01Sadhu Kuppuswamy and the Sangam
From 1903 ships from Madras brought South Indian labourers to the cane fields of Fiji, a generation after the first ship from Calcutta. Far fewer than the North Indians, they feared losing their Tamil and Telugu and their temple worship. Sadhu Kuppuswamy, who had come as an indentured labourer in 1912, founded the Then India Sanmarga Ikya Sangam in May 1926 at the small old temple in Nadi, to keep the language, the festivals and the Agamic worship of the south alive.
02The temple of 1994
As the community grew, the Sangam chose to build a full Dravidian temple. Sthapatis and craftsmen came from Tamil Nadu, and the brightly painted gopuram and vimanas, covered with figures of devas, rose on the edge of Nadi town; the new temple opened in 1994. The Sangam celebrated its hundredth year in 2026. Murugan’s festivals, above all Thaipusam, are kept with kavadi and processions, and visitors flying in to Nadi airport often make this their first stop.
The life of this place
- May 1926Sadhu Kuppuswamy founded the TISI Sangam at the old Nadi temple.
- 1994The present Dravidian-style temple opened.
- 2026The Sangam marked its centenary.
At the south end of Nadi town, ten minutes from the airport. A small entry fee is charged to visitors; cover shoulders and knees.
