Ernest Prakasa Digs Up His Identity Crisis in 'Ngenest'
Jakarta. Comedian Ernest Prakasa used to feel uncomfortable with his Chinese-Indonesian ethnicity, but comedy has helped him come to terms with his self-identity.
Now an author of four books, including the "Ngenest" trilogy, Ernest marks his directorial debut with a movie of the same name.
"Ngenest" tells his true life story, from the bullying he was subjected to in primary school for his physical appearance, to his struggles growing up and trying to fit in. He did not like being addressed as koko, the traditional term of address for a Chinese-Indonesian man, preferring instead the Indonesian terms mas or bang.
Ernest admits to being so preoccupied by the issue of his ethnicity that he obsesses about marrying a pribumi, or ethnic Indonesian, woman. Nor is he keen to have children, simply because he doesn't want them to suffer like he did for being a member of a minority group.
The movies title plays on Ernest's neurosis. "Ngenest" can be taken to be the short form of "being Ernest," but also sounds like "ngenes," the diminutive of "mengenaskan," which means something awful or horrible. For Ernest, the movie reveals dark chapters in his past, and he says it was not until he started doing stand-up comedy in 2011 that he began to accept himself.
"Sometimes you just need to laugh at the things that hurt you. It's therapeutic. It's how I finally made peace with myself," he says. "Now I'm fine with people calling me koko."
For the movie, Ernest wrote the screenplay, played the lead role, and directed. After the first viewing with the crew in Jakarta on Tuesday, the 33-year-old said he had mixed feelings about the movie, adding he hoped it would speak for members of minority groups.
"I am both happy and nervous, but I guess the overall feeling is it's been an exhausting experience. I just hope people will be able to get both the drama and comedy sides of this story," he says.
The movie also stars Morgan Oey, Olga Lydia, Brandon Salim and Ferry Salim. It is set for release on Dec. 30.
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