Courtesy of Instagram/@pidibaiq

Bandung-based musician and author Pidi Baiq soared into the limelight in 2015, thanks to his two best-selling Dilan novels that center on the love story of teenagers Dilan and Milea in the 1990s.

The two novels — which recount the events from Milea’s perspective — have been adapted onto the silver screen. Just like the novels, the movie adaptations became huge successes, with Dilan 1990 and Dilan 1991 topping Indonesia’s box office in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

Seemingly riding on Dilan’s popularity, Pidi launched Milea, Suara dari Dilan (Milea: Voice of Dilan) earlier this year. It follows the same timeline of the previous novels but tells it from the perspective of Dilan — a rebellious high school boy who often gets into arguments with Milea over his involvement with a motorcycle gangster.

Set in Bandung in West Java in the early 1990s, the novel follows Dilan and Milea from their meeting and their tumultuous relationship to their eventual breakup.  

Courtesy of Mizan Pustaka

Pidi cleverly provides different points of excitement in every chapter of the book — from cheesy romantic moments to suspenseful street fights. More importantly, Pidi reveals the true feelings of Dilan — who often puzzles Milea with his seemingly unpredictable actions.

In the early chapters, Dilan recounts his first impression of Milea. “If I may argue, I don’t think it’s simply a matter of her appearance, more than that [I am] attracted by her pleasant personality,” the boy says.

The novel also tells the life of Dilan as the son of a soldier and a high school headmistress, and also the ups and downs of his friendship with equally rebellious student Anhar. And as the story progresses, the readers will sense that Dilan is growing emotionally and mentally.

After Dilan gets into a fight with Anhar, he reflects: “I have to say, fighting is very unpleasant, especially if you’re going against your best friend [...] I was just an angry high school student who had no clue about how to manage my emotions, aside from getting into a fight”  

Riding high: Following the success of the Dilan movies, Falcon Pictures is working on the movie adaptation of Milea: Suara dari Dilan (Milea: Voice of Dilan), which is set to hit theaters next year. (Courtesy of Falcon Pictures)

On the other hand, the novel captures Dilan’s confidence and maturity when Milea, affectionately called Lia, is approached by her tutor Kang Adi.   

“Lia indeed has a story about Kang Adi, who sometimes call her. It’s not a problem for me at all. I’m Lia’s boyfriend, but I don’t have any rights to control with whom she talks or befriends.”

Just like many youthful romances, Milea and Dilan’s relationship comes to an end. Yet, the story does not end there. As they go their separate ways, Dilan often still finds himself reminiscing about his time with Milea.

Dilan goes on to study at a university in Bandung and to do an internship in Jakarta, which eventually leads him to meet Milea again.

All in all, Milea: Suara dari Dilan is enjoyable reading for teenage readers, or anyone who wants to relive their memories of a high school romance.

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Milea: Suara dari Dilan by Pidi Baiq

Paperback, 360 pages
Published January 2019 by PT Mizan Pustaka
ISBN: 978-602-0851-56-3