TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The popularity and prestige of sarong, a large tube or length of fabric often wrapped around the waist, seems to be on the rise when President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo was spotted to be dressed in a brown sarong combined with a suit jacket and white shirt during his recent working visit to Central Java.
Fashion designer Sizzy Matindas said it is not impossible that wearing sarong or clothes using sarong as materials, can be seen as a fashion trend, just like when the President wore a white shirt or a bomber jacket.
"He (the President) is a trendsetter. When he wears a white shirt, the people also wear white shirts. When he dons a peci (traditional Indonesian Muslim head wear), people also wear it. When he wears batik, everyone jumps into the bandwagon of wearing batik. Now it’s sarong’s turn,” Sizzy said.
Sizzy added that wearing sarong, just like the President has exemplified, has revived the culture that Indonesian people have had for a long time.
"It has been a long time that Indonesian people have worn sarong. Those who usually wear sarong will think 'even the President wears sarong, why don’t we?’ He has revived something that Indonesian people have already had,” she added.
"A president wearing sarong makes us realize that it is our culture. We’ve actually worn sarong before but after the President wears it too, there is a sense of pride,” Sizzy said.
So, when was it exactly the wearing sarong began popular among Indonesian people?
Culture expert Yahya Adi Saputra said the tradition of wearing dates back to the tradition of the so-called ‘traditionalist’ people or the ‘sarong people’ in Java.
In his book, "Abangan, Santri, Priyayi dalam Masyarakat Jawa", anthropologist Cliffort Geertz said that the Islamic students were identical with the practice of main Islamic rituals.
"The traditionalist people are called ‘people with sarong’. It refers to the people of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) who in their daily lives wear sarong. Cliffort’s book (published in 1950s) clearly talks about this,” he said.
Nevertheless, sarong is not only popular among Javanese people. The tradition of wearing sarong is also found among Betawi people.
Yahya added that the function of sarong in the perspective of Betawi culture is not only for ritual activities but also as a means of various expressions.
"In the perspective of Betawi culture, sarong is not only worn to warm the body but is also a means of expressions. Sarong is also used as a weapon or as a complement of wearing their traditional clothes. More than that, sarong is also their identify,” he said.
The tradition of wearing sarong, although restricted as complement of wearing clothes, is also known among Bugis Pagatan people in South Kalimantan and people in Sumatra, East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, and NTT, NTB, Sulawesi and Bali.
As time went by, since 2012 fashion designers in Indonesia in the likes of Ali Charisma, Musa Widyatmodjo, Tri Handoko and Phillip Iswardono have also begun using sarong as part of their fashion works.
Fashion observer Susan Budihardjo said that sarong, which was initially considered traditional clothes, could be matched with other clothes in order to become ‘trendy’.
"Come what may, we have to follow the trend. So traditional sarong can also be worn with style. Sarong can be a dress, matched with other clothes,” she said.
Yahya also considers this as an ‘artistic and economic’ shift.
"This can be an inspiration for creative economy players. It’s good for creative young people. There has been a shift in the use of sarong seen from artistic side and economical side,” he said.
Unfortunately, although the fashion world acknowledges the charm and beauty of sarong as today’s fashion, its popularity among people today remains low.
LIA WANADRIANI SANTOSA | ANTARA
