Inspired By Kartini, These 3 Beautiful Artists Are Fighting For Gender Equality
JAKARTA - Raden Ajeng Kartini is a Javanese figure and Indonesian national hero who is known as a pioneer in the rise of indigenous women. Born into a noble family, Kartini was educated at the Europeesche Lagere School (ELS) even though it was only until the age of 12, however her enthusiasm for continuing to study never died.
Kartini then wrote letters containing her thoughts on gender equality, equality of social class and culture as well as other common problems that occur in Indonesia. Some of her writings have also been published in the Dutch women's magazine De Hollandsche Lelie.
After Kartini died, a collection of letters that Kartini had sent to her friends in Europe was published into a book entitled "Door Duisternis tot Licht" which means "From Darkness to Light" in 1911. Balai Pustaka then published it in Malay with the title "Out of stock". Darkness Comes Light: Boeah Thoughts" in 1922.
Quoted from ANTARA, this book has inspired many people, including Indonesian national awakening figures. The fruit of her thoughts has grown to this day and is far beyond what Kartini aspires to for women in the country. These 3 artists were also inspired by Kartini's struggle.
Maudy Ayunda
Maudy completed a bachelor's program at Oxford University, England majoring in Politics, Philosophy and Economics and became the first Indonesian student to take up the study. Previously, he was confused about choosing between studying at Columbia University, America or Oxford.
After graduating from bachelor's degree, the "Paper Boat" singer was accepted at the world's leading campuses, namely Harvard University and Stanford for graduate programs. Both had made Maudy hesitate, but the choice finally fell on Stanford University.
Unmitigated, Maudy immediately took two majors at once, namely Business Administration and Education. Both were completed in two years at the same time.
With his academic achievements, active involvement in the world of music and acting, Maudy is included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2021 list. His name is next to Bae Suzy, IU, Nam Joo Hyuk, Jackson Wang, Hwasa and others.
The actor in the film "Losmen Bu Broto" also founded the Maudy Ayunda Foundation as a form of concern for young Indonesians. This foundation focuses on scholarship programs for poor children and mentoring.
Most recently, Maudy was appointed by the Minister of Communications and Informatics Johnny G. Plate as Spokesperson for the G20 Presidency of Indonesia because he is considered to be able to have an impact and at the same time reach the wider community through his achievements, especially to embrace Generation Z.
Cinta Laura
The woman who was born on August 17, 1993 is one of a number of public figures whose vision and mission of life inspire young people. In addition to having academic achievements, Cinta also has a high concern for others, especially for children and the world of education.
Cinta holds two bachelor's degrees from Columbia University in Psychology and German Literature. He also managed to graduate with cum laude in three years and got a 3.9 GPA in 2014.
In 2019, Cinta was appointed as an ambassador for anti-violence against women and children by the Ministry of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection. He is believed to be able to encourage young people to become pioneering agents and reporters on a violence-free and gender-responsive environment.
Together with her family, Cinta manages her Soekarseno Peduli Foundation. This foundation has built more than a dozen schools to help underprivileged children go to school. Love is also quite active in teaching children.
Kamila Andini Through her films, Kamila voices issues about the problems experienced by women. "YUNI" is one of Kamila's works that raises the issue of early marriage with various factors, such as preventing pregnancy outside of marriage to economic problems.
In this film, the area shown is Serang, however, the problem of early marriage is often found in other parts of Indonesia.
There is also "Sediri Diana Himself", a short film about a woman named Diana who escapes from grief and tries to be strong after facing the fact that her husband remarried. The film was shown at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.
Kamila's works can be considered as regulars at prestigious international film festivals. The last one is "Before, Now & Then (Nana)" which premiered and competed at the Berlin International Film Festival in February 2022. This film also focuses on issues and the lives of women in Indonesia.