BREHI or desire is the personal project of Ariff Awaluddin and Soraya Yusof Talismail, fellow artists and partners in love and life. It is a study of the five performing arts that define the state of Kelantan: wayang kulit, mak yong, dikir barat, menora and main puteri.

For over a period of two years, the couple made many trips to live among the local people in towns and villages of this unique state to capture the spirit and soul of these living arts. They met tok dalangs, singers, choreographers, musicians, dancers and, equally important, the audiences whom they learned were integral to the performances.

The book features 80 images in colour and black and white, mainly artists in their element, behind, on- and off-stage.

To demystify the arts and make it accessible to the lay person, BREHI takes a deliberately non-academic approach. It avoids the esoteric and invites us to immerse ourselves in the rituals, acting, dancing, songs and stories. The appreciation of the arts is, after all, mostly intuitive.