These Guys Took To The Streets Blindfolded To Remind Us That We're All #MalaysiansFirst
Would you have approached these guys for a hug or a high-five?
By Samantha Khor — 25 Sep 2015, 04:33 PM
Amidst talks of racial tension and racially-slanted riots in recent times, 3 college students have stepped up to debunk widespread allusions of racial tension with a #MalaysianFirst "blind social experiment"
Sathisvaran Santhian, Choo Jian Tatt and Muhd Shukri Rahmad - all of whom are interns at local production company Tarantella Pictures - came up with the idea when they were brainstorming ideas for a social experiment that will resonate with Malaysians
Tarantella Pictures managing director Sharad Sharan said the students wanted to show the beauty of Malaysian society. He added the credit goes entirely to the three students, with Tarantella only providing some technical support.
But according to media and communications student Sathisvaran, it took a lot of convincing to get Tarantella on board as the management was worried the topic might be “too sensitive”.
“So I had a tough time explaining it’s just a message (we want to) get out there and test the response. We were very close to shutting down the idea due to its sensitivity. But I fought for it and took the risk,” he said.
malaysiakini.com
Armed with a sign that says, "I'm Malaysian first. Then, I'm Malay/Chinese/Indian", the trio set up camp - while blindfolded! - in SS15, Petaling Jaya and Sunway University, encouraging passers-by to hug them or give them a high-five if they agree with the statement
... They soon caught on to the message, going out of their way to give the boys a high-five or two
Then it's all aboard the feels train when the never-ending hugs came along!
Word of the boys' social experiment got around when one of the uni's lecturers, Ashley Greig, posted a photo of him mid-action. The amount of hugs and support from the public even rendered Sathisvaran a little overwhelmed and teary during his stint in Sunway University.
