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Once upon a time in Ipoh, a young teacher named Hasmiza Othman taught kindergarten kids how to read and write. She wasn’t rich, but she was driven - and her dreams were brighter than the sequins she’d one day be famous for.
That teacher later became Dato’ Seri Vida - Malaysia’s most flamboyant entrepreneur, a walking pink diamond with a voice louder than her handbags. She built her beauty empire Vida Beauty from scratch and with the RM1 million grant she received from the government, her business grew.
Everything she touched seemed to glitter. Her Qu Puteh line turned her into a household name. At one point, even if you didn’t buy her products, you could still hear “Qu Puteh! Qu Puteh! Qu Puteh!” echoing in your sleep.
And oh, she wasn’t shy about spending her wealth. Mansions, cars, jewelleries. She even gave a RM1 million sponsorship for the Kelantan football team, where she painted the field pink (figuratively, thank God).
She also spent RM1 million for the I Am Me music video. She wanted Taylor Swift–level glamour. She wanted her visuals to scream “success”.
But here’s the thing about glitter – it’s pretty, but it doesn’t stick forever.
In 2016, her empire took a hit when Qu Puteh was banned by the Health Ministry for containing mercury and other harmful substances. Her products were pulled off shelves. She cried on TV, swore she’d fix things, and promised a comeback. And she did - for a while.
In 2018, there was a controversy surrounding a set of jewellery worth RM80,000 her company DSV Gold and Jewelry was sponsoring for a singing competition. It was later revealed that the gold and diamond jewelleries had no real value - they were fake.
Then came another storm. In 2022, forty-one investors filed a lawsuit against her over Lavida Coin, demanding RM59 million. They claimed they never got back their money after investing in her cryptocurrency venture. Vida said she was shocked - but the suit was very real.
Fast-forward to today, and the headlines are less “Diva Life” and more “Debt and Drama.”
A court has ordered the auction of her four luxury cars and 727 personal items from her Ipoh mansion. We’re talking everything from designer bags to a Coway water filter and a Sharp toaster. The reason? She owes more than RM1 million to a subcontractor company - and after almost a year of postponements and excuses, the court said enough is enough.
And now, people are asking: How does someone who once flaunted millions not have a million to spare? And where did all that money go?
Because this isn’t some one-off business hiccup. It’s a pattern - big dreams, bigger spending, and a trail of unpaid bills left behind the pink sparkle.
But maybe that’s the lesson here. Money can make you loud, but it doesn’t make you smart. You can buy fame, followers, even Bentleys and pink Lamborghini - but you can’t buy financial sense.
And maybe, just maybe, it’s time we stop treating every flashy millionaire as an inspiration story and start asking what happens after the sponsorships, after the glamour, after the lights dim.
So what’s the moral of the story, sayang? Simple. Glitter fades. Branding is temporary. But debt? Debt is forever.
Or as Vida herself might say - you can shout “Qu Puteh!” all day, but when the creditors come knocking, the only word they want to hear is “Qu Bayar.”
Fa Abdul (fa.abdul.penang@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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