A self-guided walk in Little India

I’ve been craving India.

I’ve been itching for chants and chatter, bartering and Bollywood blockbusters, colour and contrast.

I’ve been dying to inhale again that mix of incense, spices and naphthalene . . .

To see shops dripping with gold and others with flower garlands.

Barbers and streetside tailors and Arun ice-cream stalls.

And today I’m subsumed by all of this . . . but not in India.

For “Easy India” is on our doorstep, in Singapore, just a one five-hour flight from Perth.

And for those dallying with the idea of India, or missing it like me, it’s a good chance to dip into shops and busy streets, temples and markets.

Little India, on the north-east side of the city centre, is surely one of Singapore’s most vibrant neighbourhoods.

And here are my key spots for a self-guided walk . . .

SETTING THE SCENE

The first Indians to arrive in Singapore were soldiers of the Bengal infantry, who arrived with Sir Stanford Raffles in 1819.

With the British interest here, more followed as government employees, traders and skilled labourers. Then came lawyers and doctors.

The lived together in an enclave. It became the Little India we see today.

SERANGOON ROAD

Today I’m walking from north to south just from the Mustafa Centre to the Little India Heritage Centre, with plenty of time to stop and browse and wander down side laneways, of course.

Serangoon is the central thoroughfare through Little India — its main artery and one of the earliest roads in Singapore, dating back to at least 1828. In its early days there were small farms and cattle grazing alongside what was then an unsealed track, Indians prospered with the cattle trade. While cattle were used to haul, there were also dairy products. And in 1915, Tekka market was built primarily to sell milk and yoghurt, but soon a wider variety of foods.

Serangoon Road only became was urbanised in the post-World War II rebuild, including the tall blocks of small Housing and Development Board apartments of the 1970s.

Just slowly strolling Serangoon Road is the heart of the Little India experience.

MUSTAFA CENTRE

Let’s take one step back. Or, rather, I take one step out of a taxi at Mustafa Centre. It’s an easy place to start as taxi and ride-share drivers will know it. It is a big store selling just about everything, and at sharp prices — so, if that’s your thing, it’s a good enough place to start. But it’s really just a big mall packed with stuff, open 9.30am to 11.30pm every day.

WALKING ALONG SERANGOON

Now we’re off . . . walking south along Serangoon Road. Don’t rush. Take in the atmosphere…

SRI VEERAMAKALIAMMAN TEMPLE

Colourful and highly decorated, this is one of the oldest Hindu temples in Singapore.

The main goddess worshipped here is Kali — an incarnation of Parvati, Lord Shiva’s wife, evoking the triumph of good over evil.

The very first Indians in Singapore built a small shrine here, and it has grown and grown into what we see today, which is very much at the heart of the Little India.

During some celebrations (like Deepavali), only devotees might be allowed inside the temple — but most of the time visitors are welcome (but be respectfully dressed with covered knees and shoulders).

My two other temples to visit:

+ Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple looks similar to Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, but it has a colourful monumental entrance tower — a gopura. It makes good photographs when contrasted against the straight lines of the modern high-rise blocks behind it.

+ Sri Vadapathira Kaliamman Temple is covered with painted carvings of Hindu deities. It dates back to about 1870 and is also dedicated to Kali.

TIME FOR LUNCH

I’ve passed Baboo Lane and Hindoo Lane, and the smells of India have got to me. It’s time for lunch. You can feel confident about the quality of food in Little India, as Singapore’s health authorities are vigilant.

I’ve just tried all sorts of little dishes at Azmi restaurant and Khansama restaurant in Serangoon Road, and they are good.

LITTLE INDIA ARCADE

Little India Arcade is a cluster of conserved neoclassical shophouses which were built in 1913 and are currently owned by the Hindu Endowments Board. A real landmark, there are places to eat (it’s surely time for sweets), boutique shops and plenty of knick-knack stalls.

An important historical feature of Little India Arcade is P. Govindasamy Pillai’s shop. Mr Pillai arrived in Singapore as a teenager in 1905, started out as a shop assistant, saved enough to buy that same shop in 1929 and extended the business. He became a prolific philanthropist who very generously supported this community. He’s still affectionately remembered as “PGP”.

Little India Arcade, as we see it today, opened in 1995. The result of a big conservation project, it safeguards the spirit of the early Indian settlers’ commerce.

INDIAN HERITAGE CENTRE

Don’t be put off when you wander into the lobby of the Indian Heritage Centre, in Campbell Lane, off Serangoon Road.

It looks like there may not be much for visitors — it appears to be more a community facility.

But take the lift straight to the fourth floor, and the best of the Indian Heritage Centre will reveal itself. For this is where the centre’s permanent display begins, with the rest on the floor below.

It teaches not only more about Indian heritage in Singapore — but about the wider story of the sub-continent, as seen through this outlier.

The museum has a permanent exhibition about the history of Indians in Singapore, as well as temporary exhibitions which might focus on specific Indian groups.

If you’re here in the early morning, it’s a good idea to return to this stop when you return to this area at the end of the Little India Walking Trail, so that you can enjoy the cooler air of the morning when walking outside, and return for some air conditioning when it’s hotter.

The centre is open from Tuesday to Sunday inclusive, from 10am to 6pm. Tickets are S$8 for adults. indianheritage.gov.sg/en

NIGHT IN DEEPAVALI

Little India comes alive in the evening — particularly in the Deepavali festival of light.

Temples are lit, and the Tekka Hawker Centre is busy. Mustafa Centre is open until at least 11pm.

It is particularly lively during Deepavali — from October 29 to November 3 in 2024. There are lots of lights along Serangoon Road and surrounding streets.

Deepavali Festival Village is already set up in Campbell Lane, with stalls full of traditional clothing, snacks, handicrafts and decorations. This is a time of joyous celebration as light triumphs over darkness.

The elaborate street light displays are up and ready to be lit.

WALK WITH OTHERS

To walk with a guide, I recommend the two and a half hour “Little India walking tour with street food tastings”.

The walking tour is daily except on Mondays, starting and ending at Little India MRT Station. It costs about $222, which includes four or five street food tastings with an expert licensed guide. The groups have no more than six guests.

For more information visit culturecurious.biz

To book go to fareharbor.com and search “Little India walking tour with street food tastings”.

fact file

+ To get there by MRT train, the nearest station is Little India (NE7/DT12).

+ Little India MRT is on both the Green Central Line and Blue Downtown Line.

+ If you are taking a taxi or ride share, I’d ask to be dropped at the Mustafa Centre.

+ Fly to Singapore with Scoot airline, the low-cost subsidiary of the Singapore Airlines group. It has a network of more than 70 destinations in 15 countries. flyscoot.com

+ Stephen Scourfield was in Singapore as a guest of Scoot. They have not influenced or read this story prior to publication.