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Salleh Ben Joned, a witty, fearless and charismatic poet and writer who some have called the ‘bad boy of Malay literature’, has died at the age of 79.
“It is with great sadness that the family of beloved Salleh Ben Joned reports his passing this morning (Thursday, October 29 at 1.21 am) due to heart failure. On Tuesday he was having difficulty breathing at his home in Subang Jaya and was protected. at the University Malaya Medical Center, “read a statement from the family on Salleh’s Facebook page.
Often regarded as a maverick in the arts, culture, and literary scene here, Salleh was known as much for his bilingual poetry as for his prose.
He was born in Melaka on July 4, 1941, and in 1963 the young Salleh received a scholarship from the Colombo Plan to study English literature in Australia. He ended up spending 10 years in Australia, first in Adelaide and then Tasmania.
At the University of Tasmania, Salleh became a student of the late James McAuley, one of Australia’s leading poets.
After completing his BA with honors, Salleh returned to Kuala Lumpur in 1973 and joined the Department of English at the Universiti Malaya, which he left in 1983 to become a freelance writer.
His first collection of poetry, in both Malay and English, Salleh Poems / Sacred and Profane Poems was published in 1987.
In a 2003 interview on The star, Salleh addressed his label “hipster” head-on.
“To be frank, I’ve often been called that. I have not publicly said, ‘No, I am not.’ It’s certainly how some people perceive me and I think there is some truth to it, “he said.
In the same interview, he stressed that poetry was his main form of expression.
“I have dabbled in other forms of writing, such as the play, Amuk Mat Solo. First I consider myself a poet. But rehearsals are more accessible. Poetry has a more limited audience, “he added.
As i please, a collection of his work in the New times of the Strait came out in 1994, and his second collection of newspaper articles Nothing is sacred was published in 2003.
His book of poetry Adam’s dream was released during the Kuala Lumpur Literary Festival in 2007.
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