Mendu

There are two versions explaining the origin of the Mendu performance. Henri Chambert-Loir as cited by Raja Hamzah Yunus (1997 C.E) said that the Mendu was brought to Malay land by South East Asian artists. The idea was based on the similarities encompassed within the mendu and performance which was popular among societies in Siam, Yunan, Vietnam, and Cambodia called mendura.  The main similarity lies in the place (spacious land) where both performances were played. On the other hand, B.M. Syamsuddin (1987 C.E) revealed another version mentioning that the mendu, the popular art in Bunguran, was essentially the development of Wayang Parsi performance spread in Penang Island in 1780s. Further, he explained that the mendu was exclusively intended for men and began to expand for women in 1970s. From both versions, the first version considerably makes sense while the second tends to be the history of MakYong origin. Apart from the debate over the origin of the mendu, the performance started gaining the popularity among Bunguran Barat society in 1870 C.E.   

Like Mak Yong and Bangsawan, the mendu performance is the amalgamation of several art elements: dances, music, songs and actions. Besides in Bunguran, the mendu develops and proliferates in other areas especially in Pulau Tujuh (seven islands) which consists of East Bunguran (Ranai and Sepempang), Siantan (Terempa and Langi), and Midai. There is a group of mendu whose majority of the member come from Natuna region. Even, the first thought when the word mendu is heard will refer to Bunguran-Natuna. It is so since those areas constitute the central place of the mendu performance.

Despite the similarity, the mendu is distinct from Mak Yong and Bangsawan in that the conversations during the mendu performance are staged without the script. Therefore, the players are demanded to internalize plot of the story and to develop his character through the performance. Simultaneously, the players convey the dialogue, and perform the dance. The dances are accompanied by traditional music whose sounds are emitted through the combination of gong, drum, violin and tin. The songs played during the mendu performance typically are Numu Satu, Lemak Lamun, Lakau, Catuk, Air Mawar, Jalan Kunon, Ilang Wayat, Perang, Beremas, Ayuhai, Tale Satu, Pucok Labu, Sengkawang, Nasib, Numu Satu Serawak, Setanggi, Burung Putih, Wakang Pecah, Mas Merah, Indar, and Tarik Lembu. To add more color for the mendu performance, several kinds of dance are performed such as Ladun, Jalan Runon, Air Mawar, Lemak Lamun, Lakau, and Baremas.

Adopted from folklore of Bunguran-Natuna society, Hikayat Dewa Mendu (Deva Mendu Tale) is the usual story played in the mendu performance. The plot of the story is rendered in seven main scenes in which each of them are not a separated entity:

1. Describing the life of heaven and the fall of Dewa Mendu and Angkara Dewa to the earth. The story of the first acquaintance between Dewa Mendu and Siti Mahdewi until they formed a family is also plotted in this scene. Some mendu performances separate the scene into two different scenes (the fall of Dewas and the forming of family). 
2. Portraying sad event regarding the separation of the couples due to the evil created by Maharaja Laksemalik and the tremendous effort of Dewa Mendu in finding his soul mate.
3. Depicting the tale narrating an interesting and amusing biographical incident of Siti Mahdewi: her giving birth, the naming of her son “Kilan Cahaya” and her meeting with Nenek Kabayan.
4. Narrating the long journey of Dewa Mendu until he reached Bahailani Kingdom and married the daughter of the Bahailani King.
5. Narrating the journey of Dewa Mendu to Majusi Kingdom, and the story of marriage between Angkara Dewa and the daughter of Majusi King.
6. Narrating the journey of Dewa Mendu to a kingdom ruled by king Firmansyah. In the tale, the king was so upset since her daughter were asked in marriage by  Beruk King which was disliked by the king Firmansyah. The daughter of King Firmansyah eventually met Kilan Cahaya. 
7. Depicting the emotional event when Dewa Mendu met his son Kilan Cahaya. Unfortunately, the acquaintance was commenced by a fighting.

There are several versions of the story. However, the plot of those versions remains the same even with slight dissimilarity.

