Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple and Tekka Market: What to See

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The Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple and Tekka Market sit almost side by side on Serangoon Road, and together they make the single best introduction to Little India’s two defining sides: devotional and edible.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple: History and What to See

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple began as a simple shrine in 1855. Early Bengali labourers raised it, and builders finished the current temple in 1881 in the Dravidian style of South Indian Tamil temples. The temple is dedicated to the fierce goddess Kali, shown here in her Veeramakaliamman form — a powerful, protective incarnation rather than the more common serene depictions of Hindu deities.

The temple’s most striking feature is its gopuram, the tall, elaborately sculpted entrance tower covered in brightly painted figures of Kali and other deities. It’s one of the most photographed sights in Little India. During the Japanese Occupation (1942–1945), the temple took on a humanitarian role: it sheltered more than 20 people a night and fed them during air raids, a piece of history that adds real weight to what can otherwise feel like just a photo stop.

Address: 141 Serangoon Road, Singapore 218042.

Getting to Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple

The nearest station is Little India MRT (NE7), a five-minute walk away. Most visitors combine a stop at Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple with a walk down Serangoon Road toward Tekka Market and the Little India Arcade.

Visiting Etiquette at Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple

• Remove your shoes before stepping onto the temple grounds — there’s a shoe rack near the entrance.
• Dress modestly: shoulders and knees covered is the safe standard.
• Be considerate around active worship — photography is generally fine, but avoid pointing a camera directly at people praying.
• Visit early morning or late afternoon to see the temple at its most active, during puja (prayer) times.

Tekka Market: Little India’s Food and Wet Market

A five-minute walk from Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, Tekka Market (officially Tekka Centre) is a two-storey wet market and hawker centre that’s anchored Little India’s food scene for decades. The ground floor sells spices, fresh produce, meat and fish. Hawker stalls surround it, serving some of the best budget South Indian, Malay and Chinese food in Singapore — roti prata, briyani, prawn noodles and Indian sweets among them.

Even without a full meal in mind, walk through the wet market section. The spice stalls give a far more visceral sense of Little India’s food culture than the tourist-facing shops on Serangoon Road offer.

How to Combine Both in One Visit

The temple and market sit close enough to combine into a single hour-long stop. Start at Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple in the cooler morning hours, then walk over to Tekka Centre for a South Indian breakfast — dosa or putu mayam are the classic choices.

If you’re building a longer day around Singapore’s ethnic enclaves, our Chinatown Singapore Travel Guide makes a natural comparison stop. For the temple’s official heritage listing and background, see the National Heritage Board’s Roots.gov.sg.

For more on the area, see our guide to Little India Singapore Travel Guide: Things to Do and Where to Stay.