KUALA TERENGGANU: Are Malays losing interest in their heritage products or is the free market economy providing alternatives that are slowly killing the preference for high-quality products — in this case, songket?
Both are genuine questions which beg attention from the government and Malays if the songket industry is to survive and remain relevant in Malaysian society.
Wan Manang Wan Awang, 65, who has 40 years of experience in the songket industry with a mixture of success and failure, was confident that despite the challenges, the industry will remain sustainable.
“As long as there are Malays, the sultanates and customary ceremonies, the demand for songket will continue (to exist). But the question is at what scale can we expect the demand to be because we are facing challenges from cheaper and low-quality materials from India.
“My survey at a shopping centre in Pasar Payang indicates that 90 per cent of the songket sold there are from India. Sadly, the traders are selling it as Terengganu songket without realising they are killing the higher quality product,” said Wan Manang, who is a third-generation songket producer in his family.
Met at his house in Durian Burung, which is also his songket showroom, he said most buyers acknowledged that songket made in Terengganu were the best in the country, as they were finely weaved by experienced master craftsmen, who inherited the skills that were passed down through generations.
“The buyers, who are mostly Malays, must learn to differentiate between local songket and the imported ones, rather than simply believing traders.
“They must support local products, which are handmade and take months to complete, compared with those weaved by machines,” he added.
Songket had to go through eight stages, from the making of the yarn (loseng), which must be precise for the production of either samping, sarong or selendang.
He said this might take between two weeks and eight months to complete.
He also said some songket motifs were traditional, but weavers had progressed to produce contemporary designs to cater to the taste of the younger generation.
“Prices of the final products depend on the material used, design or motifs and the workmanship, which ranges between RM300 and RM20,000 a piece,” said Wan Manang, who used to employ 100 weavers, but now only employed 50 due to weakening demand.
Dishonest traders, he said, often dupe buyers unfamiliar with songket, which lead the latter into buying low-quality songket at prices nearly as much as genuine Terengganu songket.
“Traders used to import the songket from Singapore, but now most of them import it direct from the source. Over the years, it has affected Terengganu songket. We should promote locally-made songket.
“It is pricey, but you are buying quality songket weaved by master craftsmen that will last for generations,” added Wan Manang, who is the only person in Terengganu making songket with limar yarn, a sophisticated technique which involved using tie-dye weft yarns, which take seven months to complete.
Wan Manang, who inherited several songket which were more than 100 years old, said limar songket was rare and was usually specially ordered for exclusivity.
Due to the sophisticated technique involved in producing the songket variant, Wan Manang said it could be weaved only by experienced weavers.
On the future of songket, he said Malays should appreciate and be proud of songket as it was part of their heritage.
“I’m not saying that you should stop buying imported songket, but I’m telling traders to be honest about their products’ origins and prices.
“The buyers, meanwhile, must be well-informed so that they will not fall prey to dishonest sellers,” he added.
He said songket from India had also infiltrated the markets in Kelantan, as well as Rejang in Sarawak and Pekan in Pahang.
“We need the government to protect and promote local songket to make it appealing to international couturiers.
“It is a uniquely Malaysian product, which deserves to be preserved,” added Wan Manang, whose two children, Wan Nadila, 29 and Wan Benyamin, 27,
will continue with the family legacy.
TOMORROW: The influx of songket from Pakistan and India, which are sold at much lower prices, has led to many traders in Kelantan feeling the pinch, with some forced to close their businesses.