Disappearing art: Located beneath the bridge crossing two islands on Sungai Terengganu lies the only traditional Malay boatmaking workshop in Terengganu.
KUALA TERENGGANU: In the old days, the rhythmic echoes of woodworking used to be heard across Pulau Duyong, an island nestled in Sungai Terengganu, about five minutes away from the state capital here.
This island was renowned for its unique traditional Malay boats, a cherished craft that had flourished since pre-independence times.
Today, however, the tranquil sounds of wooden boat-making have yielded to the hum of passing cars on a 4km flyover that links the two islands across the river with both riverbanks.
One boat-making workshop still persists beneath the bridge, standing as a testament to a dying tradition, while within the coastal state, only a handful of workshops are left serving as a maintenance hub for the fading heritage.
Athirah (top right) and Taib (bottom right) are hopeful that the local arts scene will thrive through active engagement with the state government.
The boat-makers, who feel the sector is being neglected, hope that the incoming state government will champion their cause.
In view of the decline of these traditional practices, these artisans have taken a proactive stance by organising a rakyat-led movement.Freelancer Athirah Lokman, 31, co-organised “Luang Layor” to promote the dying art in late July.
While she acknowledged that the demand for handcrafted traditional boats has waned over the years, she still believes that the legacy of boat-making should be continued.
“While adapting to change, we are committed to upholding our cultural heritage. Hence, our community has introduced remote-controlled replicas of traditional boats to the public.
“This way, we can preserve the art of boat-making while kindling interest, especially among the younger generation,” said Athirah, who often visits Pulau Duyong from her home in the nearby suburb of Seberang Takir.
In 2020, the Terengganu state government issued comprehensive guidelines encompassing entertainment, the performing arts, tourism and sports.
While disallowing any worship or “spells” in the performing arts that conflict with Islamic teachings, these guidelines reaffirm the government’s commitment to safeguarding unique arts and cultural activities, said state executive councillor for tourism, culture, and digital technology, Ariffin Deraman.
“Performances that are aligned with Islamic principles are permitted. For example, the wayang kulit (shadow puppet play) has found a place here. I’ve even engaged with the tok dalang (puppet master) to boost further development in this art,” he told The Star.Ariffin also highlighted the preservation of traditional court music such as gamelan as another piece of evidence of the state’s commitment to its artistic heritage.
He said the state government has also allocated resources to boost the local art scene.
“A grant of RM1mil was allocated to enhance and promote these cultural treasures, translating them into appealing tourism products.
“The allocation of RM40,000 to each of the state’s eight districts for art programmes demonstrates our commitment.“However, as we know, Covid-19 struck and most of the programmes were affected in the past few years despite having the budget allocated,” Ariffin added.
Meanwhile, an art and souvenir store operator in Pulau Duyong, Taib Abdul Razak, 44, said the local arts scene has been flourishing with the younger generation taking an interest in it.
“Sometimes, we don’t particularly need financial support. What we need would be the presence of government officials at our events or help us with promotion.
“Through that, we can reach a wider audience and at the same time increase awareness of our local arts,” said the artist who is also known as Taib Aur.
