Roti canai maker Khairi lost his hand, but not his touch

During his two-month stay in hospital, Khairi Badri Zainurin found himself dreaming about roti canai. Not eating it, but making it – stretching the dough, tossing it through the air, and returning to the familiar rhythm of work he had known for years.

So strong was the pull that in the afternoon he was discharged, Khairi headed straight back to the stall in Batu Berendam here. “I missed working with dough so much that I even dreamt about tossing roti canai!” the 39-year-old told Bernama.

“At about 4pm on the day I left the hospital, I went straight to the stall and tried handling the dough with one hand.”

Khairi lost his left hand after a motorcycle accident in November 2017, when a car suddenly pulled out in front of him near the Melaka Wholesale Market. The crash left him with multiple injuries and nerve damage that also affected his balance.

Before the accident, he had been accustomed to stretching and tossing “flying roti” with both hands. Afterwards, even standing steadily while manipulating the dough became something he had to relearn.

“But this work is part of who I am,” he said. “So I practised every day using one hand until I regained my confidence.”

Khairi’s employer remembers those early attempts well. Hamizan Abu Kassim, whose family-run asam pedas and roti canai business has operated for more than 12 years, said Khairi initially struggled after returning to work.

“When he first returned to the stall after leaving the hospital, he was quite unsteady because he had not yet regained his balance,” Hamizan recalled.

But practice quickly became part of the routine, and Khairi kept at it until it became natural again. At times, he would suddenly toss dough towards his colleagues while calling out, “Mat, catch!”

His one-handed roti-tossing has become a draw of its own at the Ujang Asam Pedas stall at the Wholesale Market Food Court, where customers can watch him stretch and send the dough spinning through the air before it lands back within reach.

The skill has also resonated with people facing similar circumstances. Hamizan said some parents whose children have lost a hand have brought them to the stall specifically to see Khairi at work.

Nearly a decade after the accident, Khairi’s familiar routine is back, just performed differently. The dough still stretches, leaves his hand, and sails through the air with grace.

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