Army Daze actors reunite at rapper Sheikh Haikel’s restaurant
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Sheikh Haikel (centre) with the main cast of Army Daze – (from left) Kevin Verghese, Edward Yong, Adrian Lim and Ahamed Azad.
PHOTO: INFERNOXV/INSTAGRAM
- The main cast of the 1996 local film Army Daze reunited at rapper Sheikh Haikel’s restaurant to show support after he disclosed his Stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis.
- Edward Yong and fellow actors shared photos and heartfelt messages, praising Haikel’s strength and expressing gratitude for their reunion after 29 years.
- Playwright Michael Chiang and other celebrities also offered encouragement, highlighting Haikel’s inspiring fight amid ongoing chemotherapy and operations.
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SINGAPORE – The main cast of local military comedy Army Daze (1996) reunited recently at Hai Ge Ji, rapper Sheikh Haikel’s Bussorah Street restaurant, after his cancer disclosure.
The former actors were the latest group of local personalities to express support for Haikel after the musician and food entrepreneur revealed that he has Stage 4 colon cancer in an Instagram video on Sept 4.
Army Daze’s lead actor Edward Yong posted on Instagram on Sept 20 two photos of the visit, with his co-stars Kevin Verghese, Adrian Lim and Ahamed Azad also seen in the pictures.
“It’s been 29 years. Feels like a lifetime ago, but seeing the lot of you again, it almost feels like no time has passed,” Yong wrote. “We haven’t been able to get together as frequently as we would have liked, but I am always grateful when we manage it.”
Yong said he is happy to catch up with his former castmates, who have started their own families or gone into other ventures.
“Here’s wishing everyone all the best and every blessing, and especially to @sheikhhaikel as he battles a monster,” Yong wrote. “Stay strong and fighting as you always have. A shout-out to his wife @belleamafia for the hospitality and for her unfailing support of Haikel – you shall be rewarded for your perseverance.”
Haikel, 50, is married to former actress-host Anna Belle Francis, 48, and they have three children aged 12, 22 and 23.
The rapper also posted a photo of the gathering on Instagram the same day, with the caption: “Army Daze… forever and a day.”
The movie, about five recruits undergoing basic military training, starred Haikel as Johari Salleh, with Yong as Malcolm Png, Azad as Krishnamoorthy, Lim as Teo Ah Beng and Verghese as Kenny Pereira.
Playwright and screenwriter Michael Chiang, who penned Army Daze, also expressed his joy at the gathering.
Army Daze starred (from left) Edward Yong as Malcolm Png, Adrian Lim as Teo Ah Beng, Sheikh Haikel as Johari Salleh, Ahamed Azad as Krishnamoorthy and Kevin Verghese as Kenny Pereira.
PHOTO: CATHAY ORGANISATION
“So wonderful to see this reunion of the five amazing guys who brought Malcolm, Kenny, Johari, Krishna and Ah Beng to life on the big screen,” Chiang wrote. “Thank you, Edward, Kevin, Haikel, Azad and Adrian for immortalising my five Army Daze characters. Always and forever.”
He added: “Wishing Haikel light, love and strength as you continue on this journey battling the evil C. Know that you really are such an inspiration.”
In a Sept 5 interview with The Straits Times, Haikel said he had gone through chemotherapy and four major abdominal operations that cleared the primary tumour in the colon.
The cancer had already progressed aggressively to Stage 4 and spread to his liver by the time he started his treatments, and he would be undergoing more chemotherapy.
Other celebrities who have publicly expressed solidarity with Haikel include local actors Aaron Aziz, Benjamin Heng and Alaric Tay, actor-hosts Suhaimi Yusof and Gurmit Singh, as well as radio veteran Bernard Lim.