Malaysia bans "raunchy" Indonesian musician

Malaysia bans "raunchy" Indonesian musician

Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia has banned a music program featuring controversial Indonesian singer Inul Daratista because it was "too raunchy," a report said on Thursday.

The musical was among 21 feature films, television sitcoms and documentaries banned by the state-run Film Censorship Board for not conforming to government guidelines, The Star said.

Officials were not immediately available for comments.

Dangdut singer Inul is hugely popular in Indonesia but her dance style has been condemned as erotic by some Muslim leaders and she has been banned from performing in several provinces.

Former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid has defended Inul after Islamic preacher and rock star Rhoma Irama denounced her dance style as "haram" or forbidden by the religion.

Abdurrahman -- himself a Muslim cleric -- said Rhoma was obstructing freedom of expression in the name of religion.

Inul has not released any recordings but VCD sales of her dangdut performances -- traditional Indonesian music with a strong Indian and Arabic influence -- have soared due to the publicity.

The Star said an estimated three million copies of pirated VCDs of her performances have been sold.

Other works banned by the board included a serial documentary titled Kingdom of David: the saga of the Israelites, and one episode of television sitcom Seinfeld titled The Abstinence, the daily said.

This mainly Muslim nation frowns on excessive violence and sexual material in films, and also often axed movies due to religious grounds.