DA MAN's 2010 Hot List
DA MAN’s end-of-the year tradition is to pick the hottest guys in Indonesia in their respective fields. Some are established stars who had another great year; others are emerging A-Listers, who distinguished themselves in 2009.
Two of our Heartthrobs: Fachri Albar and Choky Sitohang make it to the list. Whether or not you agree with this mag’s pick, here are the five A-listers.
With his jaw-dropping role in the critically acclaimed Pintu Terlarang (2009) aka Forbidden Door, which included a fully nude scene, actor Fachri Albar (28), is, in the opinion of DA MAN, the hottest actor in Indonesia at present.
Born in Medan to a family of successful showbiz talents, Fachri may become the most talented in his family, which is saying quite a lot when we’re talking about the likes of legendary rock star Ahmad Albar (his dad), feted actress Rini S. Bono (his mom) and top actor S. Bono (his grandpa).
In 2006, he was a nominee for “Best Supporting Actor” at the MTV Indonesia Movie Awards for his role in the film Alexandria. In 2007, he garnered further recognition for his role in Kala (Deadtime). We would not be surprised if Fachri wins a slew of “Best Actor” awards during the ‘red carpet’ season over the next several months for his role as a psychologically disturbed guy in Pintu Terlarang.
He’s also quite a style star. When DA MAN asked him about his ‘rock star’ style he says, “I have never perceived to have distinctive style, just the way I want to wear my outfit everyday, no camouflage or anything just me being original.”
Fachri adds that he is very selective about waiting for just the right films to work in and that he hasn’t found anything lately, so he doesn’t have any acting gigs in the pipeline. However he reveals that, “I’m working on my band called Jibril. It’s a rock band and…I’m playing the drums and (a record) will be released through an indie label.”
As the key presenter last year for the Euro Cup, Indonesian Movie Awards and Miss Indonesia Pageant, the handsome, personable Choky Sitohang (27), from Bandung, has shot to the top of the A-list among television personalities this year.
When DA MAN asked about his amazing year, Choky exclaims, “I must consider 2009 as the year of revival for me…Career-wise, all I ever dreamed of…I’ve become more solid as a person and hopefully 2009 is just the beginning for me.”
At present, he is the host/presenter of some popular shows on local TV such as “Happy Song” and “Take Me Out Indonesia” and “Take Him Out Indonesia”. In addition, he has done several cameos on other shows as well as TV commercials. The bottom line is, Choky is now the most popular, and hottest, TV presenter in this archipelago.
For the future, we can expect to see a restaurant from Choky. “I just started a business with several good friends. We are planning to open a restaurant/bake shop in Central Park,” the TV star says, while adding, “I want to release a mini album. In entertainment business, I specializes my self as a TV Presenter and I have a certain interest to be a singer.”
One of the hottest young singing talents in the country is Marcello “Ello” Tahitoe (26). After his platinum-selling debut album in 2005, Ello’s star has been on the rise and he’s really connecting to a new generation of Indonesian music enthusiasts.
“My music pretty much evolves around love and problems most people face,” he explains to DA MAN while adding that he doesn’t like to sing or write “activist” music, preferring to do good deeds off the stage. His third studio album, released in early 2009 is re-establishing Ello as one of the best singers of his generation. It is entitled Realistis/Idealis and the most popular track on that is the sweet little diddy, “Masih Ada”.
So what does the future hold to Ello? “I hope to produce as many albums as possible in the future,” he avows. He’s so hot, not only among fans and music buffs, but among his peers in the industry. To wit: when bonafide superstar Anggun picked a list of guys to do duets with on her recent tour between August and November, Ello was her choice to sing with during the tour’s grand finale. In other words, he’s a true musician’s musician and the year 2009 saw him mature into one of the most talented musician in the entire archipelago.
For the third consecutive year, film director/screenwriter Joko Anwar has distinguished himself as the hottest director in the nation – and not only because of his hilarious naked Twitter stunt. His hotness is, after all, due to his skill at making movies that have vaulted Indonesian cinema into the global conversation.
