For the first time in four years, actor Aaron Aziz will be celebrating Hari Raya in Singapore. Photo: Filepic
For the first time in four years, actor Aaron Aziz will be celebrating Hari Raya in Singapore.
It will be a bittersweet affair, very different from the last time the Malaysia-based star was home for Hari Raya back in 2019.
Some family members will not be with him – his mother died in 2020 and his son, 19-year-old Danish Anaqi, who is studying in Japan, cannot travel because of exams.
Hari Raya also comes a month after the 47-year-old was controversially axed from upcoming film The Original Gangster by Malaysian director Syamsul Yusof over concerns about his “age, weight and health”.
Aaron took to Instagram to defend himself, saying that he had trained intensively for the role, as the director requested, but the latter had refused to meet to discuss the issue.
Aaron played the titular role in the previous two KL Gangster films (2011 and 2013), both of which were box-office hits.
In an interview with The Straits Times, he says that he considers the matter closed and wants to put it behind him.
He is looking forward to spending quality time with his family in Singapore, including with his mother-in-law, who recently underwent heart surgery, and his stepfather.
“Hari Raya to me is all about getting together, not just with your main family but also with extended family members,” says the actor, who holds the title of Datuk, an honorific conferred by the Sultan of Pahang in 2017.
His festive break will be brief as he, his manager-wife and fashion entrepreneur Diyana Halik, 41, and daughters Dwi Ariana, 17, and Dahlia Arissa, 13, plan to head back to Malaysia a couple of days after Hari Raya.
It is a busy period for him. During the fasting month, he and Diyana operated bazaar stalls at Singapore Expo and Geylang Serai, selling items such as hijabs and fragrances. They also travelled to Cambodia for charity work.
Filming for an upcoming police movie Sheriff, in which he will reprise his gangster role, will begin soon. He is also set to star in several other films, including 5 Lions, a crime and underworld-themed flick which he also directs.
“I don’t play only gangster roles, I played a gay man in Suamiku Lelaki Pendosa,” he says. The role in the drama series won him Best Actor at Malaysian award show Anugerah Drama Sangat 2023.
Still, he is best known for action roles, which have taken a toll on his body.
A bad fall while filming his own stunts on the first KL Gangster film 12 years ago led to chronic back pain. He suffers from cervical spondylosis, an age-related degeneration of the spinal bones and discs in one’s neck. A magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed that he also has schwannoma, a benign tumour of the nerve sheath.
His doctor has advised surgery, which he is considering. In the meantime, he takes prescribed painkillers.
“I think I’m doing fine,” he says. “Doing my favourite exercises like boxing and mixed-martial arts keeps me motivated and gives me semangat (Malay for spirit).” – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
