British pop star Dua Lipa’s book club spotlights Malaysian indie bookshop

A literary event at Tintabudi, a bookshop that regularly fosters community and engagement. The independent bookstore in Kuala Lumpur was recently recognised as 'Indie Bookshop of the Month' by Service95 Book Club, the literary arm of pop star Dua Lipa’s lifestyle platform. Photos: Service95 Book Club (left); The Star/Yap Chee Hong (right)

It is not every day that global pop artist and avid reader Dua Lipa mentions a local bookstore – but she recently did so for Tintabudi.

Situated in the TTDI Plaza building in Kuala Lumpur – this independent bookstore has been recognised as the “Indie Bookshop of the Month” by Service95 Book Club, the literary arm of Dua Lipa’s lifestyle platform.

In an Instagram post, the book club, which has more than 358,500 followers from around the world, wrote: “In addition to their thoughtful curation of titles, Tintabudi takes their love of reading beyond the bookshelves, creating a space for their community to discuss books, listen to public lectures and be part of hands-on workshops.”

Tintabudi in Kuala Lumpur is an independent bookstore whose monthly gatherings – from book launches to literary discussions – have fostered a vital space for readers, writers, and thinkers to connect. Photo: The Star/Yap Chee Hong

Launched in June 2023, Dua Lipa’s Service95 Book Club highlights diverse fiction and nonfiction, featuring curated selections, author interviews, and cultural content on Instagram to engage readers around the world.

The Tintabudi staff members were also invited to share their favourite current reads, which included classics such as Arundhati Roy’s Mother Mary Comes To Me and Ghassan Kanafani’s collection of short stories Men In The Sun: And Other Palestinian Stories.

Additionally, the bookstore’s team didn’t miss out on the chance to give a shout-out to Malaysian works, recommending Kelantan-born author Fatimah Busu’s An Ordinary Tale About Women And Other Stories (translated by Pauline Fan from Bahasa Malaysia) and The Long Shadow Of The 19th Century, a collection of historian Farish Noor’s critical essays on colonial Orientalism in South-East Asia. 

Tintabudi owner, Nazir Harith Fadzilah, says that the Service95 Book Club team had reached out to them earlier this year in January for the feature. 

"We're very excited to have been featured, as Tintabudi is what it is due to community support. We hope this highlight brings more visitors to our bookshop, as we want to not only be a place to sell books, but to continue being a hub for discussion and interaction among readers," he adds.

As fans of the book club, Tintabudi also has a dedicated shelf stacked with British singer Dua Lipa’s monthly book club picks in the bookstore for visitors to browse.