Jins Shamsuddin

Mohamed Zain "Jins" Shamsuddin (Jawi: محمد زين بن شمس الدين) (5 November 1935 – 1 March 2017) was a Malaysian film actor, director, politician, writer and producer.

Mohamed Jins was born in Taiping, Perak on 5 November 1935. He went to SMK King Edward VII Taiping, Perak and he completed his Senior Cambridge exams in 1956, hoping to continue his studies at the University of Malaya in Singapore (currently the National University of Singapore).^[1] His hopes were dashed when the university's admission officer said that they would "keep his application in view". His great-uncle, who was a teacher at the prestigious Anderson School in Ipoh, however managed to apply for a place to study electrical engineering in England three months into the deadline. Jins would use this spare time to take nightly English courses while he stayed with a relative who was the director for Radio Malaysia's education wing.^[1]

Meanwhile, there were rehearsals of a play that were going on nearby, in which Jins would watch them daily. The lead actor of the play would later choose him as his stand-in, with the blessings of the cast and crew, when it was learnt that the lead's mother fell ill and the lead had to attend to her. When the lead actor's mother died and he could not resume his role, Jins's stand-in became permanent.^[1] The play would eventually open at the Victoria Memorial Hall in Singapore. This is where he would be discovered by a Shaw Brothers public relations officer, who approached him about wanting to act in a movie. He agreed, and thus made his screen debut in Keluarga Tolol in 1956. He went on to act in several films until eventually becoming a main star in 1957 through Pancha Delima, a film directed by P. Ramlee.^[1]

On 13 October 2004, he became the first actor-politician in Malaysia following his appointment as a member of the Dewan Negara in the 11th Parliament of Malaysia. He was reappointed again as a Senator for a second term from 12 February 2008 until 11 February 2011.^[3][10]

Jins was first married to actress Rahmah Rahmat in Singapore in 1961, from which their marriage bore a son named Jeffry Jins. Their marriage however was short-lived, eventually divorcing in 1963. In 1986, he married Halijah Abdullah. They had two children together, Putera Hang Jebat and Putera Hang Nadim.^[11]

Jins died at 5:45 pm at a clinic in Taman Melawati after choking on cekodok on Wednesday, 1 March 2017 at the age of 81,^[12][13][14] as confirmed by his second son Putera Hang Nadim.^[15]

• Ahli Mangku Negara (A.M.N.) (1986)^[16]
• Silver Crane Award at the Asia-Pacific Film Festival (1987)
• Dato' Paduka Mahkota Perak (DPMP), which carries the title Dato' from the Sultan of Perak (1990)
• Kesatria Mangku Negara (K.M.N.) (1990)^[16]
• Johan Setia Mahkota (J.S.M.) (1993)^[16]
• Honorary Master of Letters by Universiti Sains Malaysia (1999)
• The Veteran Artist Award at the Anugerah Bintang Popular (2004)
• Panglima Jasa Negara (P.J.N.), which carries the title Datuk (2004)^[16]
• Panglima Setia Mahkota (P.S.M.), which carries the title Tan Sri (2007)^[16]
• Anugerah Seniman Negara (2009)^[17]