Speaking with Som Said and her son, Adel Ahmad, one can immediately sense the warm relationship between mother and son. And this familial warmth also extends to the workplace, given that Adel now leads Singapore’s first fully professional Malay dance company, Sri Warisan Som Said Performing Arts, that his mother founded in 1997. Sri Warisan is a complete family affair: Som oversees all artistic decisions, while her husband Ahmad Sawal manages the company’s finances.
Adel serves as the managing director, and his wife Marina Yusoff spearheads the marketing division. “My succession plan was executed in merely five years!” Som, a 1987 Cultural Medallion recipient, says half-jokingly. “When Adel came on board in 2000 after returning from his studies in Canada, he was able to modernise Sri Warisan, while I made sure that the practice stays rooted to tradition.”
(Related: Singapore's Indian Dance Pioneer Santha Bhaskar On The Limitless Possibilities Of Choreography)