Radin Mas Ayu

Radin Mas Ayu (Jawi: رادين ماس آيو; Javanese: ꦫꦢꦶꦤ꧀ꦩꦱ꧀ꦲꦪꦸ; literally "Princess of Golden") was a Javanese princess, who is the namesake of the Radin Mas subzone in Bukit Merah. She is believed to have been buried at Mount Faber in Singapore, reportedly the site of her demise. She has also appeared in popular culture, being portrayed by Malaysian actress Latifah Omar in a 1959 biographical drama film adaptation of her story.

Background According to the legend, Radin Mas Ayu was a princess from Java, born from a secret marriage between a prince named Pangerang and a troupe dancer. When the ruling Sultan found out about the secret marriage, he ordered the execution of Pangerang for marrying a lowly commoner, which resulted in the widowed Pangerang and his daughter escaping to Temasek and starting a new life there. It is said that later on he took a new wife of royal blood, whom despised Radin Mas Ayu. The stepmother and her nephew, Tengku Bagus, planned to assassinate Pangerang, which was foiled by a prince named Tengku Cik.

Another version of the story, published by The Straits Times, relates that Pangerang married a daughter of one of the Temenggongs of Johor, hence setting this story in the 19th century CE, which was the time period of Temenggong rule. The Temenggong connection is further explored in a later story, which states that Radin Mas was a Shi'ite woman who converted to Sunni Islam to marry Temenggong Abdul Rahman, but was not allowed to be buried in his royal burial ground (Makam Diraja Teluk Blangah) upon her death due to the fact that she had Shi'ite origins.

Tomb The mausoleum of Radin Mas Ayu known as Makam Puteri Radin Mas Ayu sits at the foothills of Mount Faber and is regarded as a keramat. It is painted in yellow to signify the royalty of the entombed.

Due to an increase in practices at the site that are deemed un-Islamic by the caretaker, the mausoleum is partly managed by the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura who have printed signs at the grave asking that visitors be mindful of the Islamic religious practices at graves. A mosque in Telok Blangah was named after her, Masjid Radin Mas, until it was demolished in 2001 and replaced by a larger mosque, Masjid Al-Amin, also located in the same area. In 1926, the Radin Mas Boys School was established, which later evolved into the secular nongendered Radin Mas Primary School in 1984.

In popular culture In 1959, Cathay-Keris Films produced a black-and-white film, Radin Mas, which was an autobiographical drama adapatation of the legend. Directed by L. Krishnan, the film starred Malaysian actress Latifah Omar as Radin Mas Ayu, while M. Amin portrayed her father Pangerang. The film alternates between scenes depicting the story and scenes depicting the present, with the latter showing scenery and shots of the mausoleum of Radin Mas, although some of the shots were of a fake grave prop created for the film.