Mariam Baharum
Mariam Baharum (1935 – August 9, 2010) was a Singaporean-Malay film actress who was known for her work during the 1950s.[1] She was nicknamed Mariam Tahi Lalat by her fans.[1]
Baharum was born in 1935 in Singapore.[1] She was the sister of another Malay film actress, Datin Saadiah, and the mother of pop singer, Rahimah Rahim.[1]
Baharum's career reached its zenith during the 1950s as an actress signed to Malay Films Production Studio in Jalan Ampas, Singapore.[1] Her most well known movie is perhaps the 1952 film, Anjuran Nasib, which was directed B. S. Rajhans and co-starred P. Ramlee.[1] In 1953, Baharum was named the "Second Favorite Female Artiste Malaya" by Filem Raya Magazine for her role in Anjuran Nasib.[1]
Baharum other film credits included Aloha, Dewi Murni and Kembar, all of which were released in 1950.[1] She appeared in the 1952 film, Aladdin, Kipas Hikmat in 1955, Abu Hassan Penchuri in 1955 and Antara Dua Darjat 1960.[1] Baharum co-starred in her films with most of the major Malaysian film stars of the era, including Kasma Booty, Aziz Sattar, S. Shamsuddin, Osman Gumanti and Datuk Mustapa Maarof.[1]
Baharum was nominated for the Veteran Actress Award at both the 15th Malaysian Film Festival in 2001 and the 22nd Kota Kinabalu Film Festival in 2009.[1]
Mariam Baharum died at 5:50 a.m. on August 9, 2010, at her condo in Yishun, Singapore, at the age of 75.[1] She was survived by her six children from two marriages. Baharum was buried at Abadi Muslim Cemetery in Choa Chu Kang, Singapore.[1]
The Malaysian Minister of Information, Communications and Culture Rais Yatim paid tribute to Baharum, calling her death a major loss to the Malay film industry.[2]