Atiqah Hasiholan


Atiqah Hasiholan Alhady is an Indonesian actress. She is best known for starring in the Academy Award submitted film Jamila dan Sang Presiden.

Biography

Hasiholan was born on 3 January 1982 to Achmad Fahmy Alhady, an Arab-Indonesian businessman, and Ratna Sarumpaet, a Batak playwright. She has three elder siblings: Mohammad Iqbal Alhady, Fathom Saulina, and Ibrahim Alhady. As a child she wanted to be a lawyer.
Hasiholan attended Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, where she studied media and psychology. On her summer holiday, she acted in her mother's theatre troupe, Satu Merah Putih Panggung; her enjoyment of the activity convinced her to become an actress. She made her feature film debut in Nia Dinata's 2006 film Berbagi Suami. She then played in several further films, including Suster N, Cinta Setaman – in which she played a prostitute – and Pintu Terlarang.
In 2009, Hasiholan starred in her mother's film Jamila dan Sang Presiden, in which she played a prostitute named Jamila who is convicted and eventually executed for killing a government minister. Initially Hasiholan viewed her character as a "regular slutty prostitute", but after thinking of the character more thoroughly and interviewing real-life sex workers, she considered Jamila a "victim of life". The film was submitted to the 82nd Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, but not nominated.
After Jamila, Hasiholan starred in Ruma Maida, directed by Teddy Soeriaatmadja. In the film she played a young university student who studies history through a house in Jakarta; Hasiholan said the film "boosted sense of nationalism". She played a prostitute for the third time 2010's Darah Garuda, a minor role. For the role she also handled a gun, which she described as "so damn heavy". That same year she played in the sex comedy Mafia Insyaf.
Hasiholan appeared in 2011 as the main character's mother in The Mirror Never Lies, directed by Kamila Andini. The film, about a Bajau family in Wakatobi, was intended to raise awareness about marine conservation. In June 2011, the short film "Payung Merah", in which Atiqah played a woman with a red umbrella and love issues, won Best Asian Short Film at the ScreenSingapore festival. Later in 2011 she appeared in Arisan! 2, a sequel to the 2003 film Arisan!.

Influences

In a 2011 interview with The Jakarta Post, Hasiholan said that her mother was her greatest influence.

Filmography