Tahun Melawak Johor Cancelled At Last Minute, Faisal Mustaffa and Indra Jegel Speak Out
THIS year’s Tahun Melawak Johor was recently cancelled by organisers of the JB Arts Festival at the eleventh hour for undisclosed reasons. The stand-up comedy performance was set to feature a line-up of notable Malay comedians from the region, including a special guest from Indonesia.
Tahun Melawak Johor was put together by Rumah Anak Teater (RAT), notable for producing Nam Ron‘s Laut Lebih Indah Dari Bulan among other popular Malay theatre works. The local company is one of few significant Malay-language theatre groups in the country and they’ve built a strong reputation in the local performing arts scene.
Indra Jegel was due to perform at Tahun Melawak Johor before organisers pulled the plug.
Currently in Malaysia and originally signed to participate in Tahun Melawak Johor is Indonesian stand-up comic Indra Jegel, who was notified of the change moments before he was due to arrive in the country. The 24-year old is disappointed but he’s trying to keep his spirits up.
“Sebenarnya udah prepare untuk itu,” Indra states in a distinct Jakartan twang, “tapi mau di mana lagi. Senang aja, bisa datang kemari jalan-jalan, saya orang yang dijemput datang, disediakan panggung, tapi tak direalisasi. Jadi saya ikut saja lah.”
Indra deems himself somewhere in the middle of the stand-up ladder in Indonesia — he’s been able to sustain a somewhat comfortable life as a full-time stand-up comedian.
Fortunately, Indra has managed to secure two other gigs in Kuala Lumpur prior to arriving, namely at Lawak Studio 77 and PJ Live Arts, both happening next week.
It wasn’t an easy path getting to where he is at the moment — his parents were initially hesitant, preferring that he find white-collar employment.
“Sebenarnya mindset orang tua ingin anaknya bekerja kantoran yang selayaknya, tapi mindsetnya berubah ketika saya masuk TV. Kalau memang fokusmu di sini, selagi positif, boleh dijalani,” he tells us.
He states that his brand of comedy is personal, originating from his need to express his anxiety with the world. His performance in Johor was meant to revolve around the similarities between Malaysia and Indonesia.
“Stand-up saya berasal dari keresahan, dari peribadi. Tugas saya sebagai komedian untuk menyampaikan keresahan saya dari sisi lucu,” he explains.
“Saya mempersiapkan bahan yang kulturnya sama dengan Indonesia — persamaan antara Indonesia dan Malaysia seperti muzik dan jerebu.”
With him is producer of both RAT and Tahun Melawak Johor, Faisal Mustaffa, who is trying to make Indra’s trip to Malaysia more pleasant.
“Indra has just finished performing at a stand-up festival in Jakarta and he’s planned this for months — ever since Ramadhan. So kalau tak jadi ikut aje lah. Kalau tak ada rezeki buat show, jalan-jalan saja lah.”
Faisal plans to utilise Indra’s spare time by having him as a workshop facilitator with Rumah Anak Teater in training aspiring comedians.
“We’ll try to fill up his time while he’s around. Kita tak ada trainer untuk train, so we’ll take the opportunity to have someone who’s had years of experience.”
For Faisal, his experience with JB Arts Festival was a puzzling one. This was the second time Tahun Melawak Johor has been scheduled to take place at the festival, but it’s the first time they’ve been slapped with a cancellation from festival organisers.
Faisal Mustaffa had often had to deal with last minute bans and cancellations.
A magnet of controversy himself, Faisal Mustaffa is no stranger to sudden axings. He was notable as the publisher who was embroiled in a battle with Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (JAIS) over the distribution of academician and social activist Irshad Manji‘s books three years ago.
“I’m used to it,” sighs Faisal, “dah biasa dah kena halau, kena cancel last minute.”
“However, what I don’t want is for my talents to lemah semangat. I don’t want Indra to get very disappointed or think, apa masalah Malaysia ini, nak buat komedi pun tak boleh. I want his first trip here to be memorable.”
Two weeks prior to Tahun Melawak Johor, the MACC (Malaysian Association of Chinese Comedians) performed a set which touched upon political issues. On top of that, pop artist Najwa Mahiaddin (daughter of scorned ex-deputy prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin) performed at the festival too.
Malaysiakini was first to bring up the cancellation in a piece on Tuesday, claiming it was potentially due to pressure from authorities. The rest of the JB Arts Festival will go on as scheduled.
With nothing left to do for a week, Indra is optimistic about his time in Malaysia. On his wish list are “pergi Bukit Bintang” and “ambil photo dekat Legoland“. He has only good hopes for the Malaysian stand-up scene.
“Semoga stand-up komedi di Malaysia bisa setanding dengan Indonesia,” he laughs.
Faisal hopes that the remaining two shows Indra has in Malaysia will be huge successes, and whoever had plans to seek his brand of humour will do so next week.
“Indra dah ada kat sini, jadi kami harap balance two shows pecah panggung lah. Kami akan bawak semua energy kami dari Johor so you can expect something else. Indra pun akan kumpulkan keseluruhan tenaga dia.”
“Insyaallah, insyaallah,” nods Indra softly.
Catch Indra Jegel on October 6 at Studio Lawak 77, Puchong and on 8 October in Cerita Malam Jumaat at PJ Live Arts, Petaling Jaya.
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