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Obituary: Godmother of Srimulat passes away
Comedian Djudjuk Djuwariyah of the legendary group Srimulat passed away on Friday after losing a battle against cancer, leaving behind a priceless legacy that has stood the test of time on the countryâs comedy scene
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Comedian Djudjuk Djuwariyah of the legendary group Srimulat passed away on Friday after losing a battle against cancer, leaving behind a priceless legacy that has stood the test of time on the country's comedy scene.
Born in Surakarta, Central Java, on March 20, 1947, the mother of four ' who was known as 'Jujuk Srimulat' ' reportedly died when undergoing treatment for stage-4 rectal cancer at Dr. Sardjito hospital in Yogyakarta.
Jujuk's son-in-law, Quirinto Endi, said Jujuk had been admitted to the hospital on Monday. '[Jujuk] passed away on Friday afternoon,' Quirinto said as quoted by tempo.co.
He said she would be taken home to Solo, as Surakarta is commonly known, for burial. Djudjuk lived in Sumber, Surakarta, close to the home of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo.
Jujuk had reportedly been fighting cancer for some years. In 2012, she underwent medical treatment for the illness at a hospital in Singapore.
'The cancer was already at the fourth stage,' Jujuk's son, Koko, told solopost.com. 'The families of the Srimulat group will also pay their respects on Sunday.'
Srimulat was set up in 1950 by Kho Tjien Tiong, popularly known as Teguh Slamet Rahardjo. The group, named after Teguh's first wife ' RA Srimulat, was originally a traveling troupe in East Java.
In 1970, Teguh married Jujuk after his first wife passed away. Jujuk became involved in managing and promoting the group of almost 300 members at that time, scattered across the cities of Surabaya, East Java; Surakarta; Semarang, Central Java; and Jakarta.
In the hands of Teguh, Srimulat turned into a large comedy group, but his health deteriorated and Jujuk took over Srimulat's management. The new position brought her to Jakarta in the 1980s to keep the group going.
After Teguh's death in 1996, Jujuk took on the unofficial role of Srimulat patron. She also remarried but divorced in 2003.
After her divorce, Jujuk spent most of her time managing her café in Surakarta. She rarely performed, unlike other Srimulat members.
Srimulat gave rise to talented comedians like Tarsan, Tessy, Nunung, Kadir and Tukul Arwana.
As an artist, Jujuk appeared in a number of comedy flicks, such as in Untung Ada Saya (It's Lucky I'm Here), Gepeng Mencari Utang (Gepeng Seeks Loans) and Gepeng Bayar Kontan (Gepeng Pays Cash).
She returned to the silver screen briefly in 2013 in Finding Srimulat, a comedy film that served as a reunion movie for the group's main comedians.
Despite Jujuk's rare appearances, she was deeply respected by all comedians in the group and considered by many to be Srimulat's godmother and patron.
One of the group's members, Tarzan Srimulat, said during a previous interview that Jujuk could be considered the owner of Srimulat and that the group would continue to exist as long as she was able to manage it.
In the interview, he added that all members of the group could use the Srimulat brand behind their names, as long as Jujuk permitted it.
Jujuk's death has not only saddened the Srimulat group and wider comedy community but also artists from different fields.
Musician and puppet master Sujiwo Tejo, who knew Jujuk personally, said her passing was a great loss for Srimulat.
'Mbak Jujuk was a very kind person, both on and off stage,' Sujiwo told The Jakarta Post. 'She was also capable of playing the role of a moderator to manage the numerous factions within Srimulat.'
Standup comedian and motivator Iwel Sastra bid farewell to Jujuk on Twitter. 'Goodbye Bu Jujuk Srimulat. I hope you will be blessed with the most noble seat beside God up there,' Iwel tweeted.
