RICE

What if Deepavali Lights Sparkled Into the Rest of Singapore? By Shruti Balaji Deepavali lights shine brightest in Little India. Elsewhere, it’s largely plastic pumpkins and early Christmas trees. In a speculative design project, urban sketcher Shruti Balaji draws the Festival of Lights into spaces far beyond one ethnic enclave. Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88406

🎬 Is Singapore Easier to Get Around Than It Used to Be?  🎬 A decade ago, few would have understood why a guide dog needed to board the bus. These days, commuters often speak up for their owner. Many of the things that make a city easier and safer to get around go unnoticed by people who don’t need them, like tactile tiles at pedestrian crossings and park connectors for cyclists. In 2026, what does the daily commute in Singapore look like when you’re differently abled—or when it takes two hours between work and home? WATCH: bit.ly/4iPoPfv

Singapore Penalised My Parents for a Third Child. Now It Rewards My Children for Reading. By Imran Johri For decades, Singapore has steered us with carrots and sticks. In the ’70s and ’80s, it was the stick: families were penalised for having a third child. These days it’s mostly carrots—right down to rewards for reading 15 minutes a day. If incentives disappeared tomorrow, how much of ‘good behaviour’ would go with them? Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88357

When Aiman missed out on a spot in polytechnic, it took three years—and his father’s example of returning to school as an adult—to get him back in the classroom. The diploma and degree that followed gave him the tools to fuse his two obsessions: football and code. What can a detour teach you that the straight road can’t? 🎬 WATCH: bit.ly/4iFsahe

The Ballad of Suresh & Seelan: What’s Left of a Caregiver When the Caring Ends By Ilyas Sholihyn It’s been weeks since Seelan, who had cerebral palsy, died at home in the arms of his older brother and sole caregiver, Suresh Vanaz. For 42 years, Seelan relied on him. Now Suresh, on two rebuilt knees after surgery, is the one who needs someone to rely on. Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88246

After hitting multiple academic roadblocks and spending three years away from school, starting over felt daunting for 26-year-old Aiman.⁠ ⁠ Instead of letting failure define his ceiling, he decided to try again with an institute that saw the potential in him. With supportive mentorship at PSB Academy, he earned his Coventry University Computing Science degree—and now thrives doing what he loves. ⁠ ⁠ Read more https://bit.ly/4igoun6

🎬 [What Does a Lifelong Caregiver Do When There’s No One to Care For? | Suresh & Seelan] 🎬 For 42 years, Suresh Vanaz took it upon himself to be the prime caregiver and protector of his younger brother, Seelan, who was born with cerebral palsy. He never wavered, setting aside his own needs and building his life around keeping Seelan happy. On 29 August 2026, Seelan passed away unexpectedly at home in his brother’s arms. Suresh made looking after him his whole identity. Who is he now that the caregiving has ended? Watch the full video on YouTube: https://bit.ly/4yZkjAZ

🗣️We're looking for fresh grads🗣️ RICE Media is working on a feature about how fresh graduates of different backgrounds are navigating the current job market. We're looking to fresh graduates in Singapore who can speak on: 💵 Having financial and family support that gives them more flexibility in navigating their career choices 🏋️‍♂️ Facing financial pressures that require them to start earning as soon as possible, even if it means compromising on their career aspirations 💻 Struggling to find a job despite efforts like internships and mass applying 📹 Are open to speaking on their lived experiences on camera If you or anyone you know is keen on contributing: 1. Comment below 2. DM us on IG (http://www.instagram.com/ricemedia.co)

With so much riding on a property deal, how do we start choosing who to trust? We polled the RICE community on what it takes for them to trust a property agent. Most said a referral beats everything else, and more than half said an award only counts if you know how and why it was won. Visit https://bit.ly/4zovgx9 for the results

10 Years in Madrasahs, and I’m Still Figuring Out Where Faith Fits in Singapore By Muhammad bin Zailan Local madrasah students grow up juggling Islamic studies alongside Maths and Science, among classmates who share their faith and keep to the same rules. Then they graduate into polytechnics and JCs, where parties and portfolios come first. In a Singapore that’s growing less religious, how much of their madrasah identity do they hold on to? Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88193

Nobody in this local lockpicking community looks like they’re plotting a heist, let alone the type to lean back and say, "You sonovabitch, I’m in".⁠ ⁠ In this Amongst Us edition, we sent Cheyenne from the RICE Team to Singapore's underground world of lockpicking. ⁠ ⁠ In the midst of relearning how to lock in, maybe her true big score was the friends she made along the way.⁠ ⁠ 🎬 Watch: https://bit.ly/4idsMKG

Picking Locks Helped Me Relearn How to Lock In By Cheyenne Koh Nobody in this local lockpicking community looks like they’re plotting a heist, let alone the type to lean back and say, “You sonovabitch, I’m in.” In the midst of relearning how to lock in, maybe the true big score was the friends we made along the way. Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88110

Qurrah was already raising two toddlers and working a full-time job when she decided to go back to school. Then halfway through her degree, she found out she was pregnant with her third child. Between her livelihood, motherhood, pregnancy, and deadlines, who did she lean on to make it all work?  🎬 WATCH: https://bit.ly/47sSN3R

James Lai knows what it's like for life not to go in a straight line. By his 40s, he'd already lost money to MLM and crypto schemes, gone through a divorce, and taken a part-time job at McDonald's. Then James started over again as a student when he signed up for the SkillsFuture Career Transition Programme in Cloud Support & DevOps. There, he picked up new skills and found clarity about his future—a journey that eventually landed him a job in AI cloud engineering at the age of 48. 🎬WATCH: https://bit.ly/4jwm84u

With two toddlers under five and a full-time marketing job, 33-year-old Qurrah seemed settled. Yet, inspired to push herself, she enrolled in Coventry University's Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Business and Marketing. Then came another twist: baby number three. Balancing fatigue and deadlines wasn’t easy, but it was something that a strong family and institutional support system eased the load on. Read more https://bit.ly/4hVYlde

‘Have I Made the Right Decision?’: The Lingering Doubts Behind Mid-Career Pivots By Joel Teo “From a proper paying executive job, and then suddenly I’m taking on an allowance and becoming a full-time student for four years.” Starting anew can be daunting, but how have mid-career switchers in Singapore found their version of happiness on the other side of the pivot? Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=88058

"You don't train to play in the haze. But seeing the home support behind them, they pushed through every single minute."⁠ ⁠ At Bishan Stadium on a hazy night, young footballers fight tooth and nail against the elements and their opponents for the love of the beautiful game. ⁠ ⁠ In the hardest seasons of growing up, what does unconditional support look like?⁠ Read https://bit.ly/4yUsLT6

At 17, I Couldn’t Wait to Leave Singapore. Now, I Have to Prove My Singaporean-ness By Chloe Chung “I hadn’t expected that getting comfortable with who I was abroad would invite people to question where I belong.” In this RICE Community Voices story, 20-year-old student Chloe Chung looks back on leaving Singapore for a Yorkshire boarding school—and on coming home to question what it means to be truly Singaporean. Read more https://www.ricemedia.co/?p=87959