Malaysian cosplaying couple brings their favourite characters to life

Minato and Minako from the game 'Persona 3' cosplayed by Asyraf (left) and Raja Alisya, respectively. Photos: Asyraf Noor Azizi

Cosplaying twin brothers Asyraf and Iqbal Noor Azizi, 33, “come in a package” called GGTwins, says Asyraf.

“Through this ‘name or brand’, we coordinate our cosplay activities to perform on stage together. We’ve even won competitions such as the Comic Fiesta OTP (One True Pair),” says Asyraf.

He adds that his wife Raja Alisya Raja Fajar, and sister-in-law (Iqbal’s wife) Gwen Yeshelne, are the backbone of their performance.

“They work hand-in-hand to help us behind the scenes in costume and prop sewing, etc. Without them, it would not have been possible,” he says.

In fact, it was through Iqbal that Asyraf and Raja Alisya first met.

Iqbal and Asyraf at the Comic Fiesta One True Pair (OTP) competition. Photo: Hamory Photography

“It was in 2016 during a lunch outing with my twin brother. At that time, Alisya and I didn’t know we were both from the cosplay community. We’ve been together since,” says Asyraf.

The couple got married in 2021 after their wedding was postponed a year due to the Covid-19 movement control order.

Raja Alisya cosplaying as Tiramisu at AniManGaki, an annual ACG event in Malaysia.Raja Alisya, now a housewife after giving birth to their first child, was first introduced to cosplay in 2012 by her high school friends.

“I saw how cosplay improved my close friend’s confidence from being too shy to even take group pictures at school to being able to dress up as a character and pose for photos in public at events,” she recalls.

“It made me really happy to see her glowing with her new-found confidence and I started attending more events with them,” says Raja Alisya.

Aysraf, who works at a cafe in Kuala Lumpur, started cosplaying with his brother in 2007 right after he completed his SPM.

“To me, cosplay is about the ACG (anime, comics and games) community that always gathers together for events,” he says.

“At that time, all I knew of cosplay was that it’s about bringing characters to life. The very first event I went to was Comic Fiesta 2007 where I saw someone cosplaying and it was so good.

“He played the role so well and brought the character to life, which inspired me,” he adds.

Asyraf cosplaying as Giorno Giovanna from 'Jojo's Bizarre Adventure'.After the event, Asyraf went home and ransacked his closet to find what he could to cosplay his first character – Cyborg No. 17 from Dragon Ball, a Japanese anime TV series adapted from a manga by the same name.

“Through cosplay, I get to become a character that I like.

“There’s a certain satisfaction when people see and recognise me as that character.

“It’s like the performance arts where an actor dresses up and acts a certain way to portray a character in a story,” says Asyraf.

Raja Alisya says growing up in a creative family has exposed her to many forms of art such as drawing, painting, dancing, as well as traditional arts like sewing, batik painting and writing.

“I loved expressing myself through art and cosplay is a form of art,” she says.

“My father was supportive of my interest in cosplay and even encouraged me (to pursue it). We even watch anime together as a family,” she adds.

Raja Alisya adds that she loves to cosplay characters whose personalities she can relate to.

“Being able to portray a character and bond with other fans at events is a way to make new friends with similar interests. The reaction of other fans when they recognise me as a particular character also brings me joy because I usually cosplay characters from my favourite games or childhood shows,” she says.

Asyraf says that he cosplays quite a lot of characters so it’s difficult to pinpoint which is his favourite.

“For now, I would say it’s Monkey D. Luffy from the anime series One Piece.

“The anime has been going on for more than 1,000 episodes and is recognised globally as not just an anime but a culture,” he says.

Raja Alisya says she has good memories of all the characters she has cosplayed.

“One of them is Raven, also known as Rachel Roth, from Teen Titans. It’s fun seeing the reactions of people who recognise the character when I walk past them. The adults recognise me as the Raven from the original Teen Titans comic while the kids recognise me from Teen Titans Go, the animated TV series. A little girl even followed after me to hold my hand because she loves Raven,” she says.

The couple finds inspiration from cosplayers on the local and international scene.

“I admire a lot of cosplayers for their craft. One of them is Kinpatsu Cosplay who does tutorials on sewing costumes and wig styling that’s easy to understand and follow,” says Raja Alisya.

Twin brothers Iqbal (left) and Asyraf cosplaying as Sanji and Luffy from the anime series 'One Piece'.Asyraf says cosplayers on the local scene, such as Yugana Senshi Uon, Iskandar Zend Rahim and Hani (pair), Weon Haur and Fujiwara Kazuko (pair), and Sky and Yuan, deserve mention.

“They’ve inspired me to keep on becoming a better cosplayer,” he says.

“Most of all, it’s my twin brother Iqbal and his wife Gwen who’ve always been by our side through this cosplay journey,” he adds.

Asyraf says that more needs to be done to make cosplay well known and accepted by the public.

“Most people who aren’t in the cosplay circles may not understand why we cosplay and think it’s just a bunch of people in makeup and fancy dress. But more than that, cosplayers are fans who bring their favourite characters from anime, comics and games to life,” he explains.

The couple gets some of their costumes online, but Raja Alisya also hand-sews some of them because it’s hard to find certain items in stores.

“This is why I like watching tutorials by other cosplayers,” she says.

Asyraf’s advice to newcomers is to “do your best to bring out the character you’re cosplaying and make it come to life”.

“It’s not just about wearing a costume, but portraying a character’s aura and personality. Remember, cosplay is about ‘role-playing’,” he says.

The couple reveals they’re already thinking of what character to have their baby cosplay when she’s older.

“It’ll definitely be a character that suits children such as Chopper from One Piece or Anya from Spy X Family. Both are anime characters.

“And of course, we’ll definitely let her know why her parents are so into this cosplay thing!” they answer in unison.