Kluang: The Boy Who Lived Through Malayan History

It’s getting harder and harder to find people who have lived through a major part of Malayan history. Many have left us without sharing stories up-close about the different administrative times our country went through before Merdeka. This year, we were privileged to be chatting with Lim Heng Hoo, son of Lim Luan Hee who started the well-established Kluang Rail Coffee in Johor. Uncle Lim was telling us all about the effects of the Great Depression in Malaya, how his father decided to take over the railway canteen in Kluang and what happened when war broke out. He even shared about his personal encounters with the Japanese soldiers and British soldiers respectively – sitting and talking with them in their coffee shop. We were surprised to learn that trade still took place during the war and the Japanese soldiers had their own meal ration! All these details and more in this Merdeka special interview. #MySongsAndStories #Kluang #LoveMalaysia 0:00 Introduction 0:24 Getting to know the boy who landed in Kluang in 1939 1:05 How the original Kluang Rail Coffee was established in 1938 2:12 Growing up during the Japanese Occupation (1942-1945) 3:16 Running the railway coffee shop during the Japanese Occupation 4:49 A Japanese soldier’s daily meal ration 5:15 So not all the Japanese soldiers were bad? 5:28 Out of World War II and into the Malayan Emergency (1948 to 1960) 6:26 In 1960, the Emergency was declared over 7:55 This Merdeka, do you have any advice for our fellow Malaysians? 8:23 How would you describe patriotism or loyalty, and what does it mean to you? 9:15 What is your Merdeka wish for our fellow Malaysians? SERIES CREDITS & ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Storytellers GINA YAP LAI YOONG JUWITA SUWITO Executive Producer JUWITA SUWITO Producer & Director GINA YAP LAI YOONG Videographers GINA YAP LAI YOONG JUWITA SUWITO Scriptwriter, Video Editor & Subtitles GINA YAP LAI YOONG Music & Audio Supervisor JUWITA SUWITO Brought to you by FOUR FORTY RECORDS In partnership with RAIL HOTEL KLUANG