The Kajang Municipal Council and the Selangor state government recently organised a three-day festival to promote arts and culture at the Kajang stadium, so I paid a visit for work and to check out what they had in store. The Kajang Arts festival and Crafts Bazaar was the first of its kind and there were about 20 booths in the area, as well as activities lined up throughout the day.

When I got there it was a Friday afternoon, so the weather was really hot. A few buskers were giving a performance at the main stage while contestants took part in an anyaman tikar (mat weaving) competition behind them.

 

Graffiti on display

Some of the art booths with works for sale

Kids trying out an old stone grinder used to make rice flour at the Hulu Langat history booth. Back then blenders didn’t exist yet, so Malaysian families- be they Malay, Chinese or Indian – used these heavy stone grinders instead. The resulting mix would then be cooked into kuih (traditional cakes) and other yummy goodies

A collection of old photographs of the Kajang area. Kajang was one of the earliest tin mining and rubber settlements in Selangor, having been around since the 1700s. With the boom of development, many settlers came to the place, which can be seen from its rich colonial architecture and old buildings.

Chinese calligraphy by former Kajang assemblyman, ‘Cikgu’ Lee Kim Sin. He also heads theHulu Langat Community Heritage Centre.

Sketches by students from New Era College, Kajang – as part of the town’s cultural mapping project, which features beautiful artwork of old pre-war buildings in town.

Two Keris club members dressed in traditional Busana (Malay clothing) at another booth that promoted Malay heritage and art.

Selection of keris (Malay daggers), knives, parang (machete) and other decorative weapons.

Children playing checkers. She looks like she’s concentrating intensely!

Overall the fair had some interesting things to see, even though I felt that they should have more booths because I was done walking around after half an hour. They should definitely organise these festivals regularly to promote arts and culture, which is slowly gaining an interest among the locals.