Indian Heritage Centre, Singapore

The Indian Heritage Centre occupies a purpose-built four-storey building in Singapore that sets out to combine traditional Indian architectural language with a contemporary structure. Its facade takes inspiration from the baoli, the Indian stepwell, and the building was conceived as an urban gathering place for the appreciation of Indian culture.

The translucent, shimmering exterior is central to that idea. By day it reads as a jewel; after dark, a lit mural transforms the building into a glowing lantern for the Indian community — a deliberate expression of how varied and many-sided that culture is.

The permanent gallery is organised around five themes running in chronological order from the first century CE to the twenty-first. Through artefacts and interactive displays, they trace the long history of contact between South and Southeast Asia, the experience of South Asians across the region and especially in Malaya, and the story of the migrant community in Singapore and what it contributed.

The centre also hosts temporary exhibitions and public programmes throughout the year.

Permanent collection: over 440 objects drawn from Singapore's National Collection and from the local Indian community.