KOTA BARU: Aqfierudzar Rizq Mohd Sulhie belies his age of 4 as he deftly shows his skills as a tok dalang wayang kulit.
The skills and talent of the youngster, who is better known as Pyu, had gone viral after he showcased his young talent at the wayang kulit performance staged during the Joyful Malaysia programme, organised by the Kelantan Tourism Information Centre in October at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
His father, Mohd Sulhie Yusuf, 42, said within two months of the video going viral, Pyu received 11 invitations to showcase his young talent as a tok dalang (puppet master), including from Singapore, last November.
“My son’s interest in wayang kulit began since 3 years old and when he was exposed by the performance of the Arjunasukma Wayang Kulit Group (belonging to the family).
“He (Pyu) is just like other children with the exception that he has always been interested in wayang kulit, using his own shadow puppets, as well performing in his own style.
“Looking at his deep interest in the traditional art, I bought two puppets, so that he could perform his own play and sharpen his talent as a tok dalang,” he said during the Kita Punya programme here yesterday.
Sulhie said although his son was performing before members of the public, he had the confidence to tell the story via shadow puppetry.
“But it’s not easy for him as he has to handle at least seven shadow puppets in a show.
“So a week before any show, I teach Pyu to appreciate and understand each and every character that he will present in his show.
“However, if he gets a last-minute invitation for a show and does not have time to prepare, Pyu will perform the characters spontaneously and will do so based on his own creativity.”
The father of three children said his youngest son could perform using up to 10 characters, including Raja Serama, Wok Yoh, Wok Long, Samad, Said, Pok Dogol, Mek Timah, Jin Togok and Hanuman Kera Putih.
To uphold the Kelantan heritage, Sulhie, who previously worked at the Customs Department, stopped working to focus fully on the Arjunasukma Academy in Klang, Selangor, with his wife, Aniza Musa, 35, since 2008.