The unexpected box-office success of Dear You, a Chinese film in the Chaoshan dialect, has revived public interest in a chapter of Chinese migration history that once linked southern China to Southeast Asia through handwritten letters, remittances, and decades of separation.
The film, centred on Qiaopi—the letters and remittances sent home by overseas Chinese—has grossed over 1.1 billion yuan at the Chinese box office up to May 25, making it one of the biggest hits by word of mouth in 2026.
While the film is set mostly in Thailand, the history of the Chinese migration to Southeast Asia extends far beyond its setting, with Singapore preserving many visible traces of that shared past today.
Across the city-state, old remittance houses, clan associations, murals, and preserved shophouses continue to tell the story of generations of Chinese migrants, many from Guangdong, Fujian, and Hainan, who travelled south to seek their fortunes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Chye Hua Seng Wee Kee, a remittance shop at the corner of New Bridge Road and Carpenter Street between 1930 and 1960. (Image courtesy of National Archives of Singapore)
The building's current appearance, transformed into a boutique hotel while retaining its original shopfront and pillar inscriptions.
The building's current appearance, transformed into a boutique hotel while retaining its original shopfront and pillar inscriptions.
Former Hainanese-operated remittance shop on Purvis Street
Remittance and Qiaopi networks were strongly shaped by clan and hometown ties. Migrants tended to use remittance agencies run by people from their own communities, because of trust, shared dialect, and the convenience of communicating or even having letters written in their own language.
Former remittance businesses once served as lifelines between migrants in Southeast Asia and their families back in China, carrying not only money but also handwritten updates, family news, and emotional bonds that held families together across the sea. These spaces formed part of a wider overseas Chinese communication network long before telephones and digital banking emerged.
Zeng Xiangxing reporting from Singapore
Photo: Zeng Xiangxing
