JEDDAH: “Puteri Gunung Ledang” (The Princess of Mount Ledang) was Malaysia’s epic fantasy film screened at the ongoing 2nd Asian Film Festival organized by the Asian Consuls General Club at the auditorium of the Indonesian Consul General’s residence on Thursday night. Directed by Saw Teong Hin and produced by Shazalli Ramly, the film is based on a Malay legend about a princess who lived on top of Mount Ophir, or better known by the locals as Gunung Ledang and a Malaccan Sultan’s effort to court her. This ageless beautiful princess only shows herself up to strangers appearing as an ugly old lady sometimes known as “Nenek kebayan.” Set in the late 15th century Sultanate of Malacca and the Javanese kingdom of Majapahit against a backdrop of war and mysticism, the film depicts the forbidden romance that blossomed between Gusti Putri Retno Dumillah, a beautiful Javanese Hindu princess and Hang Tuah, the legendary Malay Muslim warrior from Melaka. The feature film was preceded by several short documentaries on “Malaysia Truly Asia” and “Malaysia, Your Enchanting Gateway,” reflecting on different aspects of tourism, especially the country’s tourist destinations and holiday resorts.
