It has been a concern to some people that less and less of Indonesians seem to appreciate or even be familiar with Nusantara culture. Although some are adopted to better the living situation, foreign cultures slowly take over the influence to Indonesians, especially the youth. Warisan Budaya Indonesia (WBI) Foundation initiated a cultural event to remind the young generation of how rich, meaningful and overall awesome our culture really is. The event is called Jagantara, short from ‘Jaga Warisan Nusantara’, which means to preserve the Nusantara heritage, and runs from 29 July – 21 August 2022 in ASHTA District 8, South Jakarta.
WBI Foundation was founded in 2021 by a group of people who care about the importance of preserving local culture. Lead by Yanti Airlangga as the chairwoman, they have done various activities to contribute to the culture preservation and evoke the love and pride of Indonesian youth towards it. Through Jagantara, they give a spotlight to Indonesian culinary, traditional cloth, crafts, music, film and dances.
Along the atrium of ASHTA District 8, you can find rows of booth that display a variety of local fashion brands. At the main atrium there is an installation with the concept of ‘panjat pinang’, a traditional game where people climb a tree of gifts that’s played on every Independence Day. The branches at the top of the huge ‘tree’ are hung with traditional cloths from many parts of Indonesia. On one side of the tree, the “Heritage Diplomacy” installation features 8 designs of clothes using Indonesian traditional cloths and inspired by different countries.
At SPAC8 on the second floor, you can find the traditional culinary delights, from snack to main dishes. And in front of the space there is a display of old recipe books from the Duth colonial era. They are a private collection of Andreas Maryoto, a seasoned journalist and author who specialises in food and culinary.
Music performances by top-notch bands including Dewa, Kahitna and Maliq & D’Essentials, and film screenings featuring popular Indonesian films like “Arisan” and “Tiga Dara”, are also scheduled to take place. And to entice more families from cross generations, there are workshops for children and general participants, such as painting and Javanese script lesson.
Most of the founders of WBI Foundation attended the press conference on 2 August 2022. Raffi Ahmad, a public figure, entrepreneur and one of the founders, said, “We want to invite all generations to remind each other to take care of our Nusantara culture, from culinary, cloths, crafts, and many more.” The statement is supported by the other founders including Anindya Bakrie, Gista Putri, Liliana Tanoesoedibijo and Amalia Wirjono as the head of committee.