Borih, The Bidayuh Paddy Priestess

Borih is a spiritual love journey of the chosen paddy priestess, inspired from the Bidayuh myth and ritual. On the hilltop village of the Bidayuh tribe, Ngomak and Sayang live a simple but contented life in paddy planting. After a weird dream as the chosen priestess, Ngomak suddenly suffers from a deadly illness. She is so ill and sick that she has only bone left. Worst, her husband (Sayang) has to go hunting due to the poor harvesting. Alone, Ngomak suffers terribly and collapses. Out of empathy and love, the paddy spirit summons her to the spiritual realm for healing. The paddy spirit even teaches her to practice the ritual and blesses her with the new power as the paddy priestess. An enchanting life she cherishes in the spiritual realm sailing along the river. Until Ngomak sees her poor husband suffering in the drought and infertile land, she finally recalls her memory. In despair, she sacrifices herself and jumps into the river. The paddy spirit loves her. Despite the reluctance, he returns her in exchange for her vow to return on every Gawai – the paddy thanksgiving day. And so, on every Gawai eve, Ngomak will chant the Borih song on the swing to tell the paddy spirit in the upper realm that she is coming for the reunion and to get the blessing for the next harvesting.

When I first met the Dayung Borih (Paddy Priestess), I am so intrigued by her journey of suffering and how is she being selected. She is about 80s at that time and there are very few Dayung Borih left in the Bau Borneo due to the lack of acceptance and understanding of the myth and practice. On the day of Gawai eve, I was so blessed to watch the Dayung Borih sit on the swing and chant the Borih song. I think that’s the most beautiful experience that lives in my memory, that’s my motivation to direct the “Borih”. Metaphorized by a near-extinct bird of great argus, “Borih” is a flora-fauna fantasy animation to depict a vanishing tradition of the Bidayuh paddy priestess. We weave two paddy-related legends - the paddy priestess (Ngomak and Sayang) and the origin of paddy (Dondan Tibuilt) into “Borih”. Creatively transitioned of non-dialogue animation and orchestrated with the traditional Sarawak-borneo music of gong, flute and drum. A creative mixture of contemporary and classic costumes, culinary of the Malaysia culture. We keep a rather raw art style and characters design based on the scenes we witness during the Gawai ceremony and the -ever imagine in the spiritual realm.