BUANASENI

By Jo Haq and Merah Rahman

A drama of fruit figurines - I am King declared the Durian. Who is worthy to be my Queen and members of my court? Hmmm.... who do you think should be Queen? It has to be the Dragon Fruit. And the Wild Berries shall be amongst the palace folks. The Dragon Fruit has to plead its case. What justifies the Dragon Fruit to be the Queen? It is the only fruit whose seeds are randomly scattered within with no devine architecture in its arrangement. It shall be evil. It shall be chaos... but full of passion. Then the Pineapple will claim he is to be the King's advisor as he has eyes everywhere and even if his head is cut off an buried, he will be reborn again to serve the King. Yes, let's appoint the Pineapple. Who should take care of the kingdom’s treasures and riches? This is a tricky one. A Jackfruit has been accused of swallowing all gold nuggets belonging to the King. Hmmm.... sounds like a modern day politician. Off with his head. There is no place for him in this court. Maybe it should be the Banana. He has nothing to hide so much so he wears his heart outside for the world to see. And bananas would lend its leaves to protect all from heavy rain. How noble is the banana. Who shall protect them all? Hmmm.... this is a tricky one too. Maybe it is the Kings children themselves. They are born armored and would not betray the King. No.. no.. they shall be as expected, born not to work. Maybe it will be the Salaks. Shielded with thick skin. Like armours. And sometimes the smell is enough to scare off the weak hearted. Magnificent choice! We need a Court Jester. Something funny or sarcastic. So, a sharp acidic fruit or something with a funny shape. Buy why? Perhaps the colour should be vibrant? Oooh... Maybe it should be the Kedondong. With its sharp sour taste that accompanies the harshness of reality and inside him he holds the big hairy truth. I disagree. I want something vibrant. Ok, present your case with your choice. I vote for the red, green and yellow Capsicums. Basis of proposal please. They look funny. That is all. One last verdict needed. Someone to lead the prayers. Oooh... this is a tough one too. Someone who is full of sustenance. That fuels the spiritual hunger of all. Coconut? No. Someone with many breasts like the Goddess Artemis. Blackberries? Sort of like multiple nipples or mini boobs. Nooooo.... Papayas. Hahha yes! And the coconut you mentioned... he is the dude imprisoned in the King's dungeon. Because he is a coconut case that cannot be saved. Maybe we should pick the villain fruits now. Coconut the crazy advisor. Cempedak and Nangka want to be King and Queen both equally corrupt. The world is unfair when they associate dark colours to evil. Should we apply that generalisation? Yes they equate dark colours to evil or poverty or stupidity. Yes. It’s like a political satire hidden in fable of fruit figurines. Coffee. Cocoa. Let's just create a whole army of foes from the nut family then. And they still have the lighter colours at the top ruling over them a.k.a. Nangka, Cempedak and Coconut. Yes. Like the Pigs in The Animal Farm. Playing puppet master. They rally the grapes, plums and blackberries working them up crying foul play and oppression. Gaining and fanning the grassroot’s rage. Not realising they are just pawns. With their soft skins, they will be squished in the attempt of power grabbing. Not realising Coconut, Cempedak and Nangka are quietly sacrificing the Grapes to turn them into wine for their own consumption. Blaming King Durian and Queen Dragon Fruit of the disappearance of their children. It is indeed a cruel Fruits and Nuts World. At last, the society will collapse into one big fruit punch with no redemption and no hope.

By Jo Haq and Merah Rahman

23 July 2021

10:51 pm

KL Eco City / Bukit Gita Bayu