KLANG: Singer Shima was once a shining star in the local music scene in the 1980s and early 1990s. She had recorded eight albums throughout her career.
However, she is now struggling to make ends meet after she suffered a mishap.
The 55-year-old singer’s nightmare began when she hit her back and head after slipping in the bathroom in 2013.
“Later, I felt pain and a tingling sensation in my fingers. I also felt pain in my neck whenever I hit a high note while singing,’’ said the singer, whose full name is Ku Nazhatul Shima Ku Kamarazzaman.
She put up with the pain until the following year and went to hospital only after her entertainment contract with a hotel ended in 2014.
“If I had taken time off earlier, I would have had to look for a replacement singer and pay her as well, so I chose to wait,” Shima said, adding she also needed the money from the hotel gig.
At the hospital, Shima was told that she was suffering from a bulging disc due to the fall and surgery was suggested.
However, she opted for physiotherapy instead.
“I knew that there was a possibility the surgery may fail and I did not want to take the risk,” she said.
Shima, who lived in Petaling Jaya with her odd-job worker husband, started a food stall in her neighbourhood.
The long hours of standing and cooking took a toll on her back and she had to stop the business.
She has to wear diapers as the back injury also affected her bladder control.
Shima’s current source of income is singing on TikTok.
She rose to fame in 1989 when she joined the band The Boys to replace Malaysia’s “Queen of Rock” Ella who had left the group to pursue a solo career.
The band, which was known as Ella and The Boys, became Shima and The Boys.
Shima eventually pursued a solo career under the Malaysian chapter of an international label from 2000 to 2005.
Meanwhile, non-governmental organisation Community Development and Integration Initiative director Firoza Burhan hoped that Malaysians will come forward to help her.
Firoza said those wanting to help Shima can email her organisation at cdii.community@gmail.com for details.
