The Singapore Identity
~ Journey to Finding our Roots ~
Drama -Mata Mata
A closer look at...
Mata refers to eyes in Malay and hence the name of the show Mata Mata means the watchman or the policemen in the early days. Furthermore, the title “Mata Mata” as opposed to “Policemen” serve to develop a stronger sense of identity and tapping on the historical roots and memories o.
Mata Mata is representative of the theme nostalgia as it is a police themed drama set to show hidden turbulences of the early singapore. The frequent portrayal of gang fights, strikes, opium dens, gambling, prostitution shows a different image of Singapore that is unfamiliar to the narrative known to all.
This drama was inspired by true historical events in singapore to invoke popular memories of the early Singapore with special relevance of the early singapore police force, depicted through the three women officers from the first women constabulary in Singapore. In the two seasons, viewers could follow the transformation of Singapore from the post Japanese occupation to the post independent Singapore. The storyline of the drama elucidates a social history that is familiar to all; audiences of the drama could plunge into the nostalgic setting and associate themselves with the emotions and experiences of these young policewomen.
Mata Mata was widely advertised as one of the main programmes in conjunction with Mediacorp’s celebration of 50 years of TV. It is a drama series produced by Mediacorp that representing different timeriods of Singapore. The airing of the last season of the show coincides with Singapore 50 years of independence. The very first episode of season one was aired on 9th of August 2013, right after the National Day Parade was shown. This shows how the show was a large scale production that wanted to attract as many audiences as possible. Also, it is significant that the date of the debut is on national day and the show depicts Singapore’s past.
It is interesting that the drama uses popular local celebrities from both Channel 8 and Channel 5 to garner viewership from mixed communities. The great reception of the drama hints at the success of the drama in reaching out to people from different background. There was a gala premiere for the final two hour special episode for season 1 due to its high popularity. The premiere saw the casts and producers coming down to support. This event managed to attract not only teenagers and the older generation who joined in to reminisce the past.