PUBLISHED ONJune 05, 2019 2:15 AMByJoey Lee
You may have noticed the absence of Singapore Idol alumnus Taufik Batisah for a while now, with the exception of his recent appearance for this year's NDP music video, to which he was one of several local icons to lend his vocals.
Just what has the entertainment veteran been up to?
With Hari Raya just around the corner, we travelled to Kampong Glam where he owns a fried chicken eatery for a little catch-up session and to find out how he plans to celebrate the occasion.
[[nid:447595]]
Nope, he hasn't turned his back on singing and performing. Turns out, Taufik has been busy working on a special Hari Raya song, Ikhlas (Sincere), which was released exclusively on Apple Music on May 31.
The song is a collaboration with superstars from two other countries -- Malaysia's Dato' Sri Siti Nurhaliza and Indonesia's Nissa Sabyan.
The song will also be released on other platforms come June 7.
During our interview, we unleashed our kaypoh side and took the chance to ask how yearly celebrations are like in Taufik's family.
No stranger to Causeway jams, the fried chicken towkay shared how his and his wife's family travel across the border every Raya to visit his father in Malaysia, just so that everyone can come together to join in the festivities.
[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/BkW9ZQTFf_S/[/embed]
The longest he's been stuck in a jam? Four long hours.
It sounds like a nightmare for one's bladder. But that's the kind of thing we do for family, right?
Then again, the 38-year-old's most memorable Hari Raya was one where he was scammed by his older brothers as a child.
[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/BkHptKGl1XB/[/embed]
Taking a trip down memory lane, Taufik shared about how he and his two older brothers would pool together the money they collected during Hari Raya to buy toys -- only for his oldest brother to buy the biggest and most expensive one, leaving him with a tiny toy motorcycle in comparison to their toy truck and car.
"Back then I was like 'wow! [The motorcycle] is so cool!' but now I'm like wait a minute... I've been scammed!" Taufik recounted with a laugh.
One thing that has not changed in the Batisah household though, are staples during the celebrations.
They include lontong - "I can eat it all day," he quipped, lemak lodeh, rendang and of course… fried chicken.
Located along 1 Jalan Pisang Road, his halal-friendly restaurant was opened last year in August, specialising in Nashville style fried chicken dusted with some of the spiciest peppers in the world.
Watch our attempt to finish it, and find out how you can win a one year's supply of fried chicken here.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-g_peIdW7M[/embed]
joeylee@asiaone.com