“CUBA la you all buat macam gelak gelak (Why don’t you all try and look like you’re having some fun and laugh),” barks the diminutive NST photographer, Syazana, as she prepares to secure that perfect shot, her camera trained on the subjects like a sniper gun.
Just in front of her, one seated erect on a wooden box, and the other standing, are Malaysia’s Muay Thai sensations, Mohammed “Jordan Boy” Mahmoud and his brother, Nidal “King Joker”. Partially attired in their respective takes of the “Raya” look, both men are in good spirits, bantering incessantly as the full glare of several studio lights continue to shine on their handsome faces.
In one corner, his eyes looking on with pride, is the patriarch of the family, Kuwait-born Mahmoud Omar standing next to his jubah-clad wife, Kedahan Rohaya Ishak. Meanwhile, the couple’s two younger children, Puteri Rania and Putra Abdullah are engrossed in their own chatter as they wait patiently for their elder siblings to complete their turn under the spotlight.
“So Baba, where’s balik kampung this year?” I ask, sidling next to the well-built Mahmoud and interrupting his concentration. The tiniest flicker of disappointment crosses his rugged visage before Baba, as Mahmoud is fondly known, replies with a small smile: “Not this year my dear. We’ll be in Kuala Lumpur and not balik kampung to Alor Setar as my eldest son, Nidal will be fighting in Kelantan on the third day of Hari Raya.”
“OK, it’s a wrap!” the sound of the photographer’s voice slices into our conversation, and we both turn to watch her flick the switch to the studio lights off, as the lanky Mohammad slides off his perch on the wooden box, signalling the end of what has been a most lively Raya photoshoot with the Mahmoud clan a.k.a. Team Jordan Boy.
ENDEARING TRADITION
“This Raya is going to be a bit subdued because we’re not heading back to Kedah where mum’s family is. So we haven’t really gone all out like we normally do… you know, with the baju and the festive expenses,” begins Mohammed (or Mat), the all-action ONE Championship athlete (Asia’s largest global sports media property) synonymous for his dapper fashion sense, as we make ourselves comfortable on the couch at the studio’s waiting area to commence our interview.
The rest of the family members troop out one by one and enthusiastically take their respective seats around us. Eyes sparkling mischievously, the 23-year-old, sensing his elder brother’s arrival, adds pointedly: “And it’s all Nidal’s fault la!”
As the 25-year-old Nidal throws me a sheepish look, and the rest of the family break into a chorus of “Yaaaa”, patriarch Mahmoud swoops in to soften the blow, elaborating: “With Nidal fighting on the third day of Raya, there’s no way we’d just go. Family is important to me and keeping my family together is something that will always be my priority. But yes, this will be the first time that we will not be heading back to my wife’s kampung.”
The 50-year-old, who was born in Kuwait but spent his formative years in Jordan, admits that the Raya tradition of balik kampung and open house gatherings with family and friends are practices that he loves most about his adopted country, where he has been residing for the last 30 years.
Shares Baba: “The balik kampung tradition and going from house to house visiting each other, the feasting and general merriment, it’s not something we have back home. When I see the expressions of happiness on my children’s faces when they meet with their cousins and relatives whom they don’t get to see on a daily basis… well, it brings me a lot of joy.”
Seeing my perplexed expression, he elaborates that it is Eid al-Adha or Festival of the Sacrifice, the second of the two Islamic holidays that honours the willingness of Prophet Ibrahim (PBUH) to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God’s command that’s celebrated on a bigger scale. This is when all the fanfare of slaughtering goats and cows takes place.
OF DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES
Eid al-Fitr or Hari Raya Aidilfitri as we know it here is a one-day affair there and generally entails making swift visits to each other’s homes. Shares Baba: “In Jordan, the homes are very close to each other so we don’t need to do all that balik kampung exodus where everyone is on the road bracing for the long drive back. At the most, it will be a 15-minute drive away as families tend to stay around the same place.”
Also, unlike in Malaysia, the occasion is not centred on food. Continuing, he adds: “Here you have all the kuih raya (raya biscuits) lined on the table and delicious lemang and ketupat etc. We don’t dwell at any one house long enough to enjoy any kind of feasting. Unless it’s the main sibling’s house and it’s been decided that the family gathering should take place there. Then there’ll be some cooking and we’ll have some makan makan (food). Red meat tends to feature heavily on our festive menu.”
