Beyond P. Ramlee: Fauziah 'Ogy' Dato' Ahmad Daud

Don't laugh at me just yet. Don't accuse me for playing best-friend card (we're all know Arenaku loves Ogy) or for heaven's sake - unoriginal (now that I know my competitor championing the same subject!) Hear me out what I want to say and you'll see why this isn't just about winning the RM50 voucher and why she came on top of my list.

True, Allahyarham Tan Sri P. Ramlee is incomparable; an iconic figure in Malay cinema and no one is disputing that, certainly not me. Although, sometimes, it does sound as if the entire Malay entertainment industry was built upon one name only, we tend to forget that this may not be necessary true.

My humble guessing is our little community has come to embrace and love 'the legend' so much; it was such pain to know there were probably someone close enough out there to match his undisputable great talent. But they are such talent out there. These people do exist. They are people, given enough opportunities and time would eventually brush on with his greatness.

And one of them is our 'Akak' Ogy.

Fauziah Dato' Ahmad Daud, or affectionately known as Ogy was born on 10 October 1962 in Singapore to equally lauded Malay cinema legends Dato' Ahmad Daud and Datin Saadiah. She made her acting debut in Hati Batu (1973) and successfully generated a favorable and detectable industry buzz. Following her parents' formidable footsteps in acting, Ogy never looked back ever since and continued to act in another 15 major Malay movies and hundreds of TV dramas.

There are many actresses whose unconventionally acting method I admire, and Ogy is one of them. She has the ability to immerse into her character in a second with much gusto. She would look normal one moment and hot-as-Sunday-morning sex the next (OK, maybe not!) I meant Ogy has the guts to look like a whore (Bintang Malam) and a bloke (Rentak Desa) at a drop of a pin. Not many our current hot actresses would be able to do that and I believe most of them can attest to that.

Ogy also tried her hands in different spectrum in entertainment industry and singing is one of them. Though it may not as successful and colorful as her acting career she did have few hits ('Wajah Rahsia Hati', 'Bunga-Bunga Berguguran', 'Azura', 'Simfoni Kasih') that still command listeners in our local radios until today.

But until after helming gossip TV's equivalent to E! News -'Melody' in the mid-90s, that her talent in hosting was discovered. The show became a huge success and it became so synonymous with her. She then was offered to host numerous other big, red carpet events like Juara Lagu and Anugerah Bintang Popular and this had shot her name back to the limelight.

Right now, other than hosting job, Ogy is also known for her memorable stint as the 'other' acid tongue judge in Akademi Fantasia, (the other is the Adlin Aman Ramli). Was she great or what? She never minced her words, stole the show in the process and people love her for that. (Not-so-great news for the host, eh!)

A great actress, a great host, and err….OK, not-so-great singer, Ogy had tried them all. She survived a divorce, Janet-Jackson-epic-like wardrobe malfunction and nasty rumors and after all these years, she's still here with us. Her contribution to Malay cinema world is tremendous. Her persistence, her passion, her talent, are very well liked and well received by Malay and non- Malay audience alike.

While Tan Sri P Ramlee was more famous for his versatility, Ogy was known for "trying" on everything. She acts, she hosts, she directs, she produces and she sings (with mixed result). She nominated, honored and won numerous awards that probably put any new talents to shame. (Some icing on the cake, she has won FFM's Best actress three times and BH's Most popular artiste)

So is there anything else she has not done or achieved?

People want to believe and keep saying there will be no worthy substitute to our much beloved legend. While I can totally understand the sentiment, but in all honesty I believe we should all be moved on, well, at least giving credit to where it dues. Doesn't she even deserve that for 'trying'?

Well, I think she does and who are we to stop her?