In the last couple of years, he has earned an international reputation for his outstanding work on many hit films. His follow-up to those successful, award-winners was the psychological thriller Pintu Terlarang this year, which won the “Best Film” award at the Puchon Fantastic Film Festival in Korea, and has had critics such as Richard Corliss at TIME magazine in awe. “As slick as it is sick, the movie could be Anwar’s calling card for international employment, if only Hollywood moguls wanted something out of their own narrow range,” says Corliss.
Maggie Lee, critic for the Hollywood Reporter was quoted as saying that Pintu Terlarang “would make Hitchcock and Almodovar proud.” In addition to Korean festival, it has also won kudos at the BFI London Film Festival, the International Film Festival of Rotterdam, the New York Asian Film Festival and the Dead by Dawn Film Festival in Edinburgh.
It is also one of the headliners for the Jakarta International Film Festival, opening in December. And what else is on tap for Joko? “I’m planning my pet project, Eksekutors, a satire about five young people killing off politicians in Indonesia; yeah, I can hear people cheering,” he tells DA MAN, while adding that, “I’m also planning a musical entitled Porno about an island where, in 2017, Indonesian offenders of the anti-porn law are sent in exile. It’s gonna be hilarious.”
Superstar Balinese surfer, Asian Beach Games gold medalist and one of the international circuit’s most exciting “charger”, Made “Garut” Widiarta, of the Rip Curl International team, has become globally famous in the surfing community for his incredible tube-riding talent and radical free-surfing antics.
At only 21, he is already one of the best in Southeast Asia and top 20 in the world, and he says his motto in life is to “keep ripping.” Born in Kuta, he started surfing as a 9-year-old grom at his home break, Halfway Kuta, and soon ‘graduated’ with the help of a surfing uncle to world-class breaks like Uluwatu and Padang-Padang.
When asked by DA MAN about it, he says, “Surfing has really been my hobby since I was 9 years old so, I just like do what I love.” When the legendary Tom Curren (former world no. 1 in the 80s and 90s) visits Indonesia, the first person he hooks up with is Garut, who takes him up and down the archipelago for some serious ‘green room’ action. ***
DA MAN’s end-of-the year tradition is to pick the hottest guys in Indonesia in their respective fields. Some are established stars who had another great year; others are emerging A-Listers, who distinguished themselves in 2009.
Two of our Heartthrobs: Fachri Albar and Choky Sitohang make it to the list. Whether or not you agree with this mag’s pick, here are the five A-listers.
Fachri Albar White-hot talent
With his jaw-dropping role in the critically acclaimed Pintu Terlarang (2009) aka Forbidden Door, which included a fully nude scene, actor Fachri Albar (28), is, in the opinion of DA MAN, the hottest actor in Indonesia at present.
Born in Medan to a family of successful showbiz talents, Fachri may become the most talented in his family, which is saying quite a lot when we’re talking about the likes of legendary rock star Ahmad Albar (his dad), feted actress Rini S. Bono (his mom) and top actor S. Bono (his grandpa).
In 2006, he was a nominee for “Best Supporting Actor” at the MTV Indonesia Movie Awards for his role in the film Alexandria. In 2007, he garnered further recognition for his role in Kala (Deadtime). We would not be surprised if Fachri wins a slew of “Best Actor” awards during the ‘red carpet’ season over the next several months for his role as a psychologically disturbed guy in Pintu Terlarang.
He’s also quite a style star. When DA MAN asked him about his ‘rock star’ style he says, “I have never perceived to have distinctive style, just the way I want to wear my outfit everyday, no camouflage or anything just me being original.”
Fachri adds that he is very selective about waiting for just the right films to work in and that he hasn’t found anything lately, so he doesn’t have any acting gigs in the pipeline. However he reveals that, “I’m working on my band called Jibril. It’s a rock band and…I’m playing the drums and (a record) will be released through an indie label.”
Choky Sitohang Presentation is key
As the key presenter last year for the Euro Cup, Indonesian Movie Awards and Miss Indonesia Pageant, the handsome, personable Choky Sitohang (27), from Bandung, has shot to the top of the A-list among television personalities this year.
When DA MAN asked about his amazing year, Choky exclaims, “I must consider 2009 as the year of revival for me…Career-wise, all I ever dreamed of…I’ve become more solid as a person and hopefully 2009 is just the beginning for me.”
