The editor of tabla! Venga Subramaniam, appeared on Kiss92FM on Dec 1 morning to speak about the relaunch of tabla! event that happened on Nov 19, with – a move aimed at expanding its reach and making its cultural content more accessible to younger, digitally engaged readers.
During the interview, Mr Venga highlighted how tabla! fills a gap in Singapore’s media landscape by serving communities that are not fully represented in Tamil Murasu, the Tamil-language daily. “Tamil Murasu is a daily paper, your local news, hard news,” he explained, noting that while the paper plays a crucial role, it naturally caters to Tamil-speaking readers.
He emphasised that Singapore’s Indian community is far from monolithic. “The Indian community is one of the more diverse communities in Singapore. Two-fifths of the Indian community is made up of Tamils. The remaining speak a variety of other languages – Hindi, Bengali, Urdu, Gujarati, Punjabi and so on.”
This diversity is precisely where tabla! has carved out its niche. Published weekly and written fully in English, which is “the most common lingua franca”, as Mr Venga said, tabla! attracts readers from across linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Beyond providing news, it offers a space for stories that celebrate identity, heritage, and community life.
“tabla! is also a cultural paper. When people pick up a copy of tabla! they don’t necessarily want to read the hard news, they want more arts, entertainment-related content – that’s tabla!’s space,” he noted.
The launch of the new website marks a significant step in the paper’s digital journey. With a modern layout, multimedia storytelling, and easier access to community features, tabla! aims to further strengthen its connection with readers – especially younger Singaporeans of Indian heritage who increasingly consume news online, with the goal of giving the Indian diaspora a platform.
