Sentul Depot used to house engineering workshops and served as a storage and maintenance centre for steam and diesel locomotives as well as railway cars. (Photo: Riuh)
This weekend, the over a century old Sentul Depot (formerly known as the Central Railway Workshops) will be the venue for monthly creative platform, Riuh. Owned by YTL Land & Development Bhd, the 200,000 sq ft building situated next to Sentul KTM station will open its doors to the public for the first time since it closed in the early 2000s. It used to serve the Federated Malay States Railways in the 1900s, and had at least 5,000 railway workers manufacturing train parts for India's railway system in its heyday.
The unveiling couldn’t be more significantly timed as it will coincide with Malaysia Day on Sept 16, making it that much more special. Managing director for YTL land and development Datuk Yeoh Seok Kian mentioned during the press preview yesterday, “The time is right, especially now with the Malaysia Baru sentiment.” The property arm of YTL breathes new life to the heritage building, which still retains its stunning brickwork glory, as a gesture of "returning it" to the Malaysian community.
Many of us may have overlooked the historical signifcance of this building located not too far from Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (klpac). This will soon change when Riuh takes over this hidden gem this weekend as the creative festival fosters greater appreciation for the arts, homegrown artisans and cultural acts. Bazaar-goers can look forward to a host of vendors including Amazin’ Graze, Kakiseni, Tiny Forest, The Straits Finery, Kvik, Batik Tektura, Pungu’ Borneo, as well as performances by ASK Dance Company, Zamaera, The Frankie Sixes led by Reza Salleh, Ryot Jones, Tiga Soul and Orang-orang Drum Theatre.
The fully cashless RIUH x Grab Malaysia Day Weekend (Sept 15 to 16, 11am to 9pm) is powered by GrabPay. Enjoy RM8 discount for two rides to or from Sentul Depot with the promo code RIUHXGRAB. For more information, see Riuh.
