Thaipusam: Another quite celebration

SHAH ALAM - Festive seasons in Malaysia have been a quite and muted affair for the past two years due to the pandemic and the Movement Control Order (MCO) in place.

Today, is the day of the much-awaited Thaipusam festival and those celebrating were in high spirit on the special occasion despite the restriction orders.

Some decided to celebrate in moderation as they were concerned about the risks of contracting Covid-19, especially since the surge of the Omicron variant.

Anita Krishnan shared that she did not go all out like she used to for this year's celebration as she feared being infected by the virus.

The 29-year old said she celebrated the special occasion at home and decided to not go out to visit Batu Caves or the other popular spots during the festival.

Although people would follow the standard operating procedures (SOP), there were still a lot of people who were going to be there and this meant that there is a possibility to contract the virus.

“For Thaipusam this year, I decided to make it small and celebrate it only with my family and close friends since I am scared to go out to Batu Caves due to the pandemic.

"So, I made up my mind to play it safe this time and celebrate it at home,” she told Sinar Daily.

She said the celebration was still meaningful to her since she could still perform the traditional rituals and meet her family and close friends on the joyful occasion.

She also shared her yearly routine for the celebration in which she would wake up as early as 5.30am and prepare the traditional dishes for her family and guests to enjoy.

"Before anyone in the house was allowed to eat, some of the portion of the food would be placed on a tray to be given to the birds.

"We will do our prayers together after we eat," she said.

She said she hoped that the pandemic will end soon as she was looking forward to celebrate Thaipusam next year in Batu Caves.

Meanwhile, Tanusha, 24, said there were no celebrations at her house, this year, since her family is still grieving over her grandmother's death, last month.

“Many of my friends are not celebrating Thaipusam too, this year or even if they did, they would probably hold a small celebration as everyone is still being very cautious due to the pandemic,” she said.

Ramesh Rajabran, 42, said that Thaipusam celebration, this year was very different compared to the previous years since there were SOPs in place and people have been advised to avoid crowded places like Ipoh, Penang and Batu Caves.

He said he felt happy that Thaipusam was being celebrated minimally and people were complying strictly to the SOPs implemented to ensure the safety of everyone and minimise the risk of Covid-19 infections during the festive season.

“This year, I prayed for the pandemic to be over all over the world by next year so that we can get back to our normal routine,” he said.