KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, January 25, 2007: (HPI note: A kavadi is a decorated wood arch carried in procession during the festival of Thaipusam honoring Lord Murugan. Pots of milk are carried on each end of the arch and offered to the Deity upon arrival at the temple. Kavadi range in size from small to large affairs weighing over 100 pounds. What is described in this article are the small to medium ones. Hinduism Today is covering Thaipusam in Malayasia in a big way this year. It will be the feature story in the July issue.)
Malaysian-made kavadis are now much sought after overseas. Hindus celebrating Thaipusam in Australia, Canada, Africa and Japan are ordering the kavadis to fulfil their vows. Devotees from India have also made several trips here to take home samples of kavadi decorations as they felt the decorations here were grander. Kavadi decorator Soraja Maniam said most of her customers living abroad were fascinated with Malaysian-made kavadis. “They say our kavadis are very grand. Those from India are also following our designs,” said the 57-year-old who has been decorating kavadis for 30 years. She started on a small scale by helping devotees to decorate their kavadis for Thaipusam. However, word soon got around of her exquisite kavadis and her fame spread far and wide when she placed advertisements in foreign newspapers several years ago. “People who visited Malaysia came to my shop to buy the kavadis. In view of the demand, I decided to have agents in several countries to enable my customers to buy the kavadi of their choice,” she said.
The requests usually start pouring in one month before the festival. “I never expected to sell kavadis overseas. It is like a dream come true,” she said while decorating a medium-sized kavadi at her shop in Batu Caves. Most of her overseas clients prefer medium-sized kavadis decorated with colourful streamers, peacock feathers and a spear (the “vel” of Lord Muruga). Hindu Sangam president Datuk A. Vaithilingam said although some traders had begun to sell kavadis overseas, it was still on a small scale to cater to Hindus living abroad. Soraja started making kavadis to fulfil a vow she made to Lord Muruga, who is the son of Lord Siva. “After having four sons, I made a wish for a daughter. After seven years, my wish was fulfilled and I vowed to make kavadis for His devotees,” she said. She now runs the Sri Ambal store with an assistant. They take about 30 minutes to decorate a kavadi. Her kavadis are sold for between US$15 and $88, depending on the size and decorations.
Devotees and tourists are expected to throng the Sri Subramaniam temple in Batu Caves during the Thaipusam festival, with kavadi bearers climbing the 272 steps to the famous temple as a show of faith, sacrifice and fulfillment of vows. This year, the festival falls on Feb 1 and it has also been included as one of the major events in the tourism calendar for Visit Malaysia Year.