Please Hold the Line

A young scam call operator is thrust into a moral dilemma as she navigates a life-changing situation.  

Malaysia has one of the world's highest rates of scam calls, numbering over 90 million scam calls a year. Even with a population that's one-third of that amount, the multilingual nature of Malaysians results in the nation being a massive contributor to that statistic. As a Malaysian, I've been on the receiving end of scam calls. Part of me couldn't help but feel curious—what is it like on the other end of the call? I wanted to shed light on scam calls, but instead of taking a moral stance on the issue, I wish to dive deeper into what it is like for scam callers. Beneath the exterior of a heartless, manipulative voice lies another human being like you and me. Please Hold The Line is ultimately a story about communication. It looks at the irony of how commonplace it is for people to connect and network with those outside while simultaneously struggling to communicate with their loved ones at home.