Mine, Yours or Ours?
“That’s ours.”
“No, it’s ours.”
The tension was subtle but persistent, etched into news and echoed in viral headlines. We were taught to be proud, but rarely to share. Serumpun Festival challenges this narrative of division by asking: Can a festival become a space of diplomacy? Can joy itself be political?
Set along the historic streets of Malacca, Serumpun Festival reimagines placemaking as a platform for cultural appreciation between Malaysia - Indonesia. A place where architecture, performance, and ritual converge. Through curated cultural programmes and modular installation, the festival becomes a third space: not quite Malaysia, not quite Indonesia, but something in between.
This is not just a celebration. It is an opportunity to reconnect with our own traditional cultures and to recognize the importance of conserving these shared roots for future generations. The name “Serumpun” means “of the same root.” Because before borders, there was kinship. And with design, maybe we can return to that.
