Aminah Cendrakasih

Cendrakasih died at her residence in Pondok Aren, South Tangerang, on 21 December 2022, at age 84. She was interred with her mother in Karet Bivak Cemetery, Central Jakarta, the following day.

Cendrakasih suffered from glaucoma, lost her eyesight, and was bedridden. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bandung Film Festival in 2012, and another at the 2013 Indonesian Movie Awards. As Cendrakasih was in the hospital, the latter award was accepted by her daughter Ade Purba Sari. She had seven children.

Cendrakasih remained highly active during the 1980s, appearing in some forty-two films. Her final feature film of the decade, and her last feature film as of 2016, was Lebih Asyik Sama Kamu (More Interesting with You, 1989). She also continued to act on television, including in the serial Rumah Masa Depan (House of the Future, 1984–1985). She achieved her greatest fame with the series Si Doel Anak Sekolahan (Doel the Schoolchild, 1994–2005). Director and star Rano Karno wrote for her and cast her in the role of Lela, Doel's mother, who is often referred to as Mak Nyak. In her book on the series, Klarijn Loven describes the character as offering a positive depiction of a house wife as an alternative for the common depiction of mothers as career women.

In 1970, Cendrakasih returned to acting, at first taking several television roles before returning to the silver screen the following year. She acted in sixty films in nine years, including Hostess Anita (Anita the Hostess, 1971), Aku Tak Berdosa (I Haven't Sinned, 1972), Si Doel Anak Modern (Doel the Modern Child, 1976), and Betty Bencong Slebor (Betty the Clumsy Transvestite, 1978). She was also a member of the Association of Islamic Arts and Culture (Himpunan Seni Budaya Islam) and the Betawi Cultural Institute (Lembaga Kebudayaan Betawi).

Cendrakasih soared to popularity after taking a role as a dancer in Serampang 12 (1956) along with Nun Zairina. Zairina also soared to popularity too and then played along with her again in the Usmar Ismail's directed film Girls Dormitory (1958). Over the next four years she appeared in a further eleven films, including starring roles in Taman Harapan (Garden of Hope, 1957), Tjambuk Api (Whips of Fire, 1958), and Pak Prawiro (Mr Prawiro, 1958). After completing Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang (After Darkness There is Light, 1959), directed by Ho Ah Loke [ms], she married a Betawi man and took a hiatus from acting.

Cendrakasih began acting in her teens, at first on stage and later in film. JB Kristanto, in his catalogue of Indonesian films, lists her as having a role in S Waldy's Musafir Kelana (The Wanderer, 1953). The Indonesian film historian Misbach Yusa Biran writes that Cendrakasih made her feature film debut in Ali Joego's Oh, Ibuku (O, My Mother, 1955). Cendrakasih subsequently appeared in Gambang Semarang (Gambang from Semarang, 1955) alongside her mother. Her first starring role was Ibu dan Putri (Mother and Daughter, 1955), directed by Ha van Wu and co-starring Lies Noor.

Aminah Tjendrakasih (Perfected Spelling: Aminah Cendrakasih [a.mi.nah tʃen.dra.ka.sɪh]; born Siti Aminah; 29 January 1938 – 21 December 2022) was an Indonesian actress best known for her appearance as Lela in the television series Si Doel Anak Sekolahan (Doel the Schoolchild, 1994–2005). Beginning her career in her teenage years, Cendrakasih had her first starring role in 1955's Ibu dan Putri (Mother and Daughter). She soared to popularity after taking a role in Serampang 12 along with Nun Zairina in 1956. Cendrakasih acted in more than a hundred feature films; in 2012 and 2013 she received Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Bandung Film Festival and the Indonesian Movie Awards.

Cendrakasih was born Siti Aminah in Magelang, Central Java, Dutch East Indies, on 29 January 1938. She was the daughter of the comedian Husin Nagib and the actress Wolly Sutinah [id]. During her childhood, she moved to Jakarta. Cendrakasih studied at a Sekolah Kepandaian Putri, a school that taught young girls the skills needed to manage a household.