nephew passed away at the age of three because of heart problems. He had a hole in the heart. My niece is 13 and needs a lot of care," he shared.
They may be born with some development issues, but as long as we can help them to be independent, teach them to take care of themselves, manage their own health and daily activities, they can also have a quality life.
Zainal and Angelina approached the Down Syndrome Association of Malaysia (PSDM) to see how they could assist the children. "We spoke with Dr Sharifah Zainiyah, president of PSDM a month ago. Dr Sharifah wanted to have a gala dinner to raise funds for their educational and independence programe.
The husband-and-wife team decided to use their expertise in entertainment and production, to help create a positive communication tool for the association. Zainal said: "We told her, we want to be part of creating awareness to help the special kids. We want the public to know in a very positive way that these children can be achievers. It is not impossible, but they need a lot of effort and help from us all."
"... let us come up with a video to create positive awareness...... "
A different approach
"We don’t want pictures of Down Syndrome kids just lying in the room, passive, doing nothing. We want to educate the public that a child with Down Syndrome can bring joy to a family. We want to show the happiness and love experienced by these families with a special child," he explained. The impassioned Zainal continued to elaborate on his mission. His aim is to portray happy friends and loving families. "That is the purpose. The idea came from me and my wife, and we are very proud of it.
What we want to show in the video clip are parents who have accepted their special kids as how they accepted their other children." Zainal hopes to reach out to new parents with the video, to tell them that you can be happy with your special child, if you take it positively. He observed: "Some parents are ashamed and sorok (hide) them and that is wrong. The more you expose them to society, the better they learn to socialise correctly and can be part of society.
That is why we are having the shoot in FRIM. They often do not have the opportunity to come out here and now when anyone talk to them about going to FRIM, they know because they have experienced FRIM for themselves. They see the rain, the big trees, the flowers and butterflies. Again, it is just giving them the opportunity to come out and gain good knowledge." There was one scene where two girls, one with special needs, meet and end eighth them putting their heads together and saying that they are no different from each other.
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