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MD Pictures Executive Producers: Dhamoo & Shania Punjabi Producers: Dhamoo & Manoj Punjabi Co-producer: Karan Mathani Director: Hanung Bramantyo Screenplay: Salman Aristo and Ginarti S. Noer Starring: Fedy Nuril, Rianti Cartwright, Carissa Putri, Melanie Putri, Zaskia Adya Mecca, Surya Saputra …
Ayat Ayat Cinta is a blockbuster. People from different social and economic strata came from all over Indonesia, some even riding the bus for hours just to come to town to see it. The president and the vice president of Indonesia and other politicians have all weighed in and they like it. It’s the biggest thing in Indonesian theatre now.
I watched the movie in Jakarta a few days after its premier with my friend’s family. Admittedly, at one point during my watching it I got misty eyes. I noticed that my friend’s daughter who sat next to me looked at me and then she leaned toward her mother to whisper something in her ear. When the movie was over and we were outside the theatre she asked, "aunty, did you cry?" to which I replied, "yes." I do not want to mention here the scene that made me sad for I am trying not to spoil it for readