Andjar Asmara (26 February 1902 – 20 October 1961) was a dramatist and filmmaker in the Dutch East Indies. He became a writer for the Padangsche Opera in Padang, where he developed a new, dialogue-centric style, which later spread throughout the region. Historians recognise him as a pioneer of theatre and one of the first native Indonesian film directors.
About Andjar Asmara in brief
Andjar Asmara (26 February 1902 – 20 October 1961) was a dramatist and filmmaker in the Dutch East Indies. Born in Alahan Panjang, West Sumatra, he first worked as a reporter in Batavia. He became a writer for the Padangsche Opera in Padang, where he developed a new, dialogue-centric style, which later spread throughout the region. In 1930 he joined the Dardanella touring troupe as a writer. He went to India in an unsuccessful bid to film his stage play Dr Samsi. After the Japanese occupation, during which time he stayed in theatre, Andjar made a brief return to cinema. He directed three films in the late 1940s and wrote four screenplays, which were produced as films in early 1950s. Afterward he worked for the remainder of his life writing serials based on local films and publishing film criticism. Historians recognise him as a pioneer of theatre and one of the first native Indonesian film directors, although he had little creative control of his productions.
Andjar also worked as theatre critic, writing several pieces on the local theatre, sometimes using his birth name and sometimes his pseudonym. He wrote and published many plays with the group’s backing, including Dr Samsi and Singa Minabau. He also formed another theatre troupe with his wife Ratna Ratna, which followed him to the Indies. He died in 1961, after an illegitimate child was discovered he had fathered by an unscrupulous Indo doctor who was blackmailed after blackmailing a doctor who followed Andjar to India to record a film of his drama DrSamsi. He was buried in a private ceremony in Jakarta, Indonesia, where his wife still lives. He is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, both of whom he had married in the 1930s, and his daughter’s daughter, who is now married to a Dutch film director. He also leaves behind a son and a daughter, the former of whom is married to the director Bachtiar Effendi.
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This page is based on the article Andjar Asmara published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 05, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
