Big turnout and support for Orang Asal costume competition

TANDING 2.0, an Orang Asal Traditional Costume competition organised by the Perak Orang Asal Cultural Arts Association, was aimed at instilling interest in the traditional costumes of indigenous communities, especially among the youth in these tribes.

It was also aimed at encouraging innovative use of materials traditionally used to make costumes and jewellery and creative interpretations of these resources found in the natural settings of these groups.

In total, there were 2,391 contestants, which is quite the turnout for what are small isolated communities.

Winners of this competition were announced on February 28, after more than a month of promotion on the association’s Facebook page.

This effort has gone beyond expectations by sparking the interest of a larger group of people, including designers from abroad, who have contacted the participants to place orders for accessories they (the contestants) had donned during the photo shoots.

Chairman of the association, Ronnie Bahari, said the interest and demand for traditional indigenous jewellery and accessories, sparked by exposure of these on social media photos by the participants came as a surprise to the organising committee.

“Our main objective was to introduce the culture of our Orang Asal (indigenous people) to a wider group of people, and more so to encourage the youth in our communities to embrace their culture and be proud of their heritage,” he said.

Ronnie said, among the popular products of interest in demand currently, are woven items made of daun mengkuang (pandanus leaves) and manik khairil which are beads made from buah karel/dalai (karel/dalai fruit). 

Some of the designs created for or by contestants of Tanding 2.0 are unique and pretty and caught the attention of local and overseas designers who have actually placed orders for these items, he said.

“We were pleasantly surprised at the attention we received which led to individuals and corporate companies coming in to sponsor prizes in the form of cash and merchandise for the competition,” he added.

The association has however been discerning and careful with the wide exposure it has received, especially in terms of protecting the privacy of the contestants.

The winners were judged based on the creativity and innovative use of traditional and natural materials to create their costumes that had to fit into the theme - ‘Batik and Flora’.

“The results were based on the ability of contestants to innovate and use traditional materials like the mengkuang leaves and tree bark,” said Ronnie, adding this was part of efforts to create new industries for the indigenous communities. It worked, judging by the orders our participants have received, he noted.

Ronnie said, modern trends call for extensive use of traditional materials like tree bark and mengkuang leaves for weaving. 

“In the past, the Orang Asal used these materials, but their clothes were simpler then – they only covered what was necessary,” he said, adding that the use of these materials would probably not suit modern fashion requirements. 

A gown made with tree bark will probably need a good lining material underneath, if not it will probably cause itchiness and the thickness probably won’t suit our weather. This was not a problem for our ancestors who used only little pieces of it, as that was all that was needed, Ronnie said. 

The different tribes also rely on different materials for their clothes and accessories. The Mahmeri for example use wood and tree bark, while the Temiar and Semai tribes usually use palm fronds and pandanus leaves like mengkuang, palas and coconut fronds among others.

Winners of this competition received between RM500 and RM50 in cash, sponsored merchandise and certificates. - The Vibes, March 7, 2021

Photos of the top three winners, and consolation prize winners can be viewed at:

Female category: https://www.facebook.com/decktz/posts/10225021124825886

Male category: https://www.facebook.com/pkkoa.perak.1/posts/784869682460246

Most liked photo and Gerimis Special Award recipients: https://www.facebook.com/pkkoa.perak.1/posts/784872189126662