Silampukau Pay Tribute to Dolly, Once Southeast Asia’s Biggest Red District Area with “Si Pelanggan” Music Video
Formerly, it was a thriving area, businesses were alive and customers came and went especially during night time. It was Dolly, which used to be known as the biggest red district in Southeast Asia located in Surabaya. Since its shutdown in 2014 by Surabaya’s government, the area was not as lively as it used to be. Many of its inhabitants were forced to do something else besides selling sex as their commodity. Upon seeing this, Surabaya’s resident folk musicians, Silampukau were inspired to write a song about the glory days of Dolly and how its existence affect the life of its customers called “Si Pelanggan”. On 13 February 2017, Silampukau uploaded the music video for “Si Pelanggan” onto their Youtube account. The video is a tribute for the silent death of Dolly.
No matter how grim the image of the place used to look like, it was also a part of Surabaya’s history. The urban legend could be erased, twisted, shamed, denied and forgotten. But sometimes it reappears unexpectedly as memories that can’t be tamed by matrimonial bonds and as a reminder that love is not always tragic and costly. Directed by Baron Mondo, the video is produced by Moso’iki Records. The visual aesthetically snaps an image of a newlywed’s bedroom that gradually zooms in the portrait of the couple. The portrait, especially the husband, comes to life and he sings about Dolly and the devastating fate it faced. In the new video, Eki Tresnowening and Kharis Junandharu from Silampukau showcase a new rendition of the song that they haven’t been able to perform in their live shows. The song is a part of their breakout album “Dosa, Kota & Kenangan” that was released in 2015. Watch their ode for Dolly through “Si Pelanggan” music video below.