Along Serangoon Road, garland stalls and goldsmiths fill the shophouse arcades and the gopuram of Sri Veeramakaliamman rises over the traffic.
In the 1820s the British set up lime pits and brick kilns along Serangoon Road, and the Indians who worked there called the area Soonambu Kambam, “Village of Lime” in Tamil. Cattle came next, and Kandang Kerbau, the “buffalo enclosure”, grew up west of the road. Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, dedicated to a fierce form of Kali, began as a shrine raised by lime-pit workers as early as 1855.
Start at the Indian Heritage Centre on Campbell Lane, whose 440-plus artefacts tell the story of Singapore’s Indian and South Asian communities. Then eat at Tekka Centre, whose market dates from 1915, for biryani and tandoor naan, or sit down to a South Indian banana-leaf meal. Mustafa Centre, open 24 hours, sells everything from gold and spices to suitcases.
Little India is at its most vivid in the weeks before Deepavali, when Serangoon Road is strung with lights and bazaars sell saris, bangles and snacks. In 2027 Deepavali falls on Thursday 28 October.
