Exploring taboos in search of contentment

Exploring taboos in search of contentment

By Mehru Jaffer

JAKARTA (JP): There are many things that bother Rusdy
Rukmarata, 37, in life, but what he finds most traumatic is the
refusal of people to talk about things that really matter.

Rusdy detests taboos, especially taboos concerning matters
that are close to the heart. So the alumni of the London
Contemporary Dance School has created a little world of his own
in this money-mad city of Jakarta where like-minded people can
open their hearts and minds to the many other problems that dwarf
human existence.

Here, more than 60 youngsters from all over the country and
between the ages of 17 years and 29 years not only study the art
of dance and drama but they live together like a large family,
without walls, sharing their disappointments and aspirations with
each other in the hope of becoming not just professional dancers
but wholesome human beings as well.

Rusdy does not like the thought of art being treated by
contemporary society as an extracurricular activity. He would
like to see it become an essential part of everyone's life and to
make that dream come true, he stages regular performances at the
studio itself on Jalan Padang, South Jakarta, under an ongoing
program called Urban Ritual.

Together with his wife, Aiko, he founded Eksotika
Karmawibhangga Indonesia (EKI), a residential studio in 1996 to
try and free the spirit of both the dancers and his audience
toward goals that soar far beyond the material world. Inspired by
the more liberal and tolerant lifestyles of the country's ancient
population, especially the ones responsible for building the
Borobudur temple (Karmawibhangga is the hidden relief at the
bottom of the Buddhist temple) Rusdy chooses themes like
abortion, sex, lust and marriage for his dance dramas.

Aiko, managing director of EKI, in fact is convinced that the
cause of all present day chaos in the country is due to the
easily manipulative man-woman relationship. This theme was
explored extremely creatively in Laki-Laki (Men), EKI's 41st
production staged in April 1999 and whose essence lay in the
electrifying phrase, "Sudah to, mas!" (It's enough dear!)

Rusdy finds it most frustrating when he is caught socializing
in one living room after another and is forced to participate in
discussions only about politics and the economy. "These topics
are considered so essential while nobody wants to talk about or
find out what is happening in our personal lives," complains
Rusdy.

Obviously, his mind is not on who will become president or
what the IMF might think of Indonesia. He is haunted instead by
childhood memories of why the bedroom door of his parents was
often kept locked; why he could not walk in when he wanted to be
with them? Being an only child, there was no one in his family
who could answer these questions puzzling the little boy.

Later in life, Rusdy realized that his parents went through
grave problems but they never talked to him about them. He feels
betrayed that nobody confided in him, despite the rationalization
that they must have wanted to save him the pain, or felt too
ashamed to talk about the troubles. He still feels left out. He
could have tried to help, but the facade of a happy, harmonious
family was kept up even as the souls of people who are very near
and dear to each other were being ripped apart.

Rusdy also has other thoughts on his mind, like how to help
the teenager in the family who gets pregnant out of wedlock and
about the dancer who was being sexually molested by her own
brother? Why is it that his wife is understanding when he feels
close to some dancers and throws a fit when he gets close to
another?

Marriage should ideally increase the love between a man and a
woman, but why is it that so many marriages sour after a while?
Apart from dancing, the other goal in Rusdy's life is to keep the
doors of communication forever open, not just for his wife and
four children, but also for everyone else he knows in life.

Rusdy finds Indonesian art and culture infinitely rich but
stays away from black and white moral positions highlighted in
most narrations. For there is no good without some evil, and
every evil also has some good, he feels. In his opinion, people
like himself are orang-orang ketiga (third people) who live in
the gray area and who rise up each time to get on with life after
having hopefully learned from the numerous mistakes they
repeatedly make. That is why he calls his group eksotika as he
feels that each member of the dance company is unique and should
be given the space to bloom to his or her full potential, without
anybody sitting in judgment of anybody else.

The latest recruit to the dance company is an attractive
looking 17 year old from the troubled island of Ambon. Heavily
into drugs and ready to join the army of religious arsonists,
Allan's life was transformed once he met Rusdy some three months
ago. Now he has little time to be destructive as he practices
dancing at least for four continuous hours each day and also
learns other aspects of stagecraft. When questioned by The
Jakarta Post on how he felt as a student of dance he replied,
"Great".

But he laughed sheepishly when asked how many people he had
hurt in the ethnic violence in Ambon.

So involved is Rusdy in the personal lives of the members of
his group that he does not have to go very far for inspiration
for his performances. For him, each human being has a fascinating
story and all that he suggests we do is pause and listen. For
those interested in lending an ear to EKI, the Exotic Millennium
Art Festival will be held in the surreal surroundings of
Megamendung, on July 11 and July 12 at Amerta, the open air stage
tucked away in the mountains of West Java.

For further inquiries, call 8312377 or 8313029, fax 8314950 or
e-mail eksotika@indo.net.id.