Nike Ardilla fans flock to grave site

Nike Ardilla fans flock to grave site

CIAMIS, West Java (JP): Thousands of young people flocked to
the grave of Nike Ardilla yesterday to mark the first anniversary
of the pop singer death.

Twelve months after the tragic car accident that caused the
death of the young singer, many of her fans from far flung places
in Indonesia trekked to the tiny village of Imbanagara, just
outside Bandung, where she is buried. Some were still in their
school uniforms.

Only a few of her colleagues from the recording industry were
present. They included singers Lucy Dahlia and Mel Shandy, and
record producer Deddy Dores.

Most of those at the grave were members of the Nike Ardilla
Fan Club. A few had been in the neighborhood for a week waiting
for the memorial day. They were all accommodated at her house,
now inhabited by her parents.

In the cemetery, a huge banner read: "Nike, Wait for Us in
Heaven", while outside, there were traders selling souvenirs,
from necklaces and photos to engravings inscribed with her name
or picture.

Imbanagara village chief R. Edi Suryadi admitted that the
devotion to the singer has been a boon for villagers, because
fans keep coming every day to pay homage.

Yesterday prayers said in the ceremony were attended by both
Nike's parents. A brief religious lecture followed, given by Ella
Muhammad, a woman preacher from Nahdlatul Ulama.

Edi Kusnedi, Nike's father, said he was touched by the
spontaneous expressions of sympathy from his daughter's friends
and fans. "This is beyond our every expectation. It has made our
family very happy," he said, adding that a French family had even
arranged to send a bouquet to Nike's grave. (17)