Meet the denizens of old KL

G Tangarasan was in no mood for casual chit-chat. It was mid-morning, both suppliers and customers were criss-crossing paths in his spices shop and he had ledger sheets to tally. “Take as many pictures as you want,” he said in mild irritation. “But I have no time to talk to you. Go ask my son your questions.”
The 36-year-old Krishnan Tangarasan is a fourth generation owner of VKM Traders, a spices shop his great-grandfather began in 1927.His family business is one of the many pulses of old inner KL that has defied the onslaught of modernity to claim a position as an unofficial heritage site.

“My great-grandfather arrived in KL from South India in the early 1920s,” Krishnan said. “He started this business but it was my grandfather who really established it.”“Our shop was originally located in Lebuh Ampang but that area is prone to floods so we moved here, to Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, in 2000.”
A glance around VKM Traders is like taking a peek back in time.From the heavy iron safe to the scarred iron paperweight, not much has changed over the years. Even his 59-year-old father prefers to use a calculator and ledger books instead of the computer in the little back room.


“I am more confident balancing my books this way,” he said gruffly. “And my calculations are always accurate. Even the income tax department is impressed.”While both father and son applauded the coat of modernity that old KL now wears, there is also a tinge of fear of what the future may hold for their family business.Krishnan may very well be the last generation to run the spices shop which is struggling to keep up with the likes of hypermarkets and supermarkets.

“We used to supply spices to Baba,” he smiled. “And now they are supplying their spices to us. Even our customers are waning. Our only regulars are those from the older generation.”The other group of customers are the tourists who find it more authentic to scoop spices out of gunnysacks than pick packets off the rack.
“There were two German tourists who came here to buy black pepper,” Krishnan recalled. “I asked why they didn't just go to a supermarket and they said they could always do that back home. They wanted the real experience of buying spices.”
“But these groups aren't enough to keep us open for the next 10 years. My father has accepted that his grandfather's little empire may be in its sunset years. But we'll see. I'll try to keep it going for as long as I can.”

The chef of spin

Just a hop, skip and jump away from VKM Traders is Lorong Bandar 1, an alley that is almost unnoticeable. That little slip road is where Ahmad Ibrahim, 33, feeds about 300 hungry customers every day.
Ahmad bade farewell to his hometown of Taiping to join his band of relatives in KL years ago. His passion for food resulted in Nabil Store, a crudely constructed stall in the middle of the alley.But ask anyone where it is and you'll get a blank stare.
To the regulars, Ahmad's stall is known as “Mi Goreng Kuali Pusing”.

A few months after setting up shop, word spread about his scrumptious fried mee and a queue began forming at lunchtime. To keep up with the overwhelming orders, Ahmad began spinning his frying pan in order to cook faster.“But when people ask me where I learnt that style of cooking, I tell them that it's an old habit from my lorry driving days,” he confided with a laugh. “Fried mee with prawns is the only dish I serve six days a week.”

“It's a simple dish but I think people keep coming back because of the secret ingredient – my love for cooking. I could do this everyday of my life.”The old KL was home to Ahmad but the new one is responsible for his booming business. The influx of larger stores and backpacker inns has herded more people into Lorong Bandar 1.“I will be here for a long, long time,” he promised. “For as long as people enjoy eating fried mee with prawns!”

The diety maker

A Kuna arrived in KL as a mere baby when his Malaysian father decided to leave Chennai for his motherland. Fifteen years ago, the 40-year-old decided to open Prasad Jewellery, one of only two deity making businesses in Malaysia.
His main factory is in Kajang but the sacred statues are also painstakingly constructed in a tiny room beneath a banana leaf restaurant in Lebuh Ampang.
There, two young Indian workers sit bent over slabs of silver and gold that they lovingly pound into the shape of various deities.
Kuna, who is an architect by profession, firmly believes that his father made the right move in returning to KL.
“There is a very a good market here,” he said. “The demand for religious artifacts has only increased over the years. I'm already teaching my children the tricks of the trade.”
A business like this is strictly a family one and Kuna will not have it any other way. His only business partner, he said in all seriousness, is God.
“But KL has tempted many youngsters to move away from such businesses into land and property markets,” he sighed. “I can teach my children but if they don't want to carry on my business then it will be the end.”
“I would never have had this good an opportunity in India. To me if you say you can't find work in KL, you are either stupid or lazy. Opportunities are everywhere in this city. You just need to run after them instead of waiting for people to give you a push.”

The unlikely devotee

Ranjit Kaur is the last person you would expect to see calling out orders in the 146-year-old Sze Ya temple. But the former nurse has been a familiar face in this heritage site for five years now and is not planning on leaving anytime soon.“My father was a temple watchman so I grew up here,” she said as she cast a fond glance around the incense-filled premises. “I was practically brought up by the family that runs this place so when I heard they needed an extra pair of hands, I didn't hesitate.”

The 50-year-old does “everything that needs to be done” from dawn till dusk without so much as a bleat of complaint.“This is my home and this is my family,” she said before gesturing to a devotee to place her clutch of incense sticks elsewhere.A small gasp suddenly escaped her lips and she hurried to a massive gong across the room. Picking up two wooden sticks she pounded it thrice and then returned it to the incense desk.“We hit that gong in acknowledgment of the devotees' petitions,” she explained. “I've already adopted the Taoist culture and I offer the same prayers as they do. This is a very special place.”

The seafood veteran

Hiah Siek Kee has two golden rules when it comes to smoking a cigar. The first is to always accompany it with whiskey because it will “always taste better”.The second is to always use a matchstick to light up. Never mind that he uses a whole box of matches on a single cigar.
It is little trouble compared to the potential throat complications that come with using a lighter. Considering that he is 84 years old, those are two rules worth following.

Age hasn't kept Hiah from running his seafood business with the same sharpness that he wielded when he first ventured into the industry 63 years ago.“I worked in Singapore with a company that supplied seafood,” he said while puffing on his cigar. “Then I came to KL to open another branch. How many years ago was that?”

He pulled an abacus towards him and after a few rapid clicks, announced, “43 years ago”.
Kwang Yeow Heng started off as a grocery store that only sold dried seafood and today sells Chinese herbs as well. The shelves are lined with Japanese scallops, abalone, sea cucumbers, starfish and bird's nests.
Hanging beside them are numerous laminated newspaper cuttings about his business. Behind his long desk are framed pictures of him with various local personalities.

When the wet market moved from where Central Market now stands, many of Hiah's neighbours moved with it. But Hiah stood his ground and is now the only shop on that stretch that is reminiscent of old KL.
“People still come here to buy my food,” he said with a shrug when asked how he managed to survive. Also, my business focuses on wholesalers and our prices are very reasonable. And we have always supplied quality so they trust us. That is very important for a business, you know.”“Today my two daughters run this business.

It's doing very well, if I say so myself. KL may be modern now but people's taste has not changed. So I think we'll be around for a while.”His daughter, Margaret, has kept a sharp eye on her father throughout the conversation to ensure he doesn't over-excite himself.When someone remarked that “uncle” is very impressive for his age, she retorted, “It is not 'uncle'. It is boss.”

Source : http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/news/general/14795-meet-the-denizens-of-old-kl-