Playing in my mind

When I was studying in UK there was very little entertainment that could remind us of Malaysia. Whatever we had we savoured to the death. Apart from the tapes and CDs we brought from home, some of us brought video tapes. These video tapes make its rounds all over the UK. We have no idea where it came from but 2 made its way to Leeds and lo and behold it made its way to my place. Making copies were possible but expensive and tedious. Thus, it will always be the same tape making its rounds.

Ali Setan photo from Film Affinity

The 2 tapes were Ali Setan and Ibu Mertuaku. Ali Setan was a movie set in Universiti Sains Malaysia acted by Azmil Mustapha and Fauziah Ahmad Daud. With its premise, we identified the most to Ali Setan having just came from such an environment in college. All the drama we experienced as teenagers and post teens. Very little such drama in the university. For one it's in a foreign environment and the little there was I was totally oblivious to it having no girlfriend thinking that nobody liked me, and I wasn't attractive anyway.

Allahyarham Azmil Mustapha and Fauziah Ahmad Daud photo from mStar

So, the fantasy world of Ali Setan enveloped most of us. We watched and rewatched again and again until we can mouth the dialogue with the sound off. Pretty soon we got bored and we added our own dialogues to Ali Setan and Ibu Mertuaku. By the way Ibu Mertuaku was a tearjerker with P. Ramlee, that we could turn into comedy with our dialogues.

Ibu Mertuaku photo from Famili-famili Artis Lagenda

With such movies ingrained in our head, in the last few weeks some of the Ali Setan dialogues were playing in my head. Apparently, it's my happy place. Why? The association with simpler times before anything else occupied our minds. The last few months things were quite overwhelming, and I needed that happy place. Apart from the calming moments with Allah I needed something else to occupy my mind and Ali Setan was it.

If we were not watching Ali Setan, our time will be fulfilled with bowling, snooker, part time jobs (not me though), clubbing (at Ritzy's during students' night, Wednesday nights I believe), having meals at each other's places and of course the library. On weekends I would go on my own cycling or on my graveyard watch. Sometimes my housemates became curious where I disappear to because they know I have no one (that nobody likes me and not being attractive to anyone, you know) and they would follow me and soon they themselves became hooked with my graveyard watch.

Sometimes I would take the Metro (West Yorkshire's rail and bus service) and travel all over West Yorkshire and go to village market days, all alone (well you know...). Other times? My friends will find me knocking at their doors in Norwich, Kent, London, Hull or just in Leeds spending time playing Risk, chess, Monopoly and once in a while strange games like Hunt for Red October (a dear friend just reminded me) a complicated game that we still have no idea how to play.

The HUnt for Red October game photo from Mandi's Attic Toys

Once in a while I find myself "kidnapped" and taken "kicking and screaming" crawling from house to house attending parties from Leeds to Doncaster finding myself in Hull. My friends will never allow me to be alone or feeling lonely. One time they barged into my room at the dorms (I stayed in dorms in my first year) and packed my bags then dragging me to wherever (again kicking and screaming). Other days I spend time walking around with my dorm mates enjoying a simpler life where the only question occupying our head was what's for dinner at the refectory and whether Heidi (a buxom lovely girl) will play pool at the student recreation room tonight. Boys the world over is the same. What was called as Jantan cabaret (Cabaret guys, a kind of an amusing term derogatory in a way). Whenever Heidi plays all the guys, and I mean ALL is only at one side of the room, especially when she is about to take a shot....

Why are all these playing in my mind? I guess simpler times. As I said my happy place. Oh, what dialogue? Nothing funny. But those that watched Ali Setan a million times especially my Leeds buddies will know what I am talking about.

"Kamu Jaa'far ya?" (panggggg).

Another?

"Ali? Dia setan!"

"You are my girl!"

"Oh Jeff, I bukan your spare tyre" (or something like that).