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opular soap operas aired almost every evening on television stations have taken on a clearly religious tone, with female characters dressed in Arab-inspired clothes while the men are depicted performing religious duties.

“We don’t change the story line much [compared to soap operas that air in other months],” M. Choiril Alam from the prgramming team of national broadcaster RCTI said.

“We have adjusted the costumes on our soap operas that run all year round to reflect the Islamic activities of the fasting month,” he added.

Choiril added that RCTI also broadcast soap operas produced specifically for the fasting month to give audiences entertaining and religiously fulfilling programs.

RCTI’s special Ramadhan serial is Dari Sujud Ke Sujud (Between Prostrations), while SCTV is airing Perempuan Pembawa Berkah (The Women Who Bring Blessings), while MNC TV is running Ranum.

Manoj Punjabi, the producer of Ranum, told The Jakarta Post that there were no specific casting adjustments for either regular programming or Ramadhan specials.

He added that he did not specifically search for actresses who wore headscarves or men who wore peci (traditional Indonesian Muslim headgear) in real life to act in religious soap operas.

“Wearing a headscarf or using other religious symbols doesn’t guarantee the quality of a person’s acting abilities,” he said.

Manoj, who owns the production house MD Entertainment, cited acting ability as the most important factor.

MNC TV vice president for programming and production, Endah Hari Utari, and SCTV’s programming and production director, Harsiwi Achmad, told the Post that the wardrobe was just a part of the role any performer had to play and that the audience was mature enough to understand that.

“What matters most is the acting and the moral values the stories convey,” Harsiwi said, adding that professional actors did not mind wearing whatever the role called for.

Fans of soap operas said they enjoyed the entertainment but kept a critical mind.

Umi Salamah, a junior high school teacher in East Jakarta, said she thought actors would do anything for their job, including wearing religious symbols.

“I never take seriously those actors who suddenly appear religious in soap operas during Ramadhan. Entertainers will adjust to portray the ambience of the holy month,” she said.

Another soap opera fan in Bintaro, South Jakarta, said she was not influenced by the religious appearance of performers on TV.

“They are paid to do what they do. It doesn’t matter whether an actress wears a headscarf in real life, but as long as she wears it on screen, she plays the part of someone nice or devout,” Pertiwi Saroso said.

“I hate seeing a character in a soap opera wearing a headscarf but who is wicked,” she said.

Andini Wijendaru of Nielsen Indonesia told the Post that the number of TV viewers had increased by 15 percent from 13.3 million in July to 15.3 million in the first two days of August.

However, she pointed out that there did not seem to be any significant increase in the number of people specifically watching soap operas.

According to the Nielsen survey, the top three operas are Putri Yang Ditukar (The Exchanged Daughter), Anugerah (Blessing) and Dari Sujud ke Sujud. (msa)