RUMAH DAYAK by Rupa co.lab

“Home is where you fight and sleep”

Reviewer: Teo Xiao Ting
Performance: 22 November 2019

Brimming with raucous arguments and tender gestures, Rumah Dayak by Rupa co.lab tells a story of a safehouse wherein six Malay youths seek shelter. The safehouse, brought to existence by Kak Julia (Farah Lola) and Abang Nahar (Al-Matin Yatim), gives troubled Malay youths who do not have anywhere to go a place to sleep, to rest – a home.

Over 90 minutes, the definition of a safehouse yawns and stretches. I find myself loving all six kids by the time I walk out of the theatre. The safehouse, borne out of desire and imagination, does not exist in Singapore. Yet, the institutional challenges it faces – such as lack of sufficient funding and imminent state interference – are rooted in reality. As an imagination of futurity, Rumah Dayak calls for a humanised acknowledgement and acceptance of those who have been marginalised and fell through the cracks. In this case, the matrep and minahrep who are often regarded with derision as mere troublemakers. While culturally different, as someone who was called an ah lian in my youth, I resonate with the struggles these youths contend with. It strikes more than a chord to witness the cast embody and expand the stereotype typically imposed on “wayward youths”. Nessa Anwar’s rendition of these characters is fiercely loving and flawed. Which is to say, they are bursting with life.

Through fully fleshed out characters who endear themselves endlessly to me, portraits of youths who have been dealt the short end of the stick reveal the emotional distress and trauma, as well as societal conditions, that have led the youths to scour for ways to survive. But it is important to note that they do so with dignity and a code of honour. When confronted with a possible drug-related offence that Shah (Uddyn J) has committed, Ella (Rusydina Afiqah) tries her best to address the issue while keeping true to her principle of “not [being] a snitch”. These youths have little when it comes to material resources, but they have much when it comes to dignity and love. When Dash (Yamin Yusof) is fretting over culinary school fees, Shah forks out $600 without hesitation.

When Rumah Dayak reaches a climax as the kids are faced with the safehouse’s imminent closure, they band together and try and figure out a solution. Ella, initially foul-mouthed and caustic, stands up for Julia as Amira demands for an explanation as to why this is happening to them: ”They gave us a roof when we needed it. If Kak Julia says the safehouse needs to close, we say ‘thank you’ and fuck off’”.

There are many scenes where the kids’ innocence and stubborn loyalty is presented with sharp realism, bringing me to laughter and tears. With all that, what hits me most is how they each unapologetically and fearlessly take on whatever life throws at them. The situation is unfair, and makes me itch with anger that Singapore, with all its social infrastructure in place, is still lacking so much. The mats and minahs are still here, living and loving, struggling to survive and strive towards building a life for themselves. In an especially heart-aching conversation between Dash and Julia, he confesses: “I thought you’ve forgotten about me.” She answers, soft and kind: “As soon as anyone walks in through these doors, we’ll never forget about you.” And I wish this for Singapore, that we never forget those who live among us, who are continuously trying and failing to seek a place to call home.