Urumi melam, the vibrant 'heartbeat' of Thaipusam

KUALA LUMPUR: Beyond the colourful kavadis and the larger-than-life golden statue of Lord Murugan at Batu Caves, some may say the religious festival of Thaipusam is incomplete without the unique sound of drums ringing through the air.

Known as urumi melam, these heart-pounding beats are a form of Tamil folk music, steeped in centuries-old tradition.

Among the estimated 10,000 urumi melam players nationwide is 28-year-old Sathes Kutty. A forklift driver by day and urumi melam player by night, Sathes first tried his hand at the instrument at age 12, after watching his older brother play.

“Some may have hobbies like futsal or badminton, but for me, urumi melam became the hobby I loved,” he told FMT Lifestyle.

He is one of the 15 members of the Veera Ganapathy Urumi Melam troupe in Kuala Lumpur. Everyone in the troupe shares a common purpose: to keep the tradition of urumi melam alive.

“None of us in the team takes a single sen from the earnings for ourselves. We use that money to stitch new uniforms for the team, upgrade our instruments, or have a meal together after a performance,” Sathes shared.

“We don’t split the money and take it for ourselves because this is something we love doing, so we have never earned an income from playing the drums.”

This sentiment is echoed throughout the urumi melam community, including by CR Ragu, a popular craftsman of these traditional instruments. Speaking with FMT Lifestyle at his Brickfields store, Ragu, who has over 20 years of experience, shared his insights.

“The urumi melam consists of the main instrument ‘urumi’, then ‘thavil’, ‘pambai’ and ‘thalam’,” he explained.

The combination of the urumi’s unique vibration, the thavil and pambai’s quick drum beats, and the thalam’s cymbals creates a rhythm that induces a trance in devotees.

According to him, the incorporation of singing is a fairly new component of urumi melam here. Nevertheless, the urumi – a drum with a wooden shell, covered on both sides with processed goat skin – remains the most unique instrument.

Black ink derived from a seed in India is applied to its surface, producing its distinctive vibrating sound.

“There is something special about the urumi. It has an energetic, magnetic sound that gives people goosebumps,” Ragu, a retired player himself, said.

“Each instrument weighs around 10kg to 20kg. It is carried by these musicians who play for about four to five hours at a time. They see it as a form of service, playing for God and the devotees.”

Patience, strength, devotion

Recently, FMT Lifestyle spent a day with Sathes on the eve of his team’s first Thaipusam performance, meeting him at his workplace in Sungai Buloh.

After freshening up at his home in Kepong and listening to the song on his phone, Sathes headed to Segambut for a late-night training session with the troupe, right under the viaduct of a highway.

Having perfected the beats after hours of training, the team reconvened the next day at the riverbank near Batu Caves to accompany a kavadi procession.

As Ragu pointed out, being an urumi melam player can require patience, strength and devotion.

“During Thaipusam, there have been times where we were stuck standing in one spot for more than an hour,” Sathes shared. “Sometimes, we’ve had to carry the heavy instruments over our heads and push through the crowds.”

Rich Indian heritage

Even though the younger generation takes the spotlight today, the roots of urumi melam in Malaysia date back around 60 years.

Vasanthan Baskaran, better known as Siva, is a fourth-generation urumi melam player and the president of Persatuan Pemuzik Urumee Melam Malaysia.

“It was the late Mr Suppiah from Ipoh, who brought the urumi to Malaysia in the 1960s or 1970s, and who created the urumi melam industry,” he said.

While the art form originated in India centuries ago, it has gained unparalleled popularity in Malaysia, now with over 500 teams nationwide, including in Sabah and Sarawak.

Siva added that the industry has seen a shift: “It was brought here from India initially for religious purposes. But today, they play the urumi melam to welcome VIPs, for birthdays, during weddings, and even for corporate events like a store opening or annual gatherings.”

For these musicians, Thaipusam is the biggest festival of the year, during which devotees and spectators alike can lose themselves in the pulse and thrum of urumi melam: a vibrant heartbeat that symbolises the country’s rich Indian heritage.

Follow Veera Ganapathy Urumi Melam on Instagram.Contact: 013-262 6809

Sree Vinayaka Indian Traditional Music Resources (CR Ragu)113-1, Jalan Sultan Abdul Samad,Brickfields, Kuala LumpurContact: 016-804 9184

Follow Persatuan Pemuzik Urumee Melam Malaysia on Facebook.Contact (president Siva): 017-505 0844