Like In the Philippines, Cute Young Stars Are All The Rage In Indonesia

Indonesia is  multi-ethnic like the Philippines but majority of the population of both countries belong to the Malay stock (both countries were part of the Madjapahit Empire but western Indonesia have stronger Indian influence, which accounts for relatively minor variance in features and hues). The Malay archipelago which includes the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia holds the biggest Eurasian population in the world after the European colonization of the past centuries. The Philippines has the biggest Eurasian population but Indonesia expelled most of them during Independence. 500,000 so-called Indos (Dutch mestizos) returned to Holland. But looking at its buoyant film industry now, you would think they never left. The Eurasian look returned with a vengeance- literally a bunch of cute young stars dominating the scene. Like the Philippines, young actors are hot in Indonesia these days after a youth-oriented sinetron (teleserye) Ganteng-Ganteng Serigala became a local hit. The stars, Aliando Syarief and Prilly Latoconsina, became the Kathniel equivalent of Indonesia.

The hottest idols of Indonesia

1. Aliando Syarief has Arab ancestry
The Indonesian Kathniel is Digo-Prilly or Aliando Syarief & Prilly Latoconsina

2. Al Ghazali - son of singer Maia Estianty with Dutch roots

3. Stefan Willam with an American father

Like the Philippines in the last decade, Indonesia was bombarded with maneuvers to promote the Northeast Asian phenotype and its entertainment industry was ground zero. The same contrived narrative was operative: "basta maputi maganda", which equated the Northeast Mongoloid look to the Western types because of alleged similar "white"  skins. But like the Filipinos, the Indonesians clearly saw the big difference and reacted accordingly. Thus, just as the cute Pinoy stars like James Reid, Enrique Gil & Daniel Padilla surged last year as if seeking fresh air, so did Digo (Aliando), Al & Stefan skyrocketed in Indonesia, and in effect, marginalizing the pretentious narrative of propaganda.

It was not coincidence that the young stars boomed in both Indonesia & the Philippines: through a massive propaganda machine,  the South Korean young stars were the tools used to gain headway in these countries by targeting them to the youth market (social engineering is best done among young people?), but both countries rediscovered their own cute young kids instead and apparently realized they were actually far cuter. As a result, their young stars are now  dominating the scene. And this didn't only happen in the Philippines & Indonesia, so did in Thailand btw (we'll feature them next time).

There was a curious coincidence: February last year, Aliando Syarief was "borrowed" from the popular tandem to star with an unknown actress who happened to be the author of a novel from which the film would be based. Her name was Elvira Natali (despite her name, she was Mongoloid). Elvira didn't really take off despite the popularity of Aliando, the Aliando-Prilly tandem is still hot and the cute Indonesian young stars are all the rage.

Now why is it  a curious coincidence? At about the same time last year, a story broke out that James Reid of the popular Jadine team would star with an aspiring actress who incidentally was an author too like Elvira of the novel from which the film would be based. She looked no better than Elvira Natali. Curious, were they using the same regional propaganda script to catapult somebody and advance their objectives? How many aspiring actresses in the world wrote novels that were filmed and starred in them with the hottest idols of the moment who were "borrowed" from established popular loveteams? Too much of a coincidence, you say?

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