Julia Rais

Che Puan Julia Abdul Rais (born 19 February 1971) is a Malaysian former model and actress. She is a member of the Bendahara dynasty by marriage, as the second wife of Abdullah of Pahang, the 6th modern Sultan of Pahang and 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.

Julia had a successful, but short, career in Malaysia as a film actress in the early 1990s and was known for her European features. She played the title character in the 1990 films Isabella and Mira Edora and in the 1992 film Nadia. Julia also had roles in the films Hati Bukan Kristal, Driving School, and Suci Dalam Debu. She received two awards and a nomination for Best Actress at the 9th Malaysian Film Festival in 1991. She ended her acting career shortly after marrying into the Pahang royal family.

Early life and family

Julia was born in Kota Bharu, Kelantan on 19 February 1971. She is of Malay and English ancestry. She is the daughter of Abdul Rais Yeop, a Malaysian businessman and former board member of Sri Jaya Vehicles, from his second marriage to an English wife. She grew up in Damansara Jaya with her late father and late stepmother, Zaedah-tul Laily @ Lily Ibrahim. She has a sister, the late Zalina, and two stepsiblings, Mohd Rafiza and Fazlyn. She is also a cousin of the politician Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz and a step-cousin of award-winning actress Juliana Ibrahim.

Career

Julia began acting and modelling in the late 1980s in television commercials for Procter & Gamble and Rejoice Shampoo. Her first film was the 1990 romance film Isabella, where she played the title character. From 1990 to 1992 she appeared in several films as a supporting character. She played Nina, a journalist, in the film Hati Bukan Kristal and was the lead role in the comedy Driving School. She also had lead roles in the films Mira Edora, Nadia, and Suci Dalam Debu.

At the Malaysian Film Festival in 1991, Julia won the Bintang Harapan Award and the Best Film Award for Hati Bukan Kristal and was nominated for Best Actress for Mira Edora.

She ended her career in the entertainment industry shortly after marrying into the Pahang royal family.

Marriage and issue In 1991, she married Al-Sultan Abdullah, who was then the heir-apparent to the Sultanate of Pahang, as his second wife. Her husband's first wife is Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah. She is styled as Yang Amat Berbahagia (The Most Honourable).

Her husband succeeded his father as the sixth Sultan of modern Pahang on 15 January 2019. He was the sixteenth Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia) from 31 January 2019 until 30 January 2024.

She and the sultan have three daughters together: Her Highness Tengku Puteri Raja Tengku Puteri Iman Afzan (born on 11 November 1992); married His Highness Tengku Abu Bakar Ahmad bin Almarhum Tengku Arif Bendahara Tengku Abdullah His Highness Tengku Zayn Edin Shah (born on 23 July 2019) Her Highness Tengku Aleya Norlini (born on 2 February 2022) Her Highness Tengku Puteri Raja Tengku Puteri Ilisha Ameera (born on 1 October 1993) Her Highness Tengku Puteri Raja Tengku Puteri Ilyana Alia (born on 20 April 1997); married Christopher Lionel Froggatt

Personal life Julia is a practitioner of Sunni Islam and a spiritual follower of Yasmin Mogahed.

She lives in Great Britain with her mother, who is British.

Filmography Film Year Title RoleDirector Notes 1990 IsabellaRoziMarwan Alkatiria Malaysia - Indonesia joint venture filmHati Bukan KristalNinaRaja Ahmad AlauddinMira EdoraMira EdoraZulkifli M. OsmanDriving SchoolSallyOthman Hafsham1992NadiaNadiaRahman AdamSuci Dalam DebuRinaZulkifli M. Osman

Television film

Television Year Title Role TV Channel Notes 1990 2+1 Sofi TV3 Episode: "Sofi"

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Videography +Music videosYearSong titleSinger1989"Isabella"Amy Search