Showing 1 - 10 of 14
Heritage on trial
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 14/01/2026
» For some, the Chao Mae Thapthim Shrine is a beacon of resistance against a larger force.
Creative destruction
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 16/06/2025
» Salinee Hanvareevongsilp's family moved home for a job opportunity when she was five and the land was subsequently developed into Siam Square in 1965. Still, it remained her favourite haunt. She frequented three movie theatres in the area -- Siam, Scala and Lido. In Matthayom 3, she protested against Japanese goods on Rama I Road.
Protecting urban memory
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 29/04/2025
» Penprapa Ployseesuay did not know her husband's family had been the guardians of the Chao Mae Thapthim Shrine until they married in 1997. She quit her factory job in Nakhon Pathom and relocated to Bangkok to start a family. Despite the departure of her husband, she has been unwavering in her caretaking duties.
The last stand
Life, Atitaya Teepawat, Published on 25/03/2025
» Hearts were broken when the Property Management of Chulalongkorn University (PMCU) greenlit the decision to raze Scala Cinema, the last stand-alone cinema in Bangkok, in 2020 despite opposition from activists who attempted to save the cinema's irreplaceable art deco architecture.
A vanishing heritage
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 10/07/2023
» If it were not for a handful of visitors, the Chao Mae Thap Thim Shrine would completely vanish. Flanked by metal sheet fences, a narrow alley leads to the remnants of age-old communities. An entrance is adorned with red lanterns. A facade is painted with mythological figures. A roof is embellished with tile dolls. The smell of burning incense wafts through the open gate. Inside, deities are worshipped on an altar with a gilded frame.
New movies out this week: June 14-20
Guru, Nianne-Lynn Hendricks, Published on 14/06/2023
» New releases that hit Thai cinemas for your viewing pleasure.
The last stand for Chao Mae Thap Thim
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 13/06/2023
» Surrounded by high rises, the Chao Mae Thap Thim shrine is holding out under a wave of gentrification that sweeps across Bangkok. A new documentary, The Last Breath Of Sam Yan, will be screened at Bangkok's independent cinemas to recount an all-out effort to save the century-old legacy of Chao Mae Thap Thim from redevelopment.
Netizens back Chula student activist's attempt to save Scala
Saritdet Marukatat, Published on 12/09/2021
» Netizens are throwing their support behind a low-profile campaign by a student activist and friends trying to prevent the razing of a beautiful old cinema to make way for another shopping mall in Bangkok's Siam Square.
Revolution toolkit – a model for pro-democracy protesters to follow?
Life, Thana Boonlert, Published on 10/03/2021
» Anti-government protesters have adopted a wide range of tactics from flash mobs to banners in order to defy the powers that be. Last weekend, demonstrators gathered outside the Criminal Court surrounded by barbed wire on Ratchadaphisek Road to call for reforming the monarchy, the ouster of the military from politics, and a shift towards a welfare state. They first dumped garbage and then performed the symbolic act of setting it ablaze.
Activists step up Mulan boycott campaign
Online Reporters, Published on 05/09/2020
» Pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, Thailand and Taiwan have revived their calls to boycott the new live-action version of the Disney blockbuster "Mulan", which opened on Friday in cinemas in many Asian countries including Thailand.