Commentary, Opinion

A love letter to Yo-Chi and A Hot Hideout
Reading Time: 7 minutes

By Tran My Linh (27A01B)

I have a relatively expensive taste for someone who’s still living off my parents’ allowance. 

For one, I love Mala–but not just any Mala chain–specifically Hot Hideout, the most expensive one of them all. And I’m no better than your average teenager because I, too, love Yo-Chi. Run the numbers (spoiler alert: there might be a lot in this article), and I would likely be spending $25 if I were to make a visit to Somerset and find myself in both chains. That’s equivalent to 10 plates of chicken rice from the Y1-4 canteen or 6 plates of chicken briyani from the Prata store being gone in a day. Albeit a personal one, I’m certain this anecdote resonates with many of us. Blame it on inflation, but Mala and Yo-chi’s pay-by-weight business model ultimately entices us to pay more than if we opted for a standard food court meal at 313@Somerset or Yolé right across the street. 

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Arts, CCA Events, Culture, School Life

Primaveral: Raffles Crew Film Showcase 2026
Reading Time: 9 minutes

By Tara Teo (26A01D) and Joshua Gerrard Tan (27A01A)

In RI, legacy is a precise endeavour. Clinch a goal, have your school engraved on a glittering gold cup. Get exceptional grades, have your name carved on a historic wooden plaque. But what exactly is the playbook for an endeavour as intangible as the arts?

The question is one that every member of Raffles Crew has contended with for the past two years.  As the first official batch of Crew, established in 2025 after the merging of AVU (Audio Visual Unit) and Raffles Film, the members are positioned on the precipice of a new era. It is their choices—the values they uphold, the commitments they prioritise, the culture they nurture—that sets a precedent for future batches to come. 

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Culture, Movie Reviews, Raffles Reviews

A Girl, She is 100%
Reading Time: 3 minutes

By Sonia Chang (26A01A)

One bright November morning, a man passes a woman on a narrow street and instantly recognises, with inexplicable certainty, that she was 100% him. They exchange no words, they walk on. Yet in those shy seconds, she had lain on his looking and longing. On that Harajuku street corner, love passed them by. 

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Arts, CCA Events, Culture

Do You Dream? Runway RPROJ Showcase 2026
Reading Time: 10 minutes

By Tang Ziya Rena (27A01B) and Tu Meiyi Mary (27S06O)

All photos courtesy of Skyler Chen Yuanzhe (27S03A), Esther Ho Yee Yeow (27S03B), Ayyaatharan Srinivasan (26S06D), Zhu Taiwu (26S06K),  Kylie Chong (26S03E), Kaylea Tan Kai Xuan (26A01E)

If you had been anywhere near the Multi-Purpose Hall (MPH) on the 25th of May, you may have spotted crowds of students (and even a few teachers) milling about the entrance of the hall with bouquets of fresh flowers in tow. 

While this sight is indeed not out of the ordinary, but rather, highly characteristic of most in-school performance events, you, the ever-observant onlooker, might have noticed something that sets this one apart from the others.

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Compilations, Culture, Features, Go Where?, Prexcursion

Where Past Meets the Present — Gentrification in Joo Chiat 
Reading Time: 8 minutes

By Georgia Ong (26S03O), Lerraine Neo (26A01A), Looi Ee Xin (26S03M) 

What comes to mind when you hear “Joo Chiat”? Perhaps it’s the many cafes adorning the streets, or the Peranakan shophouses that are abuzz with tourists. Or maybe, you’re more familiar with Joo Chiat’s sisters, the neighbouring Katong and Marine Parade estates, with malls like i12 Katong or Parkway Parade. 

Regardless, there’s one common thing that all these things share—the vitality they bring to the neighbourhood. When one thinks of mature, culturally significant estates, characteristics like TCM shops, playgrounds, worn-down buildings, wet markets and places of worship may arise, but that’s not the case for Joo Chiat. 

Joo Chiat, Singapore’s residential Peranakan neighbourhood, has managed to pull off the unthinkable—effortlessly weaving culture with culture, past with present, allowing for a cohesive identity that remains culturally relevant even with the evolving times. 

This is gentrification in Joo Chiat. 

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