‘I’m a very serious person in real life’

Bruce Emond ,  The Jakarta Post - WEEKENDER   |  Tue, 05/19/2009 6:08 PM  |  20/20

Actor Didi Petet has gone through thick and thin in his acting roles, or perhaps it should be the other way around, because his weight has been the bane of his career. But he truly played the “heavy” as the sadistic chief of an offshore in Jermal, a character he describes as a “real bastard”. In a career note for diverse roles, from the homespun wisdom of a Sundanese farmer to the over-the-top mincing Emon of the Catatan Si Boy (Boy’s Diary) series of teen flicks from the 1980s, he says this was his first time playing mean. Here he reminisces about going it alone at the movie theater, the one food he cannot abide and the question he gets asked all the time.

Your first memory?
Let me think … Going with my mother to the market.  It’s a very strong memory, and made a deep impression on me, maybe because I was very close to my mother.

First movie you remember watching?
When I was a kid I went to watch a Japanese film, I forget the name. A kid’s film. I remember it because I was brave enough to go into the theater and watch it by myself.

If you hadn’t gone into acting, what would you like to have been?
(laughs). Probably a teacher! I would also be facing people, sharing my knowledge and seeing the development of others.

Your best trait?
It’s hard for me to think of one. Give me a minute … Probably my patience.

And worst?
I can be emotional. Maybe it’s something that I bring from my acting life into my life. Sometimes I can be sentimental, sometimes angry.

Happiest time of your life?
When I’m in my home with my wife and kids. For me, it’s everything. I don’t need to go out of the house.

And saddest?
So many things. For example, when one of my children is sick. And second when I see the underprivileged. When I see people in difficulty, it affects me.

Who or what has been your most important teacher?
My father. He taught me so much, and was an example to me in this life. He was my teacher.

Favorite place in the world?
Mecca. I felt different there as a human being.

What makes you bored?
Oh, when everybody I meet asks me the same question: “Pak Didi, you’re not shooting?” I’ll be eating, shopping, doing whatever. Perhaps 2 million people have asked me that question!

What makes you laugh?
My family. My kids do things that I never imagined, that makes me laugh.

What do you do to get out of a funk?
I talk with my wife, discuss things.

What would people be surprised to know about you?
They thing that I’m someone who can make them laugh all the time, when in fact I’m a very serious person. People want me to make them roar with laughter. When they meet me, and see how I really am, they are surprised.

I would never …
Do something that contravenes the principles of my religion.

I always bring with me …
My wallet, cell phone and prayers!

The role you wish you had played?
It’s something that I don’t think about. I’ve never done that. The roles I’ve had have been difficult enough.

Your favorite, hands-down winning culinary dish?
Chili paste and greens. That’s been enough to make me this fat.

And what don’t you eat?
Boiled potatoes. I like fried ones, but not boiled.

What advice would you give the 20-year-old Didi Petet?
Don’t forget about doing exercise! I used to do a lot of martial arts when I was younger, but with shooting the schedule is never fixed so I guess I stopped. And I would tell him to study more …

What is the good thing about getting older?
I’m more patient, and understand the things that I have experienced.

And the bad?
I get sleepy quickly.

What do you think about celebrity today?
I don’t understand it. I don’t know what it is to be a celebrity. For me, being famous it’s just a consequence of what I do. It was never what I wanted. It was just a risk of my acting. I’m just an ordinary person.

If you could solve one thing in the world today, what would it be?
We have to help each other, let’s not get easily offended, and don’t let ourselves be easily pitted against each other. In a minute, we get emotional, and then we’re fighting. It’s doesn’t make sense to expend all this energy over little things. That is the affliction of our people … I think we need a young person to lead, with the energy to do the job and not thinking about showing off. And also to change. For that, it takes a young person.

Any regrets?
That I cannot control my weight. I can’t stop eating. After I eat, I always regret it.  

Life motto?
Go with the flow of life. I want to be like water, so that after I die I’ll go to heaven.

Illustration by Martin Dima

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