“You know walking down the catwalk is always scary, you never know if you’re going to fall down, and it’s something you never know if it’s going to happen, so it’s quite scary…”

“I’ve been working out a lot every week and I’m really excited because this whole time is a preparation period for Miss Universe, almost 11 months to prep for it, it’s not too long but not too short.

“Beauty to me is being able to be yourself, accept yourself for who you are and allow everyone around you to enjoy that.

“To represent Malaysia, as Miss Universe Malaysia and appear for Malaysia is something I’m really excited about. I’m thankful for many people who has helped me out all along and the support has been overwhelming.

“So far, I haven’t had much time to do all my outdoor hobbies, but I can’t wait to start hiking again. I’ve had time before this but not in the last month because I’ve been busy with Miss Universe, it’s been taking my whole day.

“But the last outdoor sport I did was white water rafting at Sungai Slim at Perak. It was so much fun!

“Once I touch down in Las Vegas for the Miss Universe pageant there will not be any leisure time but I will be traveling after that with my family because I cannot wait and Vegas is near to Arizona and that’s where I used to work before. 

“It was there that I really got into outdoor events and I can’t wait to go hiking there. I love nature and it’s definitely in my traveling list”.

– Miss Universe Malaysia 2015

Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on December 2nd 2015)

“I remember when my mom grew up in West Germany and because of the Berlin Wall dividing us…”

“She couldn’t visit her grandmother who was living on the other side (East Germany). But she could fly and go anywhere else from her side (West Germany) so when the Wall came down, she could finally go back to where her grandmother was – and then she flew here to Malaysia to work.

“Surprisingly she found a better job here than in Germany. She’s a physiotherapist for a Malaysian sports team and she’s married to an Australian, and they’ve been here in Malaysia since my older sister was born. They met here 16, 17 years ago. I grew up here and I’ve never lived at anywhere else but Malaysia. 

“I consider myself more Malaysian, than German or Australian because I’ve never lived there, I can speak a little bit of Malay when I was younger but now I’ve forgotten everything. Maybe I’ll probably work here in Malaysia in the future because in Australia and Germany it’s harder and more expensive to work and live there. 

“What I like most about Malaysia is mostly that there’s a lot of plants here, you can go the rain forests here which you cannot go back in Australia or Germany, and how the Malaysian people here and those that come here are a mix of everything – Malays, Chinese, Australians. 

“I think it’s even a little safer here a little bit because in Germany there are a lot of kids who go their own paths like drink alcohol, and taking drugs but here it’s very safe because the kids can’t meet somewhere and buy some alcohol just like that. So it’s much better to live here than in Germany”. 

– Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on October 6th 2015)

“I was backpacking in China for three weeks…”

“I started from Xi’an all the way up to Beijing and the number of people who speak English is very rare, and they all speak Mandarin, like China Mandarin, very different from the Malaysian Mandarin. I can speak basic Mandarin and communicating was very hard there. So on my way back I was alone and the plane that I was boarding was Air Asia right, so when I heard the conversation between the stewardesses – I teared up. They were just having a simple conversation you know, but in Malay. It was a bit of Malay and English – Manglish. I don’t know why I teared up, like it felt so nice to hear something familiar after so long. And then once I got seated inside the plane, the first thing I did was order Nasi Lemak”.

– Humans of Kuala Lumpur — with Nadia Zamri.

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 23rd 2015)

“I officially started art at around the year 2000…”

“My passion for art got strengthened when I met the folk art group. I love how folk art’s simplicity and versatility allows you to express yourself in ways that other forms of art can’t. We aim to introduce folk art into our country and appreciate the sheer beauty of this art form.”

Story by Ummeesh Kumar.

– Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 22nd 2015)

“60 years ago the Japanese dropped a bomb and a piece of shrapnel got stuck in my leg…”

“I didn’t realize it until 10 years ago, and had to get my leg amputated then. 

“I’ve now since moved to Singapore, I still do travel by public transport and I like how people would help people and my wife like me in public. 

“Now I’m just just enjoying my time now – life goes on.”

Story by Ummeesh Kumar.

Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 20th 2015)

“We keep each other sane in college, despite driving each other insane…”

“We tend to have the same epiphanies, at the same time. Also….we do crazy things for each other. I observe xerophytes and eccentric plants with him, to satisfy his inner botanist; he re-enacts movie posters with me (like this picture, despite disliking pictures of himself) and reads every book I recommend, to satisfy my inner bibliophile. He insults me, I insult him – it’s a symbiotic friendship”.

– Story by Kash Arumugam.

Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 19th 2015)

“My name’s Amir Khan, but my IC name is Amir Gan B. Abdullah. I was formerly known as Gan Eie Seng.”

“I was knocked down by a vehicle but even after two operations, I couldn’t walk without crutches. My eyes also has cataracts, which is why I carry this whistle in my pocket – to warn drivers when I am crossing the road.

“I move around now, and this green bag is where I store the food that people sometimes give me”.

(At this point the photographer gives RM50, meant for the DBKL bill, to Amir. Clasping the photographer’s hands, he said:)

“God bless you and many happy returns of the day.”

– Story contributed by Alexandra Wong (author of Made In Malaysia). 

Humans of Kuala Lumpur

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 19th 2015)

“For me Malaysia is my home…”

Her: I’ve been living here all my life and I will never go anywhere else, not even Singapore.

Him: There’s no other place in the world where all cultures can mix and mash, where we can enjoy each other’s foods, events, holidays, clothes, and languages. I mean, where else can one say 4 languages in one sentence with “Wei macha, you want to makan here or tapau?”

Photostory by Mushamir Mustafa

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(This post was first published on September 20th 2015)