PM Lawrence Wong at the Inauguration of the New Campus of the Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society (Oct 2026)

President of SIFAS Mr K V Rao
Patrons, Trustees, and Board of Advisors of SIFAS
Tutors, and Supporters
Excellencies and Distinguished Guests
Ladies and gentlemen

Good evening, Maalai Vanakkam, and Happy Deepavali in advance!

Deepavali celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, and good over evil. It is an auspicious time for renewal and new beginnings.

So, SIFAS could not have chosen a better time to inaugurate your new campus. And I am delighted to join you this evening for this celebration. It is a new beginning for an institution that has contributed so much to Singapore's cultural life.

SIFAS’ Journey

And as you heard just now, SIFAS has come a long way from its humble beginnings in 1949. The first classes involved just six students meeting in a private room.

Think about that, six students, in someone's home. There was no grand campus, no elaborate facilities. Just a small group of people who believed that these artistic traditions were worth learning, and worth passing on.

Now, more than seven decades later, that small beginning has grown into one of Singapore's leading institutions for Indian classical music, dance and the visual arts, with a pan-Indian curriculum spanning many different disciplines.

And along the way, SIFAS has nurtured generations of artists and art lovers. You count among your alumni accomplished practitioners like our emcee, who is somewhere here, Miss Sushma Soma, who has brought Carnatic music to audiences in Singapore and abroad; and The Bala Boys, who began their formal musical training at SIFAS, before going on to develop their own distinctive sound.

And many other SIFAS alumni have also become teachers and mentors themselves. Some have even established institutions of their own, so [are] multiplying SIFAS’s impact across our arts landscape.

So SIFAS’s contribution goes well beyond the students who have passed through its doors. It has helped to build an entire ecosystem of artists, teachers and audiences, and ensured that these rich artistic traditions continue to flourish in Singapore.

And so this evening, I want to acknowledge what generations of SIFAS leaders, teachers, volunteers and supporters have done. Thank you everyone for your contributions!

New Chapter

Keeping a tradition alive is not simply about preserving what we have inherited. It is also about ensuring it continues to have meaning and relevance for those who come after us. And this is an important task for SIFAS as you embark on your next chapter.

In fact, when SIFAS was founded, one of its objectives was to ensure a new generation of Indians born here in Singapore remain connected to their cultural roots. And that mission remains just as relevant today.

Of course, the world today is very different. Young people grow up exposed to music, dance and culture from everywhere around the world. And with a few taps on their phones, they can discover artists and performances from across the globe. So, their tastes and influences will naturally be more varied and diverse than those of earlier generations.

Some may worry that, with all these competing influences, our young people may lose interest in their cultural traditions. But I do not think we have to see it that way. Our challenge is not to shield our young people from new influences but it is to give them stronger roots so that they can engage confidently in this new world.

And that is where institutions like SIFAS play an important role. You teach more than the notes of a raga or the steps of a classical dance. You impart the discipline, the history, and the philosophy behind these art forms.

You help students understand why these traditions have endured, and what makes them special. And with that foundation, they can develop the confidence to explore, experiment and eventually find their own artistic voice.

After all, the traditions we inherit today did not emerge fully formed. They were also shaped by generations of artists before us, who learnt from their predecessors, who experimented, adapted and contributed something more.

So tradition and innovation are not opposites. A living tradition must have both — tradition and innovation. It must have the discipline to preserve what is valuable, and also the imagination to take it further. So I look forward to see what you have in store for us later, when you talk about imbibing some blues into Indian classical music.

So, this is what I hope SIFAS will continue to nurture: artists who are firmly grounded in their traditions, but who also have the confidence and curiosity to explore new possibilities.

And I also hope SIFAS will help us reach out to a new audience, a wider audience. Indian classical arts are an important part of the heritage of our Indian community. But their beauty and richness can be appreciated by all Singaporeans, regardless of race or religion.

And this is especially important in Singapore where we are a meeting point of different cultures and traditions. Every community has its own heritage, but we also want Singaporeans to look beyond our own communities, and take an interest in the cultures and traditions of others.

And that is what makes Singaporean multiculturalism distinctive. We do not seek to erase our differences, or blend everything into one single uniform culture. Instead, we make space for different cultures to flourish, while encouraging them to interact, influence and enrich one another.

We see this in our food. After all, we have dishes in Singapore that are unmistakably Chinese, Malay or Indian. But we also have dishes that have evolved through the meeting of different culinary traditions, and become distinctively Singaporean.

And the same creative possibilities exist in the arts. There is value in appreciating each tradition in its own right. But there is also tremendous potential when artists from different backgrounds come together to exchange ideas, and create something new.

A New Home

SIFAS’s new campus opens up exciting possibilities for what you can become. You are now situated right in the heart of the Bras Basah.Bugis arts and heritage district, situated alongside arts schools, museums, performance spaces and institutions.

So, I hope you will make full use of these opportunities. Reach out to your neighbours. Partner with other arts institutions. Bring your students and teachers into new collaborations, and invite others to discover the richness of Indian classical arts.

Take this open-air amphitheatre for example - a beautiful new space. Imagine someone passing by one evening. Perhaps they have never experienced Indian classical arts before. But something here catches their attention, and they stop to watch. Perhaps they stay for the whole performance. Perhaps they come back another day, bringing their children or friends. And what began as a chance encounter becomes a lasting interest.

That is how culture can reach new audiences. And who knows? Perhaps a young person who stops here one evening will go on one day to become an accomplished artist. And just as SIFAS's journey began with six students in a private home more than seven decades ago, perhaps the next chapter may begin right here with someone discovering the arts for the first time.

Conclusion

So as SIFAS begins your new chapter, I encourage you to stay true to your roots, while continuing to grow and evolve. Keep the traditions you have inherited alive. Give each new generation the confidence to build on them. Open your doors to more Singaporeans, so that the rich artistic traditions you have can be enjoyed and appreciated by all.

Congratulations once again to everyone at SIFAS on your new home. I wish you many more years of creativity, discovery, and artistic excellence.

Thank you once again and Happy Deepavali.