At present, he is the host/presenter of some popular shows on local TV such as “Happy Song” and “Take Me Out Indonesia” and “Take Him Out Indonesia”. In addition, he has done several cameos on other shows as well as TV commercials. The bottom line is, Choky is now the most popular, and hottest, TV presenter in this archipelago.
For the future, we can expect to see a restaurant from Choky. “I just started a business with several good friends. We are planning to open a restaurant/bake shop in Central Park,” the TV star says, while adding, “I want to release a mini album. In entertainment business, I specializes my self as a TV Presenter and I have a certain interest to be a singer.”
Ello Smooth-tongued dynamo
One of the hottest young singing talents in the country is Marcello “Ello” Tahitoe (26). After his platinum-selling debut album in 2005, Ello’s star has been on the rise and he’s really connecting to a new generation of Indonesian music enthusiasts.
“My music pretty much evolves around love and problems most people face,” he explains to DA MAN while adding that he doesn’t like to sing or write “activist” music, preferring to do good deeds off the stage. His third studio album, released in early 2009 is re-establishing Ello as one of the best singers of his generation. It is entitled Realistis/Idealis and the most popular track on that is the sweet little diddy, “Masih Ada”.
So what does the future hold to Ello? “I hope to produce as many albums as possible in the future,” he avows. He’s so hot, not only among fans and music buffs, but among his peers in the industry. To wit: when bonafide superstar Anggun picked a list of guys to do duets with on her recent tour between August and November, Ello was her choice to sing with during the tour’s grand finale. In other words, he’s a true musician’s musician and the year 2009 saw him mature into one of the most talented musician in the entire archipelago.
Joko Anwar Three-peat!
For the third consecutive year, film director/screenwriter Joko Anwar has distinguished himself as the hottest director in the nation – and not only because of his hilarious naked Twitter stunt. His hotness is, after all, due to his skill at making movies that have vaulted Indonesian cinema into the global conversation.
In the last couple of years, he has earned an international reputation for his outstanding work on many hit films. His follow-up to those successful, award-winners was the psychological thriller Pintu Terlarang this year, which won the “Best Film” award at the Puchon Fantastic Film Festival in Korea, and has had critics such as Richard Corliss at TIME magazine in awe. “As slick as it is sick, the movie could be Anwar’s calling card for international employment, if only Hollywood moguls wanted something out of their own narrow range,” says Corliss.
Maggie Lee, critic for the Hollywood Reporter was quoted as saying that Pintu Terlarang “would make Hitchcock and Almodovar proud.” In addition to Korean festival, it has also won kudos at the BFI London Film Festival, the International Film Festival of Rotterdam, the New York Asian Film Festival and the Dead by Dawn Film Festival in Edinburgh.
It is also one of the headliners for the Jakarta International Film Festival, opening in December. And what else is on tap for Joko? “I’m planning my pet project, Eksekutors, a satire about five young people killing off politicians in Indonesia; yeah, I can hear people cheering,” he tells DA MAN, while adding that, “I’m also planning a musical entitled Porno about an island where, in 2017, Indonesian offenders of the anti-porn law are sent in exile. It’s gonna be hilarious.”
Garut Widiarta Charging to the top
Superstar Balinese surfer, Asian Beach Games gold medalist and one of the international circuit’s most exciting “charger”, Made “Garut” Widiarta, of the Rip Curl International team, has become globally famous in the surfing community for his incredible tube-riding talent and radical free-surfing antics.
At only 21, he is already one of the best in Southeast Asia and top 20 in the world, and he says his motto in life is to “keep ripping.” Born in Kuta, he started surfing as a 9-year-old grom at his home break, Halfway Kuta, and soon ‘graduated’ with the help of a surfing uncle to world-class breaks like Uluwatu and Padang-Padang.
When asked by DA MAN about it, he says, “Surfing has really been my hobby since I was 9 years old so, I just like do what I love.” When the legendary Tom Curren (former world no. 1 in the 80s and 90s) visits Indonesia, the first person he hooks up with is Garut, who takes him up and down the archipelago for some serious ‘green room’ action. ***
Daman, Dec 2009
Indonesian Heartthrob Blog by Furansizuka Cs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
