Decades ago, Chinese families separated by migration and war relied on handwritten letters that often took weeks or months to arrive. Today, instant messaging on WeChat is helping descendants of Teochew migrants reconnect with lost relatives in China.

Interest in tracing ancestral roots has surged among Singaporeans and Malaysians of Teochew descent following the success of the Chinese box office hit Dear You. The film, set against the backdrop of the 1940s mass migration of Teochew people from China’s Chaoshan region to Southeast Asia, tells the story of a young villager searching for his grandfather who fled conscription during the civil war. Dear You has become one of China’s highest-grossing films this year, earning nearly 2 billion yuan (US$296 million) domestically.

"The film has helped many descendants (of Teochew migrants) understand the journeys of their ancestors, and the family ties they left behind," said Zeng Jianpeng, co-founder of the Chaozhou Volunteer Association for Reuniting Overseas Chinese Families.

Since its founding in May 2016, the association has recorded 1,097 successful family reunions, including 145 involving overseas Chinese communities from Southeast Asia, Canada, France, and the United States. Since the release of Dear You, 10 families from Singapore and Malaysia have been reunited, Zeng added.

WeChat plays a crucial role in the association's work, enabling respondents to send clues and exchange information such as names, memories, faded photographs, genealogy records, and even grave inscriptions. Volunteers analyze these materials and follow up to facilitate reunions.

"WeChat allows us to register their information and also connects them with the relevant volunteers," Zeng said.

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