PETALING JAYA, Feb 12 — Religious preacher PU Rahmat revealed that the late comedian Abam Bocey always took the high road when others used to make fun of his weight.
In an Instagram post showing pictures of the solat jenazah (Islamic funeral prayer) for Abam, PU Rahmat wrote that the 32-year-old always had a forgiving nature towards others.
“He forgave everyone who called him fat. He didn’t take it personally even though it must have hurt at the beginning.
“I remember how some people even teased him saying that his private parts were small even though he was large in stature.
“But he never got mad, he only got angry if people tried to say mean things about his child,” said PU Rahmat.
The religious figure, who previously worked with Abam in outreach programmes, also spoke about the criticisms Abam received for his catchphrase “Fat is awesome.”
“He always fought body-shaming with style. A lot of people were unhappy when he said ‘fat is awesome’.
“They said it wasn’t awesome. Fat meant diseases. But these people didn’t get it.
“Abam never tried to tell anyone to stay fat. He wanted fat people to have self-confidence because they are so often bullied and made fun of.”
Abam, whose real name is Syed Umar Mokhtar Syed Mohd Redzuan, was also reportedly working hard to drop the pounds before he passed away and had encouraged his friends who were overweight to do the same.
PU Rahmat ended his post by saying that Abam’s career was born out of a simple desire to make the people around him smile and to lighten his elderly mother’s burdens.
Ever since the Mak Cun star passed away on February 10, more stories about Abam’s kind and generous personality have emerged.
In a video posted by Instagram user @ustazhanafiah, a caretaker at the cemetery where Abam was buried said that he received a late-night visitor on the day the comedian was laid to rest.
As the caretaker was about to close the cemetery for the night, a woman arrived at 10.30pm with a young child in tow and asked if she could pay her respects to Abam.
“It was so late at night. I wondered what the rush was all about.
“She said, ‘Please pak cik, I wasn’t able to visit earlier today,’ and she told me how Abam provided financial support so her child can go to school,” said the caretaker.
Born in 1988, Abam first rose to fame as the runner-up in the first season of talent contest Bintang Mencari Bintang in 2013.
He found success in show business after starring in TV dramas, movies, and telefilms such as Tuyul Ke London, Hantu Bungkus Ikat Tepi, and Terpanah Asmara before joining the comedy trio Bocey with members Fad and Achey.
Abam passed away at his home in Gombak on February 10 after complaining of fever and headache two days earlier.
He is survived by his wife Nur Hidayah Mohd Ali and their infant son Syed Uthman Hamzah Al-Juffrey Syed Umar Mokhtar Al-Juffrey.