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A before and after look into the Little India of Kuala Lumpur.
WANDER
An Area that
Stimulates All the Senses
the man in charge of Selangor at that time,
ordered the buildings to be re-constructed
with bricks. It was around this time that
Kapitan Cina Yap Ah Loy bought a small
piece of land in the area to start a brick
business, and the name Brickfields was
born.
Brickfields was first known as the place
to go to for quality and strong bricks. So,
how did a brick area turn into the home
of one of the largest Indian communities
in Malaysia? Brickfields also used to
have one of the main train lines running
through it. The British authorities brought
plenty of workers from Sri Lanka, then
known as Ceylon, to help build and
THE HISTORY
Brickfields is a small township that is
located a stone’s throw from the city
centre of Kuala Lumpur. Having coined
the nickname Little India, Brickfields
offers plenty of spicy charm and bright
colours in keeping with the Indian culture.
Oddly enough, Brickfields was not
always the bustling town it is now. It
was actually quite an unlucky place. In
1881, a flood ravished the streets and not
long after a fire caused severe damage.
These continuous problems had a bad
impact on the town. With the wooden
structures not being able to handle the
numerous mishaps, Frank Swettenham,
W o r d s :
L y l a D . M u r u g a y a h
maintain this railway line. A lot of the
workers were given houses and soon they
started settling in and turning the boring
brick making area into the colourful
vibrant town we see today.
Several of the British infrastructures
can still be seen strewn about the area.
A landmark that stands proudly is the
century old Young Men’s Christian
Association ( YMCA). A little walk away
and you’ll find the charming Vivekananda
Ashram that was built in the early 19th
century. Though plenty of the buildings
here have historical backgrounds, rapid
development have given these buildings
a shaky future.
Beautiful Brickfields