Pesta Panjut 2017

Organised by the Padang Rengas Parliamentary Constituency Sports & Recreation Club in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism & Culture Malaysia, as well as Padang Rengas Member of Parliament Service Centre, the night of 23rd June will see villages in that Parliamentary Constituency lighted up with uncountable oil lamps.

This Aidilfitri tradition of lighting up with oil lamps, known as Pesta Panjut, was a popular activity in the early 1980s. However, due to protests by certain quarters claiming that it is un-Islamic, it was stopped.

Nonetheless, Pesta Panjut has been reintroduced to the community four years ago, thanks to the hard work of the village committee, to enliven the spirit of Ramadan and Aidilfitri plus to revive its culture and tradition. According to the residents, there is no issue of being un-Islamic as the activities are only carried out from the 27th Ramadan, after ‘solat terawih’ (10.30pm onwards).

This year, there are five themes for the competition in the oil lamp displays. They are: Malaysian culture, Selamat Hari Raya, My country, Heritage buildings and Visit Perak Year 2017. So far, about forty entries have been received; all of them are from villages located within Padang Rengas Parliamentary Constituency.

As stated above, competition night will be on 23rd June. It is going to be a keen contest as they try to win a share of the RM15,000 cash, with a grand prize of RM3,000. Participants have no limit on their costs and they can set up their display as elaborately as they wished, or could afford. However, there is a minimum number of oil lamps to be used: 500.

How much time, money and effort they expand on their project depend on the theme, size and complexity of the overall setup. Some of the villagers have already began setting up their display as early as a month ago. Boy, they are competitive! Yes, if you are in the area, or perhaps you wish to purposely make a trip to Padang Rengas, I have included a location map of the participating villages, with GPS Coordinates.

If you are visiting, do remember to participate in the Instagram contest. Take a photo of Pesta Panjut on 23rd June, 2017 and upload it to your Instagram account with the hashtag #panjut2017. Remember to set your photo public. Entrants stand a chance to win cash prizes of RM300, RM200 and RM100 respectively. This Pesta Panjut Instagram contest is open to Malaysians only.

If you can’t make it to Padang Rengas on competition night, don’t miss the second chance as all displays will be lighted up again on the eve of Hari Raya Aidilfitri. I tell you, this is an occasion you don’t want to forgo experiencing first hand.

Event: Pesta Panjut 2017 (Display & Competition)
Venue: Parliamentary Constituency of Padang Rengas
Date: 23rd June, 2017
Time: from 10.30pm

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