(Source: SAYS.com)
When a Tik Tok video of actress and singer Wani Kayrie dancing in blackface surfaced, the Malaysian Twitterverse erupted in outrage.
The 20-year-old Sandakan-bred is now facing backlash from netizens. Many took to the aforementioned social media platform to call out on her insensitive actions.
(Source: Twitter)
Apparently, Wani Kayrie was involved in an ongoing production of ‘Dayang Senandung’ in which she plays the titular character. For those of you who have not heard of this folklore, ‘Dayang Senandung’ tells a story of a princess who has been cursed to have pitch-black skin and is shunned from society because of her skin color.
Zeel Production has also been caught in the heat for their decision to adapt the traditional tale into a TV drama. A petition to halt the productions has even been started by Malaysian netizens, reasoning that the story will give a negative message to young, dark-skinned girls.
(Source: Twitter)
The production team have since issued a statement on their Instagram page, apologizing for the irksome caused by the controversial Tik Tok video circulating around social media. However, the team made it clear that they have no plans to stop filming or reshoot certain scenes despite receiving criticism for promoting colourism and racism in the show. They claimed that their version of the Malay legend will be an inspirational tale about going against the odds and pursuing one’s dreams as ‘the new 2020 rendition of Dayang Senandung highlights the empowerment of achieving goals regardless of skin colour’. They have also stated that the uproar against the actress’s makeup was ‘unnecessary’.
Some Twitter users agreed with the company and defended their choice to retell the story.
(Source: Twitter)
Instagram users have also come up with infographics to discuss this hot issue.
(Source: Instagram)
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