Malaysia: Soul act

Malaysia celebrates cultural harmony through music and dance.

At the foot of the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, the drumbeats set the tone for the evening. On the brightly illuminated street below, around 600 boys and girls sway to the rhythm of the music in their sparkling, ethnic costumes and elaborate headdresses. Their electrifying energy is almost palpable for the audience positioned a few feet away. And just like the name promises, the 2014 Citrawarna festival in Malaysia begins with a riot of music, culture and colour.

As part of the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 campaign, the event, held in May each year, was a run-up to the grand ‘Colours of 1 Malaysia’ scheduled to take place in September. The Citrawarna, which was first celebrated in 1999, has become a favourite with tourists and locals over time. Each year the kaleidoscope of fascinating performances draws throngs of people and this year was no exception. An estimated 30,000 people flocked to the Malaysian capital to enjoy this cultural extravaganza featuring folk songs, dance and traditional costumes from around Asia.

A performer during the traditional orang kita dance.

The parade passed through the Malaysia Tourism Centre and Jalan P Ramlee area, famous for its nightlife, and aptly concluded at the city’s landmark. The evening’s performances began with Atilia singing ‘The Best Time of Your Life’, the melody she sung as an advertisement for the Department of Tourism of Malaysia. This was followed by a powerhouse performance by 22-year-old Iqwal Hafiz whose footwork was as effortless as his singing. As the audience chanted ‘one more’, the singer seamlessly took up a soft, soulful Chinese number to please the majority in the audience. Just when it seemed that the music and singing was taking a ‘softer’ turn, a flurry of drumbeats ushered in the dancers and the rest of the evening flew by like a swirl of colour.



To give a true feel of Malaysia, some of the country’s 13 member states, including Sarawak and Sabah, participated to give audiences a taste of their culture and traditional dances. Even the Orang Asli, ‘aboriginal people’ in Malay, wore their masks and charged up the audience with their foot stamping. The Chinese also exhibited their culture with the traditional harvest dance, swinging their sangmos (spinning streamer) and creating beautiful curves with ribbons. The Punjabi Indians in their neon-coloured, satin Patiala shalwars and turbans gracefully did the bhangra to the beats of famous Punjabi Bollywood tunes, and many from the audience joined in. Along with the cultural dances, a group of young performers in their crisp black uniforms and matching belts also showcased their strength in a powerful act of self-defence and street dancers commanded the stage with their head-turning stunts and fitting street attitude.

Firework display during the final dance performance.

It is impossible to do justice to culture without a dosage of fashion. Girls in saris and Chinese-style gowns with six-inch platform heels walked the red carpet in pairs of two, while striking a pose with wide smiles before the mostly amateur photographers in the audience. The parade ended with the girls standing in a row before the musicians on the stage and joining the dancers for a final performance. And just when the crowd began to thin out, famous Malaysian singer Datuk Muhammad Daud Bin Kilau made an appearance and started singing the tunes most Malays listened to while growing up.

A Chinese dancer performing the harvest dance.

As the evening concluded with music in the background and the image of the iconic twin towers lit up in a barrage of fireworks, the vision of a united Malaysia shone brighter than ever.

THE ABOVE PHOTOS HAVE BEEN PROVIDED BY ‘TOURISM MALAYSIA’.

Dilaira Dubash is a senior subeditor on The Express Tribune magazine desk. She tweets @DilairaM 

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, June 8^th, 2014.