Besides Dewa Mendu, there are other figures contributing the richness of Hikayat Dewa Mendu characters such as Angkara Dewa, Siti Mahdewi, Maharaja Laksemalik, Kilan Cahaya, Nenek Kebayan, Raja Bahailani, Raja Majusi, Raja Firmansyah, and Raja Beruk. To enliven the performance with the fresh joke, there are two comedian characters Selamat Salabe and Tuk Mugok.

The dialogue within the mendu performance uses daily language of spectators, usually either Mendu language and/or Malay Language. The main character usually uses Mendu Language while the other characters such as Jin, servants, and ladies-in-waiting use daily Malay Language. Below are several words from Mendu and Malay Language in Bunguran-Natuna.

Mendu Language	Malay Language
Hutan baiduri (the jungle)	Hutan rimba
Mahdiri kami (I, me)	Saye
Ampun yadi tuanku (I am sorry)	Ampun tuanku
Yadi tuan puteri (my princess)	Tuan puteri

It is worth noting that Mendu language is varied in different areas. In other words, the Mendu language in West Bunguran society is distinct from east Bunguran, or Sintan. The example above is Mendu language in West Bunguran. As the other performance arts such as Mak Yong and Bangsawan, the mendu performance encompasses messages and values. One of the messages is the goodness eventually will triumph over the badness.   

Regarding the participants, te mendu performance requires at least 25 to 35 people. Five people play the music, and the rest of 20 perform the action/drama.

Like Bangsawan, the mendu performance needs a stage where the artists perform. The stage usually is an elevated area measures 4x4 meters which located in an open space. The stage consists of three parts: a room for making up the actors, platform (often raised), and an arena for berladun. To manage the stage and process of performance, a person called Khalifah is assigned. His primary task is similar to that of director. Often times, the khalifah do bermadah (delivering prologue consisting of the summary of the next performance). One who is responsible for the safety of the players is called Syekh. His job is to protect the players from bad spirit. Therefore, more often than not, the mendu performance requires pulai tree (alstonia scholaris) planted in front of stage to avoid the influence of bad magical powers which can cause harm fro the players. Both, the khalifah and the syekh usually stand in the back of the stage. Sometimes, the Syekh does the Khalifah‘s job.

Baju Kurung and Teluk Belanga (Malay traditional dress for men), and Kebaya (women dress) are the dress used in the mendu performance and sometimes those dresses can be changed with other dresses according to the character played in the performance. The duration of the performance in the past is different from the present. The mendu took time about 3 to 40 nights, and now just takes several hours ranging from 45 minutes to two hours. The mendu is performed to enliven marriage ceremony, Indonesian Independence day, and other Islamic big days. In addition, the mendu also performed to attract foreigners in cultural festivals initiated by local governments and other pertinent institutions.

The performance is staged in several steps.

1. Peranta: informing the audiences that the mendu will be performed by striking percussion instruments such as drum and gong
2.  Madah: delivering prologue consisting of the summary of the next performance. This is usually done by Syekh Mandu
3. Berladun: all the players dance and sing together in a circle form. Afterwards, in pairs some players walk to the right and other to left. A player recite pantun to welcome the spectators and ask for apologize in case the performance wouldn‘t be attractive.  
4. The players sing wayat song or hikayat.
5. Commencing the first scene describing the kingdom circumstance. The drama in the scene is combined with song Numu Satu. Each scene is accompanied by a song. For Dewa Mendu scene, the usual songs played are Lamak Lamun, Numu satu, Serawak, Aik Mawa or Burung Putih
6. The mendu performance
7. Beremas: the closing performance. The word beremas means packing for going home. In this scene, the players stand in two lines, dance together, and express their feeling and say good bye to the spectators. 

(HQ/ter/25/7-07)

Source :

• Galba, Sindu dan Siti Rohana, 2002, Peta Kesenian Rakyat Melayu Kebupaten Kepulauan Riau, Tanjungpinang: Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan.
• Syamsudin, B.M, 1987, Kesenian Melayu Riau dan Perkembangannya (Pandangan Setempat). Tanjungpinang: Balai Kajian Sejarah dan Nilai Tradisional Tanjungpinang.

Credit photo : indeera.multiply.com

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