BEST known for his record-breaking artworks, local cartoonist Mohd Azmi Hussin is back to attempt for his third Malaysia Book of Records listing, and this time it is for the longest comic strip in the country.
Azmi’s previous works have often been inspiring due to his desire to always incorporate Malaysian-based cultures in it, and his latest comic strip is set to depict stories of three different families as seen from the perspective of a car.
In the strip, the 37-year-old has taken a step further to explore the possibilities of sketching typical drama encounters (fictional) revolving a Malay family to an ethnic Indian family and to an ethnic Chinese family.
“The story is basically about our national car, Proton Saga, and how it actually journeys through the lives of families from the main races in Malaysia.
“Set in 1985, the story begins with a Malay family purchasing the car, and it goes on to tell the events that unfolded along the way.
“Then, the story continues with the second family (Indian) buying the car from the Malay family, and all of the good and bad moments they had with the car.
“The last to own the car was a Chinese family, but that’s the interesting part of the story as it will end in a way least unexpected by the people.
“Malaysia, particularly Penang, is all about multiculturalism and diversity. I was really keen to tell a story that will make the people to remember me, and I strongly believe my latest comic strip will be able to grasp everyone’s attention,” Azmi told Buletin Mutiara during the three-day exhibition organised by George Town Festival at the UAB Building in Gat Lebuh China today.
Azmi said the initial idea of producing the comic strip came about in 2018, and he had then also attempted to contact Proton to explain about the project.
“Although I tried many times, I did not receive any response from them,” Azmi said.
While the idea was initiated in 2018, he had only officially started working on the strip on Nov 1 this year.
“I have so far completed 110-metre, and hope to finish the remaining 40-metre by the end of this month.
“It’s 150-metre long in total simply because I want to dedicate 50-metre for each family. The three families in my strip are from Penang, Melaka and Ipoh. To me, these are three cities that are historically rich, and they all have amazing stories to tell,” he added.
Azmi has been demonstrating his work at the UAB Building since Friday (26 Nov) and today was the last day (Nov 28), and it was mainly to show the progress of the strip to the people.
The official launching ceremony of the comic strip is expected to take place on Dec 12 at the Penang City Stadium.
Story and pix by Kevin Vimal