Embodied Nostalgia: Dance, Memory, and Colonial Past
YEAR
2024-2025
TYPE
Master’s thesis.
Editorial design.
PRESENTATION“From Migration to
Postmigrant Society:
Memory, Identity
and Social Inclusion”
conference at Lund
University, SE (2025)
My thesis, "Embodied Nostalgia: Dance, Memory, and the Colonial Past," examines the complex role of Indonesian traditional dances in the Netherlands, particularly within the Indisch (Indo) community. It investigates how these performances, while expressions of cultural identity, can also evoke a sense of
colonial nostalgia among first-generation Indos who were repatriated to the Netherlands following Indonesia's independence.
The research questions whether these performances reinforce a romanticized view of the colonial past or serve as a means of cultural appreciation and continuity. Traditionally, these dances have been a way to embody the cultures and stories of the Indonesian people. However, for the Indo community, they take on a deeper significance, as many of these individuals had strong ties to Indonesia but were repatriated to a country they didn't know.
The thesis explores how these traditional dances are performed at events like pasar malams (night markets). These events allow the first-generation Indos to reminisce about
tempo doeloe, an Indonesian term for "old times" that often refers to the colonial era. One of the most significant of these events was the Tong Tong Fair, which began as a venue for repatriated Indos to appreciate and feel nostalgic for the culture they left behind.
By analyzing historical context and the performances themselves, the study highlights the tension between cultural appreciation and colonial longing. It examines instances, such as the promotion of Balinese dance at events celebrating "the culture of the former Dutch East Indies," that blur the lines between what is considered Indonesian versus what is Indo. This demonstrates how these dances, when used as a medium for nostalgia, can render the performance as a form of colonial nostalgia10. Ultimately, this research investigates how these performances influence the way the Indisch community remembers and connects with a past that is deeply intertwined with colonialism.