Full concentration: Mohana Sundaram and his wife S. Nageswari, 51, adding the final touches to the two kavadis he made for a father and son from Johor in George Town. — ZHAFARAN NASIB/The Star
GEORGE TOWN: A 6ft tall peacock kavadi is set to make an appearance this Thaipusam in Penang, along with other colourful kavadis that will be making a grand comeback after two years.
The majestic kavadi is M. Mohana Sundaram’s most ambitious to date, and an apt one – as the peacock is Lord Muruga’s vehicle of choice.
“I have dreamt of making this kavadi for years, and finally set out to make this one-of-a-kind kavadi four months ago.
“I have always wanted to work with glass paper, something we do not see on kavadis as it is mainly used by the Chinese community to make their ‘tanglung’ (lanterns).
“It is not an easy material to work with and is fragile, but it gives a beautiful effect. To see it come to life is wonderful.
“The intricate detailing took time and plenty of patience. It was a difficult process as this is my first time making such a large kavadi,” said Mohana Sundaram, who has been making kavadi for over three decades.
The 53-year-old, who was seen adding the final touches to his peacock kavadi at the Arulmigu Sree Sakthi Muthu Mariamman Alayam in Solok Rawana, Jalan P. Ramlee, said the long process included cutting the glass paper to fit peacock feathers as he tried to mimic the actual colours of the feathers.
“I used green, orange, yellow and blue glass paper for the feathers,” he said.
“Each feather had to be made one at a time, which was taxing as I had to do all four colours before starting over on another feather.
“I made the frame of the feathers using carton boxes before attaching the cut glass paper with strong adhesive glue.
“Cutting the glass paper and making sure it does not tear was the hard part.
“I also reached out to those who make ‘tanglung’ and they explained to me that I needed to spray plain water on it after sticking it together. It hardens the glass paper and makes it stronger”
Mohana Sundaram said the base of the peacock was made of foam while the rest was made from plywood and carton boxes.
“The kavadi is relatively light for its size as the boxes are paper. It weighs around 30kg to 40kg and is 8ft wide.
“As this is my first time making it, I will carry the kavadi as a trial run to see if it can weather the journey.
“But a customer from Johor had reached out and asked if I could make him a kavadi.
“So I’ve decided to let him carry it on the eve of Thaipusam and I will carry it on Thaipusam day on Sunday.
“I also made a smaller one for his son using foam and added elements of glass paper to it,” he added.
Mohana Sundaram said his wife made flowers out of crepe paper to add to the peacock.
“I have added lights to the peacock so it will stand out at night, while during the day, I expect the glass paper to glisten in the sun when I make my way to the hilltop temple,” he said.
Some 1.5 million devotees are expected to throng the Arulmigu Sree Balathandayuthapani Waterfall Hilltop Temple after two years of muted celebrations.
