Mencari Hajar (2023) Review
Hajar (Nora Samosir) holding her identity card.
Director: Sanif Olek Runtime: 88 minutes Languages: Malay, Mandarin, and English audio; English and Malay subtitles Certification: PG (Singapore)
When I’m visiting relatives in Singapore for Hari Raya Aidilfitri or Hari Raya Haji (Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha), the TV is usually playing in the background. It often feels like there’s scenes awash with anguish and tears, which I’ve found strange, considering that we’re supposed to be celebrating. I expected that Mencari Hajar, last year’s Hari Raya Haji telefilm special, would have a similar sort of overly sentimental tone. I’m normally hesitant about this, my interest more quickly piqued by stories with subdued emotions—think something like Yasujiro Ozu’s Tokyo Story or Late Spring—but I hadn’t (and still haven’t) seen enough film and TV from my home country, so I decided to give Mencari Hajar a try.
The film’s title can be translated from Malay into English as “Looking for Hajar”. This describes what Kenny Goh (Michael Chua), a Chinese man, has been doing for a long time now: he’s been searching for his aunt (Nora Samosir) who was given away to a Malay-Muslim family as a baby. He doesn’t know that she goes by the name “Hajar”, though. He doesn’t know much about her at all. But Kenny is determined to realise his father’s final wish of reuniting with his little sister.
The overall tone of Mencari Hajar turned out to be well-balanced. While the start and end make extensive use of dramatic or melancholic music over slow motion or close-ups on faces, they don’t feel overdone. The middle sections are kept quite light, with gentle or playful instrumentals often being used to alleviate tension. For example, when Kenny’s adult daughter, Sarah (Joyce Harn), finally visits her parents after some time. Kenny nags at her incessantly—and her husband, over video call—but with the music, along with a hand-held camera gently moving with the characters, it’s a scene that feels light-heartedly familiar rather than frustrating. Even after Hajar’s daughter, Rina (Sharon Ismail), reveals the huge mistake she’s made, the film doesn’t shove their overwhelming emotions onto us. It makes us sit quietly with the characters. They’re mostly filmed in a two-shot, allowing us to see Hajar’s expression grow naturally from shock to despair to anger to acceptance while Rina sobs near her.
From left: Hajar's brother and Hajar's father
Since Mencari Hajar was made for Hari Raya Haji, it stands to reason that there needed to be some connection made to the holiday. So, while Kenny is trying to find Hajar, she is preparing to leave the country for Hajj*. This is one of the film’s several subplots.
Another subplot follows Sarah, who is not only Kenny’s daughter but also Hajar’s neighbour. Sarah moved into their apartment building about six months ago; the film depicts their growing bond even before discovering they’re relatives.
As well as adoption, Mencari Hajar portrays another way intercultural families can be formed: through marriage. Sarah is married to a Malay-Muslim man, and the film explores what this means for themselves and their families. Since Sarah is pregnant, the topic of postpartum care arises. Which tradition should she follow? Should she follow her Chinese mother’s advice? Or should she use the medicines that her Malay mother-in-law gave? The film doesn’t give us an answer. My mum, who’s been in a similar position to Sarah, didn’t use either traditional medicine. Maybe Sarah will do that.
The remaining subplot focuses on Rina’s struggles with supporting two young children as a single mother. Compared to the others, this story thread seems a bit out of place but by the end of the film, we’re shown its relevance.
From left: Kenny's wife/Sarah's mother, Kenny (Michael Chua), and Sarah (Joyce Harn)
At first, it felt like the story suddenly wrapped up all too nicely—despite its bittersweet ending. After further thought, however, I decided that even if my “logical mind” isn’t fully satisfied, the ending does work. I’d describe it as eucatastrophic.
Deus ex machina, a concept related to the eucatastrophe, doesn’t need to be avoided as much as common writing advice asserts that it does. That’s what I learnt from this film. In a LitHub article by Jonathan Walker, he discusses how he used a eucatastrophe in a novel written for his PhD in creative writing. He recounts his supervisor saying, “This is a story about Christian characters and beliefs. Shouldn’t it also have a Christian plot structure?” Walker explains that “[the] whole concept of the deus ex machina implies a secular worldview, in which divine intervention can never be the real subject of a drama, and so its introduction is always evidence of a failure of human imagination.”
Well, Mencari Hajar is a story written for an Islamic holiday. Shouldn’t it have an Islamic plot structure? I think it should. And it does. Which is very fitting.
Rating: 4/5
Mencari Hajar is available to stream on mewatch.
*Hajj is an Islamic pilgrimage that takes place annually but is only required to be performed by Muslims at least once in their lifetime. Hari Raya Haji takes place during the days of Hajj.
Last updated: Dec 28, 2025