“Mansaf!” interjects his son Mohammed, eyes lighting up. Noting my questioning look, the KL-based athlete elaborates that it’s a traditional Arab dish that the whole family enjoys. Mansaf, a national dish of Jordan, with roots in the country’s Bedouin population, is made of a leg of lamb or large pieces of mutton, on top of a markook (unleavened Arabic flatbread) that has been topped with yellow rice.
A type of thick dried yogurt made from goat’s milk, called jameed, is poured on top of the lamb and rice giving the dish its distinct flavour and taste. The whole thing is then garnished with cooked pine nuts and almonds. “It’s mostly cooked on special occasions like weddings, a birth, Ramadan of Eid,” explains Mohammed.
“And sweets!” chips in Nidal, with a smile. Arabic sweets, I duly learn, are a must-have on every occasion. There’s the famous Kanafeh, a traditional dessert made with thin noodle-like pastry, or alternatively fine semolina dough, soaked in sweet, sugar-based syrup, and typically layered with cheese, or with other ingredients such as clotted cream or nuts, depending on the region.
Or Baklava, a rich, sweet dessert pastry made of layers of filo filled with chopped nuts and sweetened and held together with syrup or honey. And of course, there are many more! “My mother was very good at making these special sweets,” adds Baba, whose favourite Raya food, he happily shares, are ketupat and rendang.
Asked to summarise the main similarities, Baba, who has three siblings, replies: “Well, we also have the practices of buying new clothes for the occasion, giving out the duit raya (green packets) and having relatives come for a visit. On the morning of Hari Raya, we’d go and visit the family kubur (graveyard).”
A small smile crossing his face, Baba shares that as a child, the most memorable thing for him was receiving the duit raya. And getting new clothes. He recalls: “My grandfather used to go to the bank and take out these shiny new coins to give to us, the children. Our eyes used to light up at the sound of the coins gathering in our pockets. Getting new clothes was also very exciting. My father was working in Dubai and just before Raya, we’d get new clothes sent to us from there. And the clothes, because they were from Dubai, would be expensive and stylish.”
FAMILY FIRST
The genial patriarch, whose children are all involved in the martial arts scene, came to Malaysia in 1989 to study at the International Islamic University in Selangor. There he obtained his Bachelor of Economics degree, graduating in 1993.
He eventually met his Kedahan wife, Rohaya, near Stamford College, Petaling Jaya, where he was taking extra English classes. “She had just come from her kampung in Kedah and was working at the money changer,” recalls Baba, eyes dancing at the memory. “We married in 1993 — so it’s been 26 years now. I haven’t really struggled to adapt to the Malaysian way of life, having travelled to so many countries before I made Malaysia home.”
According to Rohaya, an ardent supporter of her children’s passion and a regular ring-side fixture whenever her children are fighting, it’s a good thing that her husband enjoys the whole ‘big family’ scene as she herself has nine siblings and Raya always ends up being one long exercise in visiting family and relatives. “There are a lot of houses to visit whenever we balik kampung to Kedah!” says Rohaya, chuckling, before adding in a more serious tone: “It’s important for us that our children are well acquainted with their relatives, otherwise they would end up not knowing who their family is.”
“Balik kampung is my favourite feature of Hari Raya,” chips in Mohammed, who will be returning to his regimented training right after Raya in preparation for his next clash on the ONE Championship stage in July. “I love meeting up with family and relatives and just catching up. We don’t do anything out of the ordinary but the simple acts of visiting, eating together, chatting — it’s priceless. So, I’m a bit sad that we won’t be heading back this year but I guess sometimes sacrifices need to be made…”
Nodding, Baba says: “It’s important that the young know who constitutes their family and for ties to be strengthened always. For me, I’m an Arab and we always emphasise on togetherness and of course, the importance of family in celebrations.”
A pause ensues as Baba collects his thoughts. The ticking of the clock on the wall suddenly sound so loud in the ensuing silence. Then, his voice low, the patriarch concludes: “We have our ups and downs in life, and of course, we’re all very busy just trying to “do” life. But we must always make time to value family. Otherwise you’ll be in trouble. I always strive to keep my family together; this is why when we found out that Nidal had to fight on the third day of Raya, I made the decision that we’d all remain in KL. We stay together – always.”