Mealea Lay, also known as Miss Sarawan, gave a live performance last week on the Méta House stage. Known for being largely inspired by the golden age of Cambodian pop, Mealea is also a fashion enthusiast... from the same era.
Mealea's passion for music began at the age of ten. The daughter of an artistic couple, she was quickly drawn to the golden age of Cambodian rock'n'roll and fell in love with the glories of the era, such as Sinn Sisamouth and Ros Sereysothea. She began to imagine herself as a singer, seeing herself on stage in vintage dresses.
As Miss Sarawan, she adopted a stage persona and style that matched her image while drawing inspiration from the work of Ros Sereysothea, Pen Ran and Huoy Meas, all leading female singers at the time. Unfortunately, Pol Pot's regime led to their deaths and the disappearance of their style. For the young woman, it was difficult to try and imitate them because of the limited availability of images and video footage. So she drew inspiration for her character from YouTube clips of Western artists from the 1960s.
She gets most of her clothes from a shop outside BKK market, and from some shops in Orussey market. Khmer clothing in the style of the 1960s is hard to come by, so these are the only establishments that can provide her with what she needs at an affordable price.
Mealea says she is particularly attracted to the 1960s hairstyle, known in English as the "beehive style". In Cambodia, this style is known as 'Bokor Mountain', because of its large size in relation to the head.
To achieve this look, a false hairpiece and lots of hairpins are needed to secure the hairpiece in place. A strong hairspray is also essential. She says that audiences are often surprised by this style, which certainly doesn't prevent her from being a talented singer whom the Phnom Penh scene has had the pleasure of welcoming for several years, for moments of charm, nostalgia, smiles and above all excellent music.