Tuesday November 10, 2009

Gifts to share

By WONG LI ZA

Reviving a Malay culture through gifts from the heart.

A STAUNCH supporter of local art and artists, Toh Puan Mahani Idris Daim, founder of the non-profit organisation Yayasan Seni Berdaftar, will be launching a new project under Buah Tangan Sdn Bhd tomorrow.

The main objective of the foundation is to preserve the arts and culture of Malaysian heritage, and this latest endeavour is a natural extension of her passion.

A helping hand: ‘Through Buah Tangan, we hope to provide a constant demand for k uih muih made by these single mothers,’ says Toh Puan Mahani Idris Daim.

The project promotes local delights made by single mothers, presented as gifts in handmade, decorated bamboo baskets and trays.

“I wanted to revive the Malay gift-giving culture called buah tangan, which literally means ‘fruits of the hand’. In fact, every culture in Malaysia has its own gift-giving practice whereby we always bring a little something for the host when we visit someone.

“During my grandmother’s time, people always brought something home-cooked for friends and relatives,” says Mahani, 67, who is the wife of former Finance Minister Tun Daim Zainuddin,

Mahani makes it a point to look for traditional local delights that are home-made and will last long. Recently, she found out that most of these foodstuff were prepared by single mothers in various states like Sarawak, Kelantan and Kedah.

“Before this, they usually made the food on a small scale, as and when there were orders, while others sold them at the local markets.

Handmade, oil-painted bamboo baskets with embellishments from Buah Tangan which are filled with local delights like serunding or dodol before being given as gifts. The foodstuff is all made by single mothers in Malaysia while baskets are sourced from Bali.

“Through Buah Tangan, we hope to provide a constant demand for these kuih muih made by these single mothers. This is a project that I am so happy to be involved in. The idea is let them help themselves, so they have pride in what they do,” she says.

Mahani, whose mother is a Balinese dancer, sourced the handmade bamboo baskets and trays which are hand-painted in oil by a local artist from Bali. Some of the baskets and trays are further embellished with flowers, ribbons and beads by Buah Tangan before being filled up with local goodies. The company also makes bunga telur, a decorative gift item at weddings.

Currently, the list of sweet and savoury foodstuff available include serunding (spicy meat floss), Sarawak layer cake, dodol palas (glutinous rice bites), coconut candy, agar agar sakar (jelly bits), sweet coconut flakes (sagon) and kuah bangkit (cookies) with kaffir lime leaves.

“The serunding is by a couple in Kelantan who has been making them for over 40 years. We also have a very traditional cake from Sarawak called hati pari, a black, fruit-based cake.”

Each gift basket and tray carries the catchy tagline Buah Tangan Sikit Aje, loosely translated as “just a small gift”.

“It’s not about how much we give but the thought of giving something that counts. We can give buah tangan anytime and anywhere. It does not have to be only for special occasions,” says Mahani, adding that the baskets and trays can be reused to keep things like jewellery or as serving trays.

The price of the gift packages ranges from RM5 to RM200.

Buah Tangan Sdn Bhd will be launched tomorrow at Yayasan Seni Berdaftar. 333, Persiaran Ritchie, Off Jalan Ampang, KL. For details, call 03-4251 8466 or e-mail buahtangansikitaje@yahoo.com.