'I don't want my ashes to be put in an urn': Kym Ng shares thoughts on death and her funeral

Settling our funeral procedures before we die may help to ensure things do not go against our own wishes.

AsiaOne spoke to veteran actress Kym Ng on Friday (April 5) regarding her new role in Till the End, where she plays Yang Kehua, who dies and passes the management of her funeral home to her daughter (Boon Hui Lu).

As it is a show about death and spirits, we asked the 55-year-old if the production team gave her ang baos (red packets) as an auspicious compensation for her 'dying' in the drama.

"I got two red packets! One for lying in the casket and one for acting as a ghost," Kym quipped.

She also revealed her preferences for her own funeral: "I don't want a funeral. I want to be lowkey and leave quietly, and I don't want anything elaborate. I don't mind being buried in a garden. I don't want my ashes to be placed in an urn and for people to come and 'collect' me."

She added that she is impressed with the advanced funeral packages these days, which offer many options and also complete services from beginning to end.

She elaborated: "Even just for columbarium niches, there are different tiers to choose from, be it 99 years, 999 years or freehold. For funeral rites, there are also diverse themes including scuba-diving, hiking and even education, depending on their interests in life."

'I don't want a slow and painful death'

Kym's thoughts on death will probably resonate with some of us.

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When she was younger, she wasn't very afraid of death, but as she grew older, she had more concerns about how she would die.

She felt that there is a difference whether it is a "slow and painful death or an immediate death", with the latter being her preference.

Kym envies those who died in their sleep, as she feels that is the best way to leave the world.

She also has few regrets in life, having accomplished most of the things she wanted to do.

For example, she was an air stewardess and travelled to the countries she wanted to go to.

After a brief moment of contemplation, she revealed to AsiaOne that the only dream on her list now is to "live on the same street" as the rest of her family.

"For example, we own a piece of land and we live in separate houses. This way, all of us have our own spaces but we can visit each other whenever we want to. It's important for me to be close to my family. My mother can also visit her children anytime," Kym chirped hopefully.

Nonetheless, she admitted that she has one small regret: "Not going to university. I would have studied history or literature. I used to do very badly in science subjects."

She expressed that she has always liked real stories and enjoys watching documentaries and historical films in her own time, her latest favourite being the 2022 anti-war film All Quiet on the Western Front.

'Sorry, thank you, I love you'

Kym's onscreen daughter in Till The End has an iconic line in the show: "At the end of our lives, it is important to tell ourselves, 'Sorry, thank you and I love you'."

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When asked who she would say that line to, Kym said that there were no specific persons but she would say it to different groups of people.

She answered: "I would say 'Sorry' to people I have let down, 'Thank you' to everyone who has helped me, and 'I love you' to whoever has contributed to my life."

"I feel that [these three phrases] symbolise gratitude at the end of our lives, when we embrace everything life has given us."

Till the End, which began production recently, is a drama about death and the supernatural. Yang Kehua (Kym) owns a funeral home, and her daughter Lin Huiqi (Hui Lu), who can see spirits, takes over the management of the funeral home after Kehua dies. Subsequently, Huiqi and Kehua work together to help spirits solve their issues and find peace.

The drama also stars Richie Koh and Romeo Tan and will be shown on meWATCH and Channel 8 in October this year.

ALSO READ: Ate 2,000 eggs in 6 weeks: Jeremy Chan, Desmond Tan and Ayden Sng share filming adventures in Thailand and Malaysia

jolynn.chia@asiaone.com

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