PETALING JAYA, August 24 — Videos of a Malay woman from Ipoh speaking fluent Tamil and Cantonese have gone viral on TikTok.
In the first video that garnered over one million views, Fatimah Mat Kasar, 54, spoke to her neighbour in Tamil, saying that she was heading to Batu Gajah.
The video on TikTok was posted four days ago with many praising her for being fluent and wanting more videos of her speaking in the language.
@maiyahrahim_ Reply to @putra.syg korang tgkla mak kita ni , dalam nak naik moto tu . Boleh membawang bahasa tamil tu dgn jiran walaupun jauh 🤣. #fyp #fypシ
♬ original sound - Cikk.Mayaaaaa
Speaking to Malay Mail, Fatimah said that she grew up in an Indian neighbourhood and had many Indian friends.
“I grew up in Buntong where most of my neighbours were Indians and we would spend time together playing all sorts of games.
“Being one of the few Malays in the area, I learned Tamil and my neighbours would correct me if I had mispronounced a word.
“Watching Tamil movies have also helped me improve my command of the language and now, I don’t need subtitles when I’m watching a Tamil film.”
In another video, Fatimah was spotted speaking to her neighbour in Cantonese and many were amused at her language skills.
@maiyahrahim_ Reply to @kingmrboyboy
♬ original sound - Cikk.Mayaaaaa
Fatimah, who owns a burger stall said that while she spoke Tamil fluently, she could also speak Cantonese because she started learning it from an old friend.
Her friend had trouble speaking Malay so she helped her master the language while Fatimah learned Cantonese from her.
“I worked as a sales girl in my late 20s and had to approach many customers so that was also how my language skills improved.
“However, my Cantonese is still not as fluent compared to my Tamil.”
Asked how her proficiency in multiple languages helped her during difficult times, she said that she helped many to fill up forms in Malay in government offices.
“Yesterday, I helped an aunty to fill up her form in Malay before she got her first dose of the vaccine.
“Other times when I see older people who have trouble writing in Malay, I would help them by communicating with them in Tamil.
“Most of them would be shocked when I initiate the conversation in Tamil,” she said.
Fatimah is also encouraging her children to pick up both Tamil and Cantonese as it can help them make more friends and learn new knowledge from the people around them.
