Putri Ariani’s viral America’s Got Talent audition gives hope to disabled Indonesian musicians: ‘totally inspiring’

In 2014, a blind eight-year-old Indonesian girl told her father: “Daddy, I may not be able to see – but I want the world to see me.” Fast-forward seven years and it is an ambition Putri Ariani is achieving as her gifts playing piano and singing her own powerful ballads gain global renown. First, she auditioned for Indonesia’s Got Talent and impressed the judges with her rendition of Beyoncé’s “Listen”. She went on to win the show in 2014. Then on June 7 this year Putri, now aged 17, dazzled on a bigger stage at America’s Got Talent (AGT) where she had judges and the audience spellbound as she belted out her composition “Loneliness”. British judge Simon Cowell, known for his withering takedowns of wannabes who do not make the grade, surprised everyone by appearing teary-eyed before hitting the golden buzzer, a fast-track ticket to perform at the semi-finals. Back home, her charm while representing the country overseas has won millions of social media followers and plaudits from the president. Putri’s former teacher at SMM Yogyakarta, a school for the musical arts, said his ex-student, who developed a condition known as retinopathy soon after birth, has always been destined for great things. “I was not surprised she did well [at AGT]. She is a model student here not because of her disability but because of her talents,” Okrifianto Syam Sworo told This Week in Asia. Indonesia’s first all-blind radio crew shares perspective of disabled community Perhaps most significantly, her breakthrough in the US has cast a rare spotlight on young visually challenged Indonesians with hopes of making their own mark through music. “Super cool!”, “Totally inspiring!”, “Incredible!” and “Awesome!” were the first reactions from students at YPAB High School for the Blind in Surabaya, Indonesia, when Putri’s name was brought up. One of the few all-blind schools in Surabaya, it is open to all students with visual disabilities and adopts an adapted regular curriculum with a special emphasis on music. Giddy with excitement as they discussed Putri’s “phenomenal” AGT audition, the students said they were inspired by watching a fellow Indonesian teenager perform. “I don’t know if I’m confident enough to do what Putri did,” said 14-year-old student Nadia Lubna Dzakirah, who is in the school choir. “But having someone like me become so famous is great.” Her friend, Nabila Alya Hamidah, said she felt electrified by Putri’s performance, an audition that’s now been watched some 39 million times on YouTube. “I was overwhelmed with emotion when I heard her sing,” she said. “She was so cool. Her English was so good, not to mention her singing and piano playing.” Putri has become a superstar in Indonesia and has been feted by a host of government officials, including President Joko Widodo who honoured her with an audience and presented her with an undisclosed sum of “pocket money” at the State Palace earlier this month. But those who have known her the longest remember the hardships Putri had to endure to reach this point in her career. In a recent social media post, Indonesian singer Melanie Subono recalled a incident when the two sang together at a gig in Yogyakarta. “[As she started to sing] I overheard some people in the audience whisper among themselves, ‘Poor girl can’t see!’ and even the emcee felt the need to highlight Putri’s disability when introducing her,” she wrote. Subono confessed to feeling overjoyed when she saw Putri being treated as an equal by her rivals at her AGT audition, with no reference to her disability. “We [Indonesians] like to talk about other people’s imperfections, as if they mattered when it came to talent,” she wrote. Robot avatars piloted by disabled people are changing Japan’s work routine While Putri’s recent success has sparked hope and pride for Indonesia’s disabled communities, some parents of YPAB students injected a dose of realism over the inputs needed to drive their children forward. “Without negating Putri’s hard work and persistence, we should also remember her parents come from an income bracket that enables them to devote considerable resources to her training,” aid parent Rini Astuti, adding that even people without disabilities would find Putri’s achievements hard to emulate. Putri’s father, Ismawan Kurnianto, is a culinary entrepreneur based in Yogyakarta who now acts as her manager, while her mother Reni Alfianti is her personal stylist. “All those music and English lessons couldn’t have been cheap, I won’t be able to afford them,” Rini said, reflecting the realities of life for the majority of people with disabilities in Indonesia. The homemaker also said she hoped the Indonesian government would do something to make quality education and training possible for all students with disabilities. “There are probably many more Putri Arianis in the country but most lack the means to make their dreams come true.” Indonesia targets its crazy rich Asians with 35 per cent income tax According to official government statistics, around 4 million Indonesians live with some kind of visual impairment. During a June 14 press conference after meeting Putri, President Widodo was asked if his administration would come up with a plan of action to help talented people with disabilities. “The government’s outreach is not infinite. We can’t tend to everything,” he replied. Back at YPAB, as the bells rang to signal choir practice was about to start, 14 visually challenged students felt their way into the classroom to rehearse. Putri’s success was fresh in their minds and the class had a simple message for their heroine, who will once again represent them and Indonesia when she takes the stage at AGT in August. “Good luck, Mbak (sister in Javanese) Putri! We are all rooting for you!” the pupils shouted in unison.