KUALA LUMPUR: The National Film Development Corporation (Finas) plans to extend a helping hand to needy veteran artistes of Malay cinema who live in Singapore.
Its chief executive officer Prof Dr Md Nasir Ibrahim said that it was their initiative to "reach out" to the unsung heroes and heroines of the entertainment industry.
Md Nasir said that Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa had encouraged Finas to visit and assist the Singaporean artistes as they had contributed immensely to the film industry of both countries.
"We recently paid a visit to veteran Malaysian comedian Hamid Gurkha. Our next stop will be Singaporean veterans such as Zaiton, Wahid Satay and Sanisah Huri," said Md Nasir in an interview with Berita Harian Online today.
Md Nasir added that Finas would "catch up" with the veterans and film a documentary series about them, besides providing them with any assistance they need.
"We have set up a special fund to assist these veterans, and we will highlight it in the documentary Dana Bintang Nostalgia which focuses on the latest developments of stars of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s."
Md Nasir encouraged veteran artistes facing health problems to contact Finas, and promised to do his best to help them.
He also revealed that restrictions imposed on filming were gradually being relaxed, now that most Malaysians had completed their Covid-19 vaccination.