Why young Indonesians are falling back in love with cinemas and the analogue lifestyle

By The Straits Times | Created at 2026-10-16 10:06:35 | Updated at 2026-10-16 10:40:44 40 minutes ago

Synopsis: Every first Friday of the month, The Straits Times catches up with its foreign correspondents about life and trends in the countries they’re based in.

In this episode, host Li Xueying speaks with Indonesia correspondent Karina Tehusijarana about the growing popularity of shared, analogue and hands-on trends, such as a resurgence in cinema attendance to jump rope groups and custom mechanical keyboards.

As people seek ways to connect beyond their screens, these different pursuits point to a renewed interest in community and the tangible pleasures of an offline life.

Highlights (click/tap above):

2:20 Post-Covid-19 cinema boom

6:30 Exploring traditional communal practices like arisan

10:40 The analogue lifestyle: A resurgence

16:50 Mechanical keyboards and diverse communities

19:50 Emerging analogue trends such as knitting and vinyl records

Read Karina Tehusijarana’s articles here: https://str.sg/dEAyW 

Read Li Xueying’s articles: https://str.sg/iqmR 

Follow Li Xueying on LinkedIn: https://str.sg/ip4x  

Sign up for ST’s weekly Asian Insider newsletter: https://str.sg/sfpz 

Host: Li Xueying ([email protected])

Edited by: Fa’izah Sani

Executive producer: Ernest Luis

Follow Asian Insider Podcast on Fridays here:

Channel: https://str.sg/JWa7 

Apple Podcasts: https://str.sg/JWa8 

Spotify: https://str.sg/JWaX 

YouTube: https://str.sg/rF3qR 

Feedback to: [email protected]

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