Star Wars fans gather to celebrate 'May the Fourth'

Darth Vader, Stormtroopers and Imperial Officers took centre stage as Star Wars fans gathered to celebrate ‘May the Fourth’ in Shah Alam.

The celebration here may not be as grand as those in other countries like the United States or United Kingdom (it was widely reported that former UK premier Margaret Thatcher was the genesis for the celebration following a congratulatory half page advertisement which stated ‘May the fourth be with you, Maggie. Congratulations’ in 1979 following her ascend to the top post).

However, it was only in 2011 when fans began to celebrate it and Malaysia is surely picking up the momentum.

Over at the Raja Tun Uda Library, fans of all ages were treated to an array of activities including a Star Wars Academy and Droit Hunt Games for the children, Star Wars collectible exhibition, a Star Wars Flea Market, and a special screening of ‘Heart of an Empire’.

Amidst the busyness of a group of students getting their selfies with Darth Vader and a couple of die-hard fans trying out the lightsabers, president of the Star Wars Malaysia Fan Club Sean Lee explained that the event is to encourage more and more Malaysians to appreciate Star Wars.

As the society gears up to hype the upcoming premiere of Star Wars Episode VII in 2015, Lee said there is more to be done, especially in creating awareness for the younger generation.

“We need to teach the young ones. We may know the history of Star Wars but let the young generation understand more. There is more to do,” he said.

As we moved on to the collectible exhibition area, we were intrigued by Khairul Hezry Zainal Abidin's collection.

He has a large collection of Darth Vader masks, 3-inch figures, lightsaber replicas, and even a couple of pop-up books.

“I collect anything Star Wars, really. It could be vehicles, figures and props. I tent to concentrate on high-end, premium stuff. If I want to collect Star Wars items, I might as well go for the top end collection,” said the collector who would spend up to RM5,000 annually on Star Wars memorabilia.

Adam has been a fan of Star Wars since standard four but started becoming a serious collector back in 2007.

Citing ‘A New Hope’ as his favourite movie from the franchise, Adam explained that he went from collecting vehicles to scouting for life-size items.

“I would scout every month. Life-size items are very limited and it’s not easy to get. When I hunt for something and find it, I would buy it immediately,” he said.