At KLFW 2024, there was no stopping designer Tan Kel Wen from plundering the many cultures of Malaysia to put out a koleksi gila. It was also as jumbled as rojak. But was it delectable?

Dato’ Seri Vida as model for the Behati KLFW 2024 show. Screen shot: selebritimalaysia/YouTube

For Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week (KLFW) 2024, Behati’s Tan Kel Wen (陳楷文) was in ebullient mood. His high-spirited collection—titled “Merdeka” (independence)—this season was again a veritable homage to Malaysia. Not a bad thing, of course. Mr Tan, more than any KL designer, is able to unfold the past and lay bare his present, no matter how jokey the result could be, and they always are. This was his unboxing show: You knew what to expect, yet you wanted to be surprised. A sarong kebaya, for example, made the cut. It was in the vein of what flight attendants would wear, but with a centre-front opening held together with一字扣 (yi zhi kou), a simple, horizontal 盘扣 (pan kou) or frog button, applied in a vertical row to qualify as 蜈蚣扣 (wu gong kou) or centipede frogging, or, for our Malay readers, butang lipan. The stewardess dragged along a pasar shopping cart so that the audience would be sure she was a trolly dolly. The camp humour was inescapable. Mr Tan knew how to to entertain.

Fun was the sentiment, but affectation the dread. Like most presentation with excess of camp, Mr Tan was not able to contain his. He did not explore the satirical as the more judicious might have, just what he believed to be clever. But all the massive proportions, the odd silhouettes, the hybridising of ethnic details in dress came together as a distraction, even a negation that dressmaking is serious skill. Mr Tan hammed things up so that the audience wasn’t able to pay attention to his woeful tailoring, the renunciation of fit, and the worship of the tacky; contrarily thought among his followers in superlative terms. It helped that Mr Tan loves to put everything in the context of Malaysianness. Fans call it “bringing patriotic energy” to the collection. It is good to know Behati clothes still touched hearts and was met with keen response. But it never quite achieved the cultural panorama without hoisting the flag of cliché.

Tan Kel Wen never wastes a KLFW moment. It is admirable how he could use a fashion week to audition for the sarkas (circus). It is easy to understand why the Behati show has been the most desirable for attendees. We were told many truly looked forward to the latest presentation. And, as before, Mr Tan had famous friends walk the runway. Fishmonger-turn-model Amber Chia (谢丽萍, Xie Liping) as 白发魔女 (baifa monu) white-haired socceress (or witch), was clad in a loose, leg-o-mutton-sleeved jacket (and a long skirt) that had a faint whiff of the Victorian era, but sans a corset, crinoline, or bustle. Ms Chia’s 13-year-old son strutted too, in a massive jacket that made him uncomfortable, and lost. Not to be outdone was Behati superfan, the cosmetics doyenne Dato Seri Vida. Never one to turn down a chance to look dramatic but absurd, she wore a massive kaftan in the colours of so many Arab states, and a tie that seemed to parody Donald Trump. Her face was painted on the left half to mimic a slice of watermelon.

It was a motley cast. Apart from the 白发魔女 and makcik Two-Face, many others from both high and low places were summoned. There was the off-duty 气功师傅 (qigong shifu or master), the lawyer in a set of court robe (complete with extra-long collar bands), the orang asli (the indigenous) in a robe tunic, the fireman in unsurprising hi-vis uniform, the tourism ambassador in a mini dress festooned with red bunga raya (hibiscus), the Miss Universe (MY) finalist in a quilted two-piece, the brothel keeper in an ill-fastened qipao, with really long fringing to better assert her position in the discharge of pleasures. This was Behati’s most mashed-up show. It is not known if there is demand for the clothes. A staffer at the brand’s stockist CollabStore in KL was heard enthusiastically telling a shopper that the response to Behati has been “not bad”. Or good enough to continue showing crowd-pleasing fesyen komedi, as Tan Kel Wen takes “Malaysia Boleh”, seriously.

Photos: KLFW