BAHAU: It’s a different Dragon Boat Festival this year where the Malays have been invited to join the Chinese in making dumplings and also showcase how to make ketupats—the Malay version of dumplings, at Mahsan New Village.

Wong Kong Fowi, head of Mahsan New Village, said the Chinese residents had a good time learning from their Malay neighbors.

In conjunction with Dragon Boat Festival, an event was organized by the village committee to invite villagers to make dumplings together at Balai Raya Kampung Baru Mahsan on Sunday.

“The event fosters closer ties between the Chinese and Malays in the neighborhood, and is a true reflection of diversity in Malaysia where people of different ethnic groups live together in harmony.

“Chinese villagers learn to wrap ketupats from the Malays while the Malays try their hands on making the dumplings.

“I am glad to see them making the dumplings together,” he said.

Wong said he looks forward to similar events inviting the Indians to join in future.

In the past, when Dragon Boat Festival was around the corner, the village would hold dumpling wrapping competitions or other events centered on the local Chinese community only.

This year, the village committee decided to organize an inter-cultural event to foster ties between the Chinese and Malays.

Dragon Boat Festival is a Chinese festival which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month on the lunar calendar where dragon boat competition would be held and the making of glutinous rice dumplings observed.

Dragon Boat Festival falls on May 31 this year.

In the past, patriotic minister Qu Yuan of China committed suicide, and local residents used dragon boats trying to save him. When they failed, glutinous rice dumplings wrapped in triangular shapes were thrown into the river for fish to prevent the fish from eating Qu Yuan’s body.

There are several types of ketupats.

Ketupat nasi is made from common white rice and is wrapped in a square shape with coconut palm leaves, while ketupat pulut is made from glutinous rice usually wrapped in a triangular shape using the palm leaves.

Ketupats are typically served with rendang, or lontong during festive seasons.