Dear You: A Teochew love letter to the Nanyang Chinese

Film review by Kua Kia Soong

For Teochew audiences like myself, watching Dear You is much more than watching a film – it is an emotional homecoming.

It is a rare chance to hear our mother tongue on the big screen. The film treats our culture with affection and authenticity, and reconnects us with a chapter of history that shaped countless Teochew families across Southeast Asia.

I inherited the old letters my parents had kept for years. They are my prized inheritance.

Letters that carried hope

For generations, Teochew migrants left their villages in China and journeyed to Nanyang (the historic Chinese term for Southeast Asia, literally “South Seas”) in search of survival and opportunity.

The early years were often marked by poverty, hardship and loneliness. Many worked as labourers, hawkers, shop assistants and small traders. They endured difficult conditions so they could send money home to parents, spouses and children left behind.

My grandfather sold fruit in Singapore before moving to work in Batu Pahat. These remittances, known as qiaopi (侨批, letters paired with money sent home), were far more than financial transactions. They were lifelines of love, responsibility and hope.

Every remittance carried a message: “I am still alive. I have not forgotten you. Better days will come.”

For Teochew families, receiving a qiaopi brought not only material relief but also emotional comfort. There were no telephones and no instant communication. A letter from Nanyang was the only proof that a loved one remained safe, despite the distance.

Dear You captures this emotional world with remarkable sensitivity. The film reminds us that migration was not merely an economic story but a deeply human one. It was a story of separation and reunion, sacrifice and perseverance, longing and devotion.

These themes resonate strongly with Teochew audiences because they echo the experiences of our parents, grandparents and great-grandparents.

A labour of love

Director Lan Hongchun deserves particular praise for bringing such an ambitious project to life on a modest budget. Large commercial productions dominate cinema today. It takes courage and conviction to make a film centred on Teochew culture and history instead.

The director has shown that sincerity, cultural authenticity and emotional truth can achieve what money alone cannot. The result is a film that feels intimate, heartfelt and deeply personal.

The performances of new actors Li Sitong, Wang Yantong, Wu Shaoqing and Zheng Runqi deserve special recognition. They bring warmth, innocence and emotional depth to their roles, creating characters audiences can immediately empathise with. Their performances are natural and convincing, letting the emotional weight of the story unfold without melodrama.

The actor in the principal male role conveys the quiet resilience and sense of duty typical of many early Nanyang migrants. He captures the burdens carried by those who left home to support families they might not see again for years.

The two young actresses are delightful. Their performances are natural, heartfelt and utterly believable. They bring warmth and humanity to the story, helping the audience connect emotionally with the characters rather than simply watch them. Their expressions often communicate more than words could.

Keeping memory alive

What makes Dear You particularly significant is that it preserves a heritage at risk of being forgotten. Younger generations may know little about the qiaopi system or the sacrifices made by their forebears.

This film is both an artistic achievement and an act of cultural remembrance. It honours the struggles of the Nanyang Chinese while celebrating the family bonds that survived across oceans and generations.

For Teochew viewers, Dear You is a reminder of who we are and where we came from. It reminds us of the sacrifices that made our lives possible today. It speaks to the collective memory of a people whose history was written through commerce and migration, but also through love – expressed in letters, remittances and the unbreakable ties of family.

In bringing this story to the screen, the director and cast have given the Nanyang community a precious gift. Dear You deserves to be celebrated not only as a moving film. It is also a heartfelt tribute to the resilience, compassion and enduring spirit of the Nanyang Chinese.

This is a small film with a very big heart.

Dr Kua Kia Soong is a former MP and director of Suaram.

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