Bulan Bintang road to London: A creative approach to make Baju Melayu great again with Edan Syah

Just over a week ago, Edan Syah has made his wave through social media by breaking the Guinness world record for being the fastest male to complete a full marathon in traditional Malay attire. A project by local fashion brand, Bulan Bintang, Edan Syah was given the opportunity to break this record by donning a full set of Baju Melayu, samping and songkok specially designed by the Bulan Bintang team. 

Edan Syah puts the star in Bulan Bintang

For those who are unfamiliar, Edan Syah is a running coach that has a record of running over 30 full marathons throughout his career with his personal best time of 2 hours 30 minutes. Edan’s determination and dedication in running marathons has also allowed him to participate in the Boston Marathon twice. Boston Marathon is the oldest and most prestigious marathon in the world.

Adding onto his impressive resume, Edan is currently the Guinness World Record holder for the fastest marathon runner while wearing a national flag for the male category with a time of 2 hours 54 minutes and 34 seconds at the Sydney Running Festival back on 16 September 2018.

Bulan Bintang Road to London: A creative approach to make Baju Melayu great again

In a creative approach to make Baju Melayu great again, the Bulan Bintang team has exclusively made a set of traditional attire that allows Edan to run freely and not be weighed down. Speaking to the lead fashion designer, Mas Anneesya, she has revealed that the production for Edan’s set of traditional attire wasn’t a piece of cake as there were plenty of things to consider.

“The production of this Baju Melayu was not an easy process as it is distinct from the Baju Melayu sold in the market”, said Mas revealing that the attire was made with mesh and jersey fabrics for a more lightweight, breathable and airy finish. 

The reason for using an entirely different set of fabrics was solely because they wanted to ensure that Edan was able to run without being slowed down. As for the pants, the team had decided to design a simple long pants with stretchy materials. The pants would come with pockets on each sides along with elastic waistband for any necessary adjustments. 

To avoid bruising on the legs, an invisible zipper was placed at the ankle along with a cloth cover. This design was able to serve as an access point, making it convenient for Edan to put on his shoes. Sticking to its traditional fabrics, the team had decided to maintain the look of the songkok by using velvet material. The only modification the team made was to place mesh fabric panels on top of the songkok with bigger eyelet sizes that allows plenty of air ventilation, where airflow matters the most.

Making Raya Aidilfitri more meaningful than ever

With the help of Bulan Bintang’s exclusive set, Edan was able to complete the 42.2km run in less than 3 hours, breaking the Guinness World Record in a complete set of Baju Melayu. In addition to that, Edan’s incredible achievement was in conjunction with the celebration of Hari Raya, This is an incredible achievement not only for Edan Syah but for Bulan Bintang as well as they were able to gain the recognition they deserved whilst showcasing the uniqueness and beauty of the Baju Melayu culture.

Congratulations on your achievement with Bulan Bintang, Edan! Thank you for showing how special the Baju Melayu is to the world!

Tap here to give us a ‘Like’ on Facebook and stay up-to-date on the latest news!

Also read: Datuk Lee Chong Wei is the first M’sian athlete to be honoured with a lifelike waxwork at Madame Tussauds!