Helping hand: Sabah native girls getting ready for the festival.
A new project by Petronas offers a look into the Harvest Festival in Sabah and Sarawak.
WHERE else can you find blowpipe competitions, beauty pageants, homemade rice wine, arm wrestling and traditional warrior dances all in one place? Once a year in Sabah and Sarawak, the local folks get together for several days of traditional rituals and merry-making to give thanks to the spirits and gods for a good rice harvest, and to ask for a bountiful one the following year.
The annual Pesta Kaamatan in Sabah (or Gawai Dayak, as it is known in Sarawak) is a religious, cultural and social festival, which has its roots in ancient beliefs and culture.
From the ngajat – a traditional warrior dance where the men adopt energetic, aggressive movements, complemented by the precise and graceful motions of the female dancers, elaborate headgear and a hypnotic percussion beat – to the communal preparation of traditional dishes, this multi-faceted celebration is truly unique.
Another popular event during the festival is the highly anticipated beauty pageant Unduk Ngadau, that will see the selection of the fairest in the land. Like many other aspects of this annual celebration, the pageant is steeped in history: Legend has it that the Creator, after creating animals and humans, had to sacrifice his only daughter so that his people would have seeds to grow the food they need.
This year, Petronas embarks on a project to capture bits of this fascinating festival in East Malaysia. The Petronas Kaamatan and Gawai Webisodes will be presented as a series of 12 webisodes (short online videos) which will be uploaded sequentially on Petronas’ official YouTube channel from June 25 onwards.
The series will also offer an insight into Petronas’ signature corporate social responsibility programme Sentuhan Kasih, where the company’s employees join in the celebrations and embody the spirit of camaraderie by reaching out to those who are less fortunate in the community.
“Petronas has always sought to bring Malaysians closer together by setting an example through our interaction with the communities we work with and our stakeholders. This includes taking the lead in sharing the concept of togetherness and cross-cultural understanding with our stakeholders by being a part of each celebration with them,” says Petronas senior general manager of group corporate affairs division Datuk Mohammad Medan Abdullah, in a press statement.
Hosted by television personality Pamela Chong, this is the first time Petronas is producing a webisode series revolving around the Kaamatan and Gawai celebrations. Each webisode is three to four-and-a-half minutes long.
“The webisodes will educate and remind all Malaysians about how diverse we are as a nation, yet similar in so many ways through the values that we share and the traditions which we continue to hold dear,” says Mohammad.
“This is why it is so important to understand each other better and celebrate our rich cultural heritage.”
He adds that Petronas endeavours to portray positive values in each of their festive campaigns in a way that is relatable to everyone in our multicultural nation.
It is no different for The Petronas Kaamatan and Gawai Webisodes.
There will be special episodes aired in honour of 2013 being the 50th anniversary of Malaysia Day, which commemorates the formation of the Federation of Malaysia.
A new webisode will be available exclusively on the Petronas official YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/PETRONASOfficial) every Tuesday and Friday, from today onwards.
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