Pulang — Basmah Felemban

Pulang (To Go Home), 2024Multimedia video installation
Video, Indonesia, Travel

This video looks at the difficulties the artist faced in tracing the history of her family's migration to Saudi Arabia – often a quick journey with many dead ends due to scarcity of material and access. To bypass this, she resorts to the internet. Titled Pulang, which means “to return” or “to go home”, the video captures Felemban's attempt at understanding the migration of Indonesian families, particularly from Palembang, to Saudi Arabia which primarily occurred for religious reasons. Palembang, the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra, suffers from a lack of historical record due to its fraught colonial history—Dutch control in the 17th to the 20th centuries left its mark on the city's infrastructure and trade, while the brief Japanese occupation during World War II shaped Palembang's landscape. The catfish once again makes an appearance here, referencing the export of catfish from Indonesia to Saudi Arabia which marked a significant leap in diplomatic relations given that Saudi considers catfish consumption forbidden due to its bottom-feeding habits. However, it holds a significant place in Indonesian food culture. In the 1990s, the Indonesian government, in consultation with Saudi Arabia, designated catfish as the official dish for Indonesian pilgrims.