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Having caught the first episode of Perang Nasi Dagang: Kelate VS Ganu in its entirety, thanks to the subscription-based platform Sooka, I noticed parallels in terms of humour between the latest romantic comedy series with the-then popular television show Pi Mai Pi Mai Tang Tu, which is the Northern Malay slang for “going, coming without actually accomplishing anything”. In fact, familiar faces Sabri Yunus and Angeline Tan, who had both found fame through the series then, are back to play the roles of Stopa and Che Yam in this drama. While the audio is mainly in Malay, the spoken Malay dialects in this particular show are Kelantanese Malay as well as the Terengganu dialect of Malay, as it centres on a Malay rice dish, known as Nasi Dagang or trader’s rice – given how this dish is said to be a staple amongst traders of yesteryear.

For context, Nasi Dagang is unique in that it is not as popular as nasi lemak or even nasi kerabu and not many restaurants in especially the Klang Valley can cook and serve it to perfection because it usually involves the use of santan or coconut milk, which has a short shelf life (If you ask me, I’m not a fan of santan kotak, btw, as it usually contains other unnecessary ingredients and additives). Other than that, the other ingredients that complement the one-meal dish can also be time-consuming to prepare. Besides, only those with a certain appetite can like and appreciate nasi dagang, as the rice flavour and fragrance are typically elevated with the use of fenugreek seeds. From a personal perspective, the version I last had came with ikan tongkol or tuna fish. However, it can also be served with chicken curry or prawn curry. Other types of fish can also be used. There are many variations of nasi dagang in Malaysia itself. On a side note, the Indonesians and Thais have their own versions, due to their proximity to Kelantan and other states in Malaysia.

Fans of Mekyun, the Kelantanese Hokkien social media influencer, will be glad to find out that she is cast as one of the characters, Ms Dong Mei Chua, otherwise known simply as D on the show. By the way, watching some of Mekyun’s reels and stories on Instagram is how I got acquainted with and grew to enjoy the Kelantanese dialect of Malay. You can witness for yourself how Mekyun’s cuteness and humility shines through, in this drama.

Actress Nora Danish of Arab-Myanmarese descent adds to the laid-back-ness of this drama. Nora Danish is famous for her portrayal in the Polis EVO film trilogy (2015-2023).

The plot of this story is quite simple. Craving for a taste of nasi dagang, after more than 20 years of settling down in Kuala Lumpur, Stopa who hails from Kelantan intends to open his own nasi dagang stall, which is by the way, set up like a rest and relax centre (R&R) in Malaysia. As with any business-like storyline, viewers are exposed to the day-to-day life of operating a business – in this case, a nasi dagang shop. However, things take a turn when a customer turned competitor sets up shop – next to Stopa’s. As part of the story, there is also some romance involved.

While the level of humour is expected, the script could have been better written and executed. Cue -the scene where a customer chokes on a fishbone. While this is extremely relatable, I can’t be sure whether the scriptwriter had certain intentions in the way the characters were written – in that they delay action being taken in situations which demand as much immediate action as possible.

Otherwise, it was surprising but also not uncommon to see pop culture references like Frozen’s Let it Go as well as one’s love for South Korean cuisine, stemming from K-Pop or the larger K-Wave – in a Malay language drama.

The director of this latest series made it a requirement for all cast members to be natives of Kelantan and Terengganu with the general understanding that they are fluent in their respective dialects, although the script is written in Standard Malay.

The director’s personal experience helped form the premise of this drama. His Terengganu friend came by his house for Hari Raya. In his capacity as a host, he treated his guest to nasi dagang, which  brought about the comment that his nasi dagang was different. So, this conversation, in turn, sparked the idea for a drama where the differences are discovered and appreciated. To echo this, as reported in the news, the director acknowledged that Terengganu and Kelantan’s nasi dagang are appetizing in their own ways.

Although the first episode is usually free, the remaining episodes of Perang Nasi Dagang: Kelate VS Ganu are available on a subscription basis to those who have access to Astro Warna and Sooka VIP Premium.

New episodes will play 9pm every Friday.  

The romantic comedy premiered on 19 July 2024.

Notes: Kelantan and Terengganu are different states in Malaysia and have their own spoken dialects of Malay, although Standard Malay (being the national language) is separately taught in schools, universities and other educational institutions within those states, as well as in other states across the country.
Astro Warna is a channel on satellite TV, known as Astro.

As used in this article, Hokkien is a dialect group within the Chinese community in Malaysia. Otherwise, it can also refer to the spoken variant of Standard Chinese.

Sooka is the latest budget-friendly subscription-based streaming service platform, owned by satellite TV provider Astro. It offers the best of local and international sports matches, Paris Olympics 2024 coverage, as well as entertainment both within the Asian region and abroad.

K-Pop refers to the Korean popular music from South Korea, whereas the K-Wave refers to the larger asset to South Korea as it helps the overall revenue generation of the country via exports and tourism.

Frozen is a trilogy put forward by Disney, a producer of animated feature films as well as live-action movies. Frozen is loosely based on the 1845 book “The Snow Queen” by Hans Christian Andersen.