Malaysia is the Southeast Asian destination that Indians never pay enough attention to. I plead guilty myself to this neglect.

Nearly two decades ago I went to Kuala Lumpur and Penang to shoot for my Discovery Travel and Living series Asian Diary. I remember Penang vividly: A city dominated by overseas Chinese who have made Malaysia their home for many generations. It was a city with a distinct culture and history. And it also had some of the best street food in Asia.

Kuala Lumpur, on the other hand, was a bit of a blur. I remember it as busy and bustling (journospeak for crowds and traffic jams) but not much else. I stayed at the JW Marriott which was large but well run and I remember thinking: Malaysia has got its strategy wrong.

In those days Malaysia’s tourism pitch to Indians was that it was just as advanced and sophisticated as Singapore and was a perfect alternative.

This was nonsense but I understood the historical background. Once upon a time Singapore and Malaysia had been part of the same country. But Singapore was run by the overseas Chinese while Malaysia was an ethnic patchwork in which the Malays dominated. The Singapore Chinese were not happy about this Malay dominance, the two communities clashed and eventually Singapore became a city State on its own.

To everyone’s surprise Singapore which had no natural resources except for the ingenuity of its people flourished and went on to become one of the world’s great cities.

Malaysia had oil so it was always going to be okay but as Kuala Lumpur grew, the competition with Singapore became more intense.

Two decades ago, when we shot Asian Diary, Singapore........

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