'I wanted to be a rock star' - distinguished don recalls his roots

MALAYSIANSKINI | Distinguished Professor Shamsul Amri Baharuddin is a familiar face as an author, pundit, and analyst.

Now head of the National Council of Professors, he played a role in shaping the academic direction in his chosen field of social anthropology as the founding director of the Institute of Ethnic Studies (Kita), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM).

In 2010, he was selected as one of the five Distinguished Professors by the Higher Education Ministry and was made National Council of Professors chairperson in 2019.

Not one to rest on his laurels, he is now busy working on a series of four books that he intends to publish in the coming years, each containing chapters selected from his numerous academic articles published in the last four decades.

Among the books he has authored in the past include 'From British to Bumiputera Rule: Local Politics and Rural Development in Peninsular Malaysia (1986)', 'Malaysia's Vision 2020: Old Ideas in a New Package? (1992)', 'Enhancing Inter Ethnic Relations in Malaysia (2008)' and Unity, Cohesion, Reconciliation: One Country, Three Cherished Concepts (2014)'.

Still sporting his trademark long hair, he told Malaysiakini of the various twists and turns his life has taken.

“I am from Jempol in Negri Sembilan and I’m the oldest of five children but I’m the last surviving one so this has taught me that life...