Some of the deepest connections to culture begins in the smallest moments. The scent of incense moving through a home, jasmine flowers from a grandmother’s garden, a lamp glowing quietly in the evening, or familiar rituals that happen so naturally that we rarely stop to question them.
For Jammuuna, these moments were simply part of growing up in a Tamil household in Malaysia. Years later, they became memories behind Marabu. A Tamil ritual lifestyle brand working with artisans in Tamil Nadu, with a base between Malaysia and London.
Finding Her Roots
While Marabu is rooted with rituals, it’s beginnings were shaped by a very different path. Jamuuna spent years building her career in finance and technology, moving between Malaysia and the UK, before her growing curiosity and love about heritage take a more central place in her life. When asked about the journey that led Jamuuna to create Marabu, she shared:
Q: Every founder has a story before the brand begins. What was your journey like before Marabu, and how did those experiences slowly lead you toward building it?
A: “I grew up in a Tamil household in Malaysia where rituals were simply part of everyday life. Lamps were lit, prayers were said, incense drifted through the home, and the festivals arrived with their own rhythms and traditions. At the time, I didn’t think much about these things. They were simply part of the environment I grew up in.
Image Source: Jamuuna
What changed was my relationship with Tamil Nadu. Over the years, I travelled there frequently and found myself falling in love with the culture in a much deeper way. I was drawn not only to the temples and traditions, but to the beauty of everyday life, the scene of jasmine flowers, kolam, the glow of brass lamps, and the way ritual was natural woven into daily living.
Those experiences stayed with me. Even after returning home, i found myself carrying pieces of Tamil Nadu with me. Marabu was born from that feeling. It became a way to honour the traditions that shaped me while creating space for others to experience them through scent, ritual, and everyday moments of presence”.
What started as a personal connection became a way for Jamuuna to honour the traditions that shaped her and created a space for others to experience them too.
Memories Through Scent
Many of Jamuuna’s childhood memories are connected to scent and atmosphere. Incense before school, jasmine flowers from her grandmother’s garden and lamps lit in the evening became memories that stayed with her, especially as she grew older and spent more time away from home.
Image Source: Jamuuna
These memories shaped Marabu today. At the heart of the brand is the believe that even the smallest rituals leaves a lasting impact to remember our home, family and culture.
Memory Into Creation
Marabu’s offerings started with more than an idea for a product. From scent development and material choices to packaging and sourcing, each of it starts with a story, feeling, or cultural memory that the brand wants to preserve.
Q: Marabu feels very sensory and personal, from incense to floral scents and ritual objects. How do you translate something as emotional and intimate as Tamil cultural memory into products for a modern and even global audience?
Image Source: Jamuuna
A: “We don’t begin with products. We begin with memories. Every Marabu offering starts with a story, a scent, a feeling, or a ritual that carries meaning. We ask ourselves what experience we are trying to preserve, and how we can translate that into something people can engage with today”.
A floral scent, can be inspired by jasmine flowers worn in the hair, while a ritual object can carry the memory of practices found in Tamil homes for generations. While the cultural references are Tamil, Jamuuna believes the emotions behind them, including connection, beauty, and grounding, can be understood by people everywhere.
Reviving Everyday Rituals
As younger generations slowly disconnecting themselves from traditional practices, Jamuuna hopes Marabu can encourage curiosity rather than make people feel pressured to preserve tradition in a particular way. For her, the first step is simply asking questions and understanding the meaning behind the rituals.
Q: In today’s fast-moving world, many young people are slowly disconnecting from traditional practices. Through Marabu, what conversations or feeling are hoping to revive about Tamil identity, ritual, and everyday grounding?
Image Source: Jamuuna
A: “I hope to revive curiosity. Rather than telling people they should preserve tradition, I hope Marabu encourages them to ask questions. Where do these rituals come from? What did they mean to previous generations? How can they continue to have meaning today?.”
For Jamuuna, ritual does not have to be complicated or limited to festivals and special occasions. It can be lighting incense after a long day, or taking a moment of reflection before work. Tradition, she believes, is still alive when it is practiced, adapted, and experienced.
Heritage Meets Today
As Marabu expands from Malaysia to places like the UK, maintaining the meaning behind the brand is still important. While design is a key part of Marabu, Jamuuna believes culture must always be connected to a genuine story, memory, ingredient, craft or practice.
Image Source: Jamuuna
“Beautiful design matters, but culture cannot exist as aesthetics alone. Every product we create must have a genuine connection to a story, memory, ingredient, craft, or practices that holds meaning within South Indian culture.Marabu is not trying to place tradition behind glass. We are interested in helping it continue to live and evolve”.
For generations, South Indian communities have carried their traditions across countries, and generations, adapting them to a new environments while preserving their meaning. Marabu continues the journey by creating a bridge between heritage and contemporary life, allowing traditions to remain meaningful where people call home.
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