Welcome to Little India: Motorized vehicles pass through the gate of Little India on Jl. Zainul Arifin in Medan. (JP/Apriadi Gunawan)

Wearing traditional Indian attire, hundreds of Medanese of Indian descent took to the streets of Little India in Medan recently to participate in the Thaipusam festival. 

Thaipusam is a Hindu Tamil holiday observed to honor the God Murgan, the son of the God Shiva.

Little India on Jl. Zainul Arifin hosted this year’s Thaipusam festival on Jan. 21. The annual event was inaugurated by Medan Mayor Dzulmi Eldin in October 2018. 

Most residents of Little India are Medanese with Tamil blood. They adopted the names of cities in India to name the streets of their neighborhood, with names such as Kalkuta, Bombay, Nagapatam, Ceylon and Madras. 

Sri Mariamman Hindu Temple, which was constructed in 1881, is a popular site that unites those of Little India.

Medan’s Little India is the first in Indonesia and third in Southeast Asia after ones were established in Singapore and Malaysia. It is a center of Indian cuisine, handicrafts, spices, garments and small temples.

The neighborhood, which occupies 4 hectares of land, has played a major role in promoting unity among all citizens of Medan, a city that is home to a diverse array of cultures and faiths.

Dzulmi said that as a kota berbilang kaum (city of various peoples), Medan had never turned down those who wanted to become part of the city’s history. Noting that Medan had always been a highly multicultural city and home to various ethnic groups, he said that Little India was proof that the government was very serious about safeguarding the city’s diversity.

“I fully support the residents of Little India to hold cultural events here,” the mayor said, adding that he hoped the neighborhood could help to introduce Indian culture, art and food to as many people as possible.

Anthony Selliah, a public figure in Little India, said he was happy and grateful for the inauguration of Little India and said it was important for residents of Indian descent because it was part of their identity.

The area is not exclusive to those with Indian roots, and has even seen many former residents of Indian descent move away.

Colorful celebration: Indonesians of Indian descent celebrate Thaipusam on Jan. 21 in Little India. (JP/Apriadi Gunawan)

“Now, there are only around 300 residents […] Instead, we see more people of Chinese descent living here. But we are close with them,” Anthony told The Jakarta Post on Jan. 22.

He added that most former residents of Little India had moved to suburban areas near Medan due to economic reasons. The number of Medan residents of Indian descent, he added, was 20,000 people. Most of them work as entrepreneurs.

Anthony said the strong bonds formed was thanks in some degree to the efforts made by several organizations they had established, such as Forum Bhinneka Tunggal Ika Indonesia (Indonesia Unity in Diversity Forum) and the Indian Social Community.

He said that, even though their ancestors were from India, they were now Indonesians and fully observed the laws in Indonesia.

“We are of Indian decent, but we are Indonesians. We follow the laws in Indonesia,” Anthony said.

Anthony expressed appreciation for the strong diplomatic relationship Indonesia had with India and hoped for the relationship to improve moving forward, along with the welfare of people from both countries.

Ravi Kumar, a public figure in Medan, said Indonesians of Indian descent still maintained close ties with their relatives in India. His wife, for example, still has relatives in India and the last time his family visited them was in 2014.

“It’s been almost five years since we went to India. We miss going there,” Ravi said, adding that he hoped to be able to visit India again in the near future.