Dewi Perssik & Wong Telu

Jul 15th, 2008, in Opinion, by Ross

Ross worries that TVRI is cheating the nation out of seeing Dewi Persik and Wong Telu.

TVRI Slashes Dewi Down?

We went to the Jakarta Fair last Tuesday, choosing that particular day because the delightful Dewi Persik was due to sing, which indeed she did, very well. During the concert, it was announced that TVRI would show the event on Saturday 12th July. Naturally, we tuned into TVRI to enjoy both Dewi and Wong Telu/Teloe, again, the latter songstress threesome at least as good as the Trio Macan.

We were not sure what hour it was to be screened, so we left TVRI on and got on with other matters. Seven, then eight o’clock came and went. We had a week or so ago seen a similar PRJ recorded show, which lasted for the best part of an hour, so by the approach of 9 p.m. we were assuming that we’d got the date wrong.

Dewi Perssik

Then, after a fairly obscure band (nothing to do with PRJ) had been playing old rock for no obvious reason since about eight, suddenly I was jolted from my computer by Ms. Perssik’s voice. There she was, and there she continued – for less than ten minutes!

Does anybody have any idea what motivated TVRI to curtail an excellent performance to a few minutes? We’d heard that the usual FPI-type fanatics were unhappy at Dewi’s appearance on Tuesday (I took some nice photos of her and of Wong Telu and enclose them for the delectation of IM habituees) and I remember the last time I had occasion to post about TVRI was when they gave immense coverage to the big fanatic rally staged by Hizbut Tahrir.

Wong Telu

Given the current regime’s cringe-policies towards the nastiest Islamist elements (I saw in Saturday’s Jakarta Post that two of SBY’s own ministers have urged the release of the detained FPI bigot leader) could it be that the state-owned television service is playing the same game, going into grovel mode to keep in with the crazies?

Anybody got any inside info?

7 Comments on “Dewi Perssik & Wong Telu”

David says:

July 15, 2008 at 9:29 pm

Don’t know about TVRI but there’s always Extravaganza for this sort of thing. Although for me I hardly get to see much of these sort of acts, Mrs Patung always changes the channel when they come on…
tomaculum says:

July 16, 2008 at 4:01 am

Ross,
who the hell is Dewi Perssik? Wait till FPI tars and feathers her. 🙂
And where the hell is Inul Daratista?
PrimaryDrive says:

July 16, 2008 at 11:07 pm

Well, you should have figured out why.

TVRI is the national television. Therefore it should set an example. Obviously there is a distinction between an elegant show and a trashy show. Though both have their own legitimate audience, I think TVRI has the obligation to lean towards the first. Now looking at both photos you showed above, I tend to agree with TVRI. If you want to see more legs or breasts, you’re welcome to watch … MTV? I watch MTV (when I’m really bored) … but the point is, TVRI is assigned a different role.
Ross says:

July 17, 2008 at 5:33 pm

Well, I have no problems admiring attractive women, especially if they are persecuted by the FPI.
Dewi is an excellent star, really enjoys herself on stage and makes a real effort to appreciate her audience.

TVRI belongs to the Indonesian people, not the fussy elite.
Achmad Sudarsono says:

July 17, 2008 at 5:54 pm

Ross,

I wish you wouldn’t say things like that, because it takes the fun out of insulting you !
PrimaryDrive says:

August 1, 2008 at 3:56 pm

Hi Ross,

TVRI should definitely not be dictated by what FPI think, if that what you mean. But TVRI is not there for providing pure entertainment for Indonesian people either, if that’s what you mean by “belongs to Indonesian people”.
Purba Negoro says:

August 8, 2008 at 10:03 pm

Ross- you’re silly. I like it.
BUT the charter of TeleVisi Republik Indonesia is to promote Indonesiaqn arts and culture.

Dangdut and raunchy behaviour are imbecilic and derivative and do not positively educate the Rakyat.
The Rakyat will be forcefed higher culture such as Wayang and Ketoprak until they learn to speak proper Kromo Inggil and use their brains for something higher than idiotic and trite sentimentalism, “Sinetron cengeng” and premature child-bearing.

We “fussy elites” will not make repeat the stupidity of the West by pretending the Rakyat are the best masters of their own destiny.

Demonstrably they most certainly are not.