SPOILED food, inadequate portions, and repetitive meals remain problems on film sets, according to actor Azhan Abdul Rani, who has nearly two decades of experience in the industry.
The 50-year-old said some production companies fail to look after the welfare of artistes and crew despite receiving budgets from television stations, reported Utusan Malaysia.
“The budget given by television stations should be distributed fairly. If they want to make more profit by spending less on food, that is going too far,” he said.
Azhan, a nominee for Best TV Drama Actor at the 2026 Anugerah Seri Angkasa, recalled eating plain rice or noodles without any meat for weeks.
He said decent meals could lift the spirits of those working long hours, adding that seeing the meal scattered on the ground at one filming location made him concerned about the crew’s working conditions.
> One-year-old Aleeya Mikayla Muhammad Syahir from Bukit Mertajam, Penang, often has bluish lips and fingernails, while playing or crying can leave her struggling to breathe due to serious congenital heart defects.
Her father, Muhammad Syahir Mohd Nasir, 37, said doctors detected a weak heartbeat before her birth, prompting an emergency caesarean section, Sinar Harian reported.
“After she was born, Aleeya Mikayla only managed to cry once before her entire body turned bluish due to a lack of oxygen,” he said.
At just one week old, she underwent surgery to insert a stent to widen a narrowed blood vessel and spent a month in hospital.
A follow-up examination in July found that she needed a more complex heart repair without further delay.
“Seeing your own child in that condition is worrying, but we continue to do our best to care for her,” said Muhammad Syahir, who waited five years with his wife, Balqis Ahmad Radzi, 30, for their first child.
> A couple from Kuching who spent 10 years hoping for a child are now prioritising their health after the wife was diagnosed with cancer and the husband suffered a stroke.
Zamelia Shafina Zainal was diagnosed with stage one endometrial cancer in June 2024 after seeking treatment for heavy bleeding, Kosmo! reported.
The 37-year-old was later told she was pregnant but suffered a miscarriage.
“I did not know what to say because I had not been pregnant for 10 years,” she said, adding that further tests confirmed the cancer.
She decided to have her womb removed, with surgery scheduled for December 2024.
While she was performing umrah in Medina that month, her husband Ahmad Rifat Saleh suffered a stroke and underwent four surgeries.
He has since returned home but continues to receive treatment and physiotherapy.
Despite hurtful remarks about their childlessness, Zamelia Shafina said their focus is now on their own well-being.
(The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.)
