Sinar Bestari Education Carnival: Indian students win Dikir Barat competition

SHAH ALAM - Two Indian students from SMK Seksyen 10 Kota Damansara won the Dikir Barat Competition at the Sinar Bestari Education Carnival in Shah Alam.

C Vreshvanan and M Arun Prasat played the maracas and gendang anak, respectively, in an Independence Day themed performance. Vreshvanan said he joined Dikir Barat after being invited by a teacher who was looking for participants to represent the school in a competition last year.

"I started with playing the gendang anak. This time, I played the maracas.

"I had fun and if possible, I want to study the art of Dikir Barat more seriously after this," he said.

SMK Seksyen 10 Kota Damansara also won the prizes for The Best Tukang Karut and Tok Jogho.

Danish Arshad Mohd Rizal, who played the role of Tukang Karut, said that the busy activities at school had caused them to spend additional time practicing together in a group to master the Kelantan dialect.

He hoped that outsiders could help revive this old heritage so that it would not fade away.

SMK Seksyen 10 coach and teacher Mohd Rashimi Mohamad said that 20 students were involved and two months were consumed to prepare for the Dikir Barat Competition.

He said he supported the effort to hold a school-level Dikir Barat competition in an effort to honour classic cultural arts.

"I think it's good that competitions like this are organised because they can discover new talents that are not only for the Kelantanese community, but also for outsiders," he said.