Char kway teow in India? Meet the Singaporeans bringing local food to Mumbai
Singaporeans Renjie Wong (left) and Synthia Liu have brought their brand of cooking to Mumbai.
MUMBAI – One runs a supper club that evokes memories of home-cooked flavours, and the other is billed as the city's first Singaporean street food restaurant.
For these two chefs abroad, food is a way to stay connected to their Singaporean identity.
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New Paper
an hour ago
- New Paper
Without using profile photos, Singapore-made bot matchmakes strangers
SINGAPORE - Undergraduate Mia, 26, has been chatting with potential dates on Telegram, but she has never seen their faces. It is only when they meet for their first date that she knows what they look like. She is among thousands who have been using amble, a Singapore-made bot that operates much like a virtual matchmaker. Introduced as a bot on Telegram - as @ambleprojectbot - in April 2023, amble is now also available as an app. On amble, users start out completely anonymous to each other, and do not have any idea what the other person looks like. This is in stark contrast to popular dating apps like Tinder, Hinge and Bumble, where details like a person's appearance, height and occupation are often made visible. For Mia, this has been a great pull. She told The Straits Times that her previous experience using Bumble made her feel as though she was "a tomato on display" at a Sunday market. With looks out of the equation on amble, Mia said she has been able to better determine her compatibility with her matches. "(A person's appearance) just isn't that high on my list in comparison with values or personality," she said. As the conversation between two users progresses, "milestones" are unlocked and more is revealed about the parties. This can include fun facts about them or a picture of them - the latter only if both users have chosen to share a photo. Mia said she and her matches chose not to reveal what they look like, and instead went on "fun, blind meet-ups". She has gone on two such meet-ups and said they were both enjoyable. As a conversation between two users progresses on amble, "milestones" are unlocked and more is revealed about the parties. PHOTO: AMBLE 'Not rushed, not transactional' amble co-founder Alyssa Chua, 27, told ST she began experimenting with the idea of the bot in 2023 as she felt that conversations, particularly those on dating apps, were beginning to feel more fleeting than before. "We swipe, we judge, we expect instant chemistry. If sparks don't fly in the first few seconds, we move on," she said. "And yet, when we do find something real... it's because of a conversation that made us pause, think and see someone beyond the surface." Ms Chua said she chose to name the bot "amble" to reflect how she felt a conversation should feel. "Not rushed, not transactional, but like taking a walk in the park with someone, one step at a time," she said. That sentiment has resonated with enough users for Ms Chua and fellow co-founder Cayden Gwee, 27, to decide to release an app version of the bot in April. Ms Chua said there are now about 6,000 people using amble, both on Telegram and the app. To help users find common ground, amble intermittently poses questions or prompts. These can range from simple ones like whether they have unusual hobbies or talents to ones that provoke deeper thought such as: "Do you think there's any sort of scenario which makes it fair to reveal a secret?" Mr Mac Healy, 27, who began using amble in 2024, told ST the "brainwork" needed to answer most questions has helped him strike up "pretty good" conversations and led to meaningful matches and dates. This is in comparison to popular dating apps, where conversations are "the same... rinse-and-repeat", said the financial analyst. "It's not like 'What's your favourite colour?' - I get sick hearing that every single time I enter a new talking phase... amble adds a good twist," he added. Users can also filter the people they will be matched with based on their intention - whether they are looking for something romantic or platonic. Users of amble can filter the people they will be matched with based on their intention - whether they are looking for something romantic or platonic. PHOTO: AMBLE Ms Chua said users have found all kinds of connections through amble. "Some have met romantic partners - we've received very cute photos - while others have discovered shared passions with like-minded hobbyists," she said. But with the online dating scene increasingly filled with scammy profiles and bots generated by artificial intelligence (AI), how sure can users be that the person they are chatting with is real? Ms Chua said that on Telegram, bots - like amble - are not allowed to engage with other bots, as part of the messaging app's security measure to prevent potential abuse. On the amble app, every profile is verified through the user's e-mail and phone number. The phone numbers are then cross-checked against databases of fraudulent numbers to prevent abuse, added Ms Chua. AI is also used on the app to assess users' answers to questions set out by amble during onboarding. "Behind the scenes, we use AI to evaluate these responses by looking for indicators of intent, sincerity and alignment with the kind of meaningful conversations amble is built for," said Ms Chua. "This helps us ensure that the people on the platform are real and genuinely here to connect." App not the end for Telegram bot Ms Chua said Telegram was chosen as the platform to first roll out amble as it gave the bot's creators the flexibility to test ideas, and without requiring users to download something that was new. Mr Ryan, who wanted to be known by only one name, said he found it convenient that he did not have to download yet another app onto his phone. "(It) definitely pulled me to using amble," said the 29-year-old commercial pilot, who has been using the bot since early 2025. Ms Chua said Telegram also "felt like a natural place for real conversations to happen". However, the messaging platform also limited what Ms Chua and Mr Gwee could do with amble. For example, the bot is only able to let users speak to one match at a time. "With an app, we are able to introduce concurrent matches, letting people explore multiple connections at once," said Ms Chua. While users can only experience a simple chat interface on Telegram, an app allows for custom interfaces that could stimulate more thoughtful conversations, and even introduce game-like elements to inspire more playful interactions. The app, though, does not spell the end of the amble Telegram bot. Noting that some users preferred the bot's simplicity on Telegram, Ms Chua said she is exploring ways to keep it as an option alongside the app. "But moving forward, the app will be our focus - because it allows us to build amble the way we've always envisioned it, without compromises," said Ms Chua.
