Otak-otak seller dances through life

Disability is no barrier for part-time performer

PETALING JAYA: Norhaziman Kamarozaman is an unassuming and friendly otak-otak seller trying to eke out a living by the roadside of Taman Melati.

But give him a stage and play him some music, and he turns into a mean dancing machine.

Norhaziman, better known as Man, is stricken with spina bifida and relies on his wheelchair to get about, but he can pull off some impressive moves in front of an audience.

The 35-year-old who hails from Raub, Pahang, expertly turns the wheels of his chair to spin to the rhythm of the music. He even adds his own twist to some regularly-used skills like the wheelie.

“The wheelie may look difficult but it’s actually a skill many in a wheelchair use to manoeuvre their way through stairs,” he said.

Born to parents who were both rubber-tappers, Man, the second of 10 siblings, completely lost the use of his legs when he slipped and fell in the bathroom when he was 13.

“I left school at the age of nine to help my parents. But after I fell, I could not do much,” he said.

But Man would not stay put. He decided to leave home in 2004 to find “something out there” to help earn money for the family.

His love for movement drove him to join a wheelchair dance troupe in Kuala Lumpur in 2005. Unfortunately, the group soon disbanded after many of its members started to settle down and have their own families.

However, Man’s skills caught the eye of the Malaysia International Dance Organisation (Mido).

He said Mido gave him the opportunity to sharpen his skills and learn new moves.

Through Mido, Man even had an opportunity to perform in front of Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail at an event.

At the time, he was joined by two other wheelchair-bound dancers, Hana Nadia Mohamed Azrin and Nerosha Krishnan, as well as two other able-bodied dancers.

He said performing at events supplemented his meagre monthly income from selling otak-otak and repairing wheelchairs.

“It isn’t much to send home but I’ll continue working on that.”

Mido president Emilia Uzir said she heard about Man’s determination and was happy to include his performance at the welcoming dinner function of the Eighth World Summit on Arts and Culture last month.

“We are also planning to set up a programme to help him and others in the same boat. Many from the disabled community face financial difficulties, and it doesn’t help that jobs are hard to come by,” she said.

One of the programmes in the pipeline is the Limitless! Para Talents Zone Auditions slated to be held between July and August.

Emilia said talents can send in their videos and stand a chance to compete in the finals of the Malaysia Invitational Championship 2019, Folklore, Modern and Showdance together with Para Talents in September.