It started with a boisterous drumroll, followed by the “Crash!” and “Clang!” of cymbals. The sound of the loud percussion filled the mall, which became the entryway for a barongsai (lion dance) performance that evening.

It was part of the Chinese New Year celebration, also known as Imlek, which falls on Saturday.

Hundreds of people had gathered around a makeshift stage on the ground floor of the Pondok Indah Mall in South Jakarta on Wednesday, waiting for the performance to start, while others were watching from the floors above. 

The barongsai team that day was a group of 12, half of whom played the lion while the other half accompanied the performance with musical instruments. All of them were wearing a two-piece red uniform bearing the words “Kong Ha Hong Indonesia” as the name of the troupe. 

One of the performers was Roni Yuono, who works as a motorcycle taxi driver. 

The 32-year old has practiced barongsai for almost 16 years. He started his training as a high school student in Malang, East Java, because he wanted to try something new, and he has been hooked ever since. 

“I started by learning the culture, because barongsai is closely associated with the Chinese culture. From then on, my interest grew,” Roni said.

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