KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Jalaluddin Hassan may be known for his "Datuk" roles but he once played a woman in the play Patung Kertas staged at Istana Budaya a decade ago.
Fans commended Jalaluddin's "gutsy" move back then, but recently, some mischief-makers uploaded a photo of the 64-year-old veteran actor on WeChat, and this has made him see red.
The photo showed Jalaluddin with fellow actor Syed Wafa in a scene from Patung Kertas, and was used as the profile picture for an account holder who went by the name "Darling, For Service".
"Syed Wafa brought this to my attention yesterday, and it's clearly from Patung Kertas. I don't know the individuals who created the account with my photo, and what is their motive," said Jalaluddin in an interview Harian Metro.
"From what I see, it's clearly a mischievous and malicious prank. I want to tell these rude and uncultured individuals to stop making fun of me and fellow artistes!"
Jalaluddin also said the individuals who posted the photo were libellous, and hoped the public would shun them.
"I admit I was a little amused when I saw that photo, but if irresponsible people poke fun at me repeatedly, I will not hesitate to report them to the police," said Jalaluddin.
"Social media may be an avenue for free speech, but free speech should not descend into insults, crude jokes, libel and slander."