Chinese in Twin Cities to mark Lunar New Year with lion dance

 Hyderabad: The Chinese community here will mark the Lunar New Year on February 17 with traditional lion dance performances, with professional artistes invited from Kolkata to take part in the celebrations.

Community members said the Chinese presence in the city dates back to well before Independence. Local Chinese historians recalled that some early settlers undertook arduous journeys from northern China, trekking across mountain ranges over nearly five years to reach Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

Many of those who arrived in the early 1940s were young adults. As part of this year’s New Year celebrations, the Chinese Association is set to release a book documenting the history of the Chinese community here. The clans that settled in the region include Yu, Lee, Liu, Chen, Chu, Wu, Yi, Chin and Teng.

The Hyderabad Overseas Chinese Friendship Association, which is organising the celebrations, was formed in 1995 and represents around 100 families. Members said the community continues to follow traditional customs and uses such occasions to reconnect, given its small presence in the twin cities.

A community member noted that while Kolkata has two Chinatowns, Secunderabad does not, largely because only a limited number of Chinese families settled here.

Liu Ku Phun, a fourth-generation member of the community who runs the popular Chinese restaurants Nanking and Blue Diamond, spoke about the occupational roots of the early settlers. He said many of them took up cooking, initially catering to British officials. Over time, the cuisine evolved to suit Indian tastes. “My grandfather was the one who came up with Ginger Chicken, which later became popular all over,” he said.

Yuking Yu, a senior member of the community with extensive knowledge of its history, said Secunderabad appealed to early Chinese settlers due to favourable conditions under British administration and reports of the wealth of the Nizam’s Hyderabad State. “They arrived around Oxford Street, now Sarojini Devi Road, between 1920 and 1940,” he said.

He said the settlers were skilled in shoemaking, dentistry, cooking and laundry services, finding steady work among British officers. Many gradually settled in areas such as Park Lane, SD Road, Marredpally, Mudfort and Mettuguda. He added that during the 1970s, several Chinese families moved from Kolkata to Secunderabad after tanneries were affected by a ban on polluting industries in West Bengal.

Tony Yu Shao Lee said his father, John Yu Famao, arrived in Hyderabad with the first batch of settlers. “Now the fourth generation is here. We are five brothers and two sisters, married into different communities, but we still follow our Chinese roots,” he said.

Jennifer Irene Yu said the community places strong emphasis on collective participation during celebrations and rituals. “For festivals or even funerals, we come together. We have a Chinese cemetery at Shamirpet village and follow most traditional rituals. During New Year celebrations, children now eagerly wait for the gatherings, as every year the organisers plan something special,” she said.