KOTA BARU: Mohd Irfat Zainuddin was only 7 when he started to learn the art of batik painting from his father.
The Year Four pupil of SK Sultan Ismail Petra has since been helping his 47-year-old father, Zainuddin Ahmad, to paint batik during weekends and school holidays.
Zainuddin said Irfat had shown deep interest in drawing batik designs since three years ago.
“When he was in Year One, I saw his interest in drawing batik and I started teaching him.
“I taught him to draw his own designs using hot wax with a traditional tool and paint dye on fabric.
“He is creative and his designs are beautiful.
“I asked him to help me when he was not attending school,” said Zainuddin, who operates a home-based batik printing business in Kampung Sireh here.
Zainuddin, who has more than 20 years of experience in batik industry, said Irfat and his eldest son, Mohd Alfifi, 14, helped him in the business.
“Prior to this, I worked at a batik factory in Kota Baru.
“When the batik industry slowed down in early 2000, I had to quit because the employer could not afford to hire many workers.
“I decided to operate a small batik business from my home and asked my son to help out.”
Zainuddin said he and his son would complete a piece of batik fabric, which is about 4m long within two to three days.
Most of his customers are batik lovers and government officers, mostly from Kota Baru.
“The batik industry can survive with the government’s assistance. I learnt that the government has provided loans to batik entrepreneurs, but not to those doing it on a small scale like me.
“I hope the government provides similar assistance to all batik makers so that the industry continues to grow.”