Melaka record collector putting his own spin on Deepavali

The annual Deepavali celebrations at Melaka’s Little India here has been cancelled, but a die-hard Bollywood music fan will set the festive mood in his neighbourhood by playing songs from his large collection of records.

MELAKA: The annual Deepavali celebrations at Melaka’s Little India here has been cancelled, but a die-hard Bollywood music fan will set the festive mood in his neighbourhood by playing songs from his large collection of records.

Former bank clerk S. Hardeep Singh, 76, has thousands of records in his collection, many comprising Hindi songs with the oldest dating back to 1940 from the film “Jhansi Ki Rani”.

He also has a dedicated room in his Bukit Senjuang Flats unit to house his collection.

“I will play evergreen songs from Tamil singer TM Soundarajan from the 1950s on my record player outside my house on Deepavali.

“Deepavali must always be a lively affair in Melaka,” he said here on Wednesday (Nov 4).

The state government recently announced that the annual Deepavali event would not be held along Jalan Bendahara here due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Hardeep, a father of four, said he started collecting records in the late 1950s.

“I started my collection when I was a teenager. Hindi songs then were melodious and laced with emotions,” he said.

He said he used to travel up to Kuala Lumpur and Penang to buy records.

Hardeep also has a variety of records and items from the late Hindi singer Mohd Rafi Saab.

His prized collection of Rafi memorabilia includes photographs, entertainment magazines, newspaper clippings, posters, the singer’s autograph, handwritten letters and of course music in various formats such as compact cassettes, CDs as well as 33 and 45 RPM records.