Straits Times
6 hours ago
- Straits Times
Rare pristine first edition of The Hobbit found during home clean-out, up for auction
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Caitlin Riley, a rare books specialist, poses with one of the first editions of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. LONDON – Caitlin Riley, a rare books specialist, was flicking through photographs of tattered volumes from a routine house clean-out in Bristol in 2025 when she stopped, shocked, at a familiar green cover. There, between the pictures of faded 20th-century reference books and crumbling veterinary tomes, was The Hobbit, proud and nearly pristine. 'I literally couldn't believe my eyes,' said Riley, a books and works on paper specialist at Auctioneum, an auction house in the English cities of Bath and Bristol. 'How could it possibly be in and amongst all of this rubbish?' The first edition, first impression of The Hobbit – the literature-reshaping, generation-defining epic by English writer J.R.R. Tolkien that has sold more than 100 million copies worldwide – is up for auction on Auctioneum's website. It quickly passed a presale estimate of 10,000 pounds (S$17,000) to 12,000 pounds, and was up to 19,000 pounds on Aug 4, with bidding set to close Aug 6 evening. Such a copy is remarkably rare: Only about 1,500 were printed in September 1937. The way the book was found – after decades tucked away in a home library – may have been even more unusual. 'The idea that one sat untouched on a shelf for so many years without anyone realising its value is not just unusual,' Pieter Collier, a Tolkien specialist and bookseller, wrote in an email. 'It's astonishing.' First editions of The Hobbit have surfaced before, and can prove very valuable at auction. One copy, given by Tolkien to a student, sold for 137,000 pounds in an auction in 2015. Another sold for 60,000 pounds. But few are in as good condition as the one in Bristol, said Oliver Bayliss, the owner of Bayliss Rare Books in London, who thinks it could fetch more than 50,000 pounds. Riley knows little about the person who owned the book most recently: The clean-out was overseen by an executor, she said, and she does not know any family members of the person who died. She does know that the book came from the library of the Priestley family, who had ties to the University of Oxford, where Tolkien was a professor, and who had corresponded with Tolkien's friend, English writer C.S. Lewis, who also taught at Oxford. It is possible, she said, that the original owners knew Tolkien, perhaps 'through C.S. Lewis and through them running in the same circles'. NYTIMES
Vogue Singapore
8 hours ago
- Vogue Singapore
Where to eat, drink and go in Singapore according to He Shuming
Filmmaker and screenwriter He Shuming made his debut in 2022 with Ajoomma , a Singapore-South Korea oddball gem that made waves from Busan to the Golden Horse Awards. He is now moving into unexpected territory: directing this year's National Day Parade music video. But don't expect flag-waving cliché—his take is understated, cinematic and a little tender. Trained at the American Film Institute Conservatory and the guest editor for this 'Home' issue, his storytelling lives in quiet gestures and deeply personal vignettes—the same lens through which he views the city we call home. For He, home is a place in one's heart that is familiar and comforting—even if it might not be perfect. When it comes to the creative scene, for instance, he hopes to see a space that is more equitable and sustainable. 'That's not just in terms of funding or access, but in how we hold space for different voices and processes,' he explains. 'I'd like to see the scene grow more introspective, to reflect honestly on where we are and who we're making for. Because only then can we build a fuller, more generous creative landscape, one where more Singaporeans see the arts not as a luxury, but as something vital to civil society.' At the end of the day, he reflects, it is the quiet individuality running through each of us that makes up our local culture. 'The way an auntie dresses to the mall, the underground ballroom scene, or someone opening a home-based pizzeria out of their HDB flat. There's a distinct point of view in all of it. We may not always call it art or culture, but I think it is,' he muses. 'I wish we celebrated that more. Because these choices, these gestures; they're all a reflection of who we are as a society: layered, subtle, and deeply personal.' Here, the filmmaker shares his favourite third spaces in Singapore—from the local restaurants he'd rather gatekeep to under-the-radar stores, bars and neighbourhoods he keeps coming back to. André Wee 1 / 6 The ultimate destination for a good night out: Keong Saik Road has everything. Go to Mami's Tamales for dinner—they make excellent tamales which is hard to find in Singapore—then Tian Wang for Chinese desserts. Continue into the evening at No Sleep Club or Salud for a nightcap (and maybe even more food). I don't drink so I always have the bartender make a mocktail for me, usually something bitter and sour. Courtesy of Summer Hill 2 / 6 The local restaurant you tend to gatekeep: Summer Hill at Claymore Connect. The restaurant is owned by a dear friend of mine, Anthony Yeoh. When he moved here from their first location at Sunset Way, a few friends helped to work on the front sign, the table tops with tiles he sourced and the beautiful copper wall tunnel at the entrance. So, in a small way, it feels like I have a piece of myself there. I always go back to the classics: the duck fat fries and the perfectly brined roast chicken. Simple, honest comfort food. @paraphrase._ 3 / 6 The third space where you feel the most you: Fortune Centre in the Civic District. It's a no-fuss place for a meal or a drink, by yourself or with friends. You can also get your fortune told or see a TCM sinseh . It's a one-stop shop for all your wellness needs. Courtesy of Hock Siong & Co. 4 / 6 A hidden gem shopping address: I love window thrift-shopping, so Hock Siong & Co is a fun place to visit for pre-loved furniture and just about anything. It reminds me of going into a movie props shop. @ 5 / 6 Best date-night spot: Somma at New Bahru. Pasta for a date, yes. Out-of-this-world pasta is a double yes, coupled with impeccable vibes and flattering lighting. Sometimes we forget how important lighting is. @apartmentcoffee 6 / 6 Your favourite coffee haunt: Apartment Coffee along Selegie Road. Lately, with this wretched heat, an iced espresso with tonic water has been my order of choice. Sometimes a Kopi-O Kosong at any Kopitiam is good too. Photography Zantz Han Illustration André Wee Outfit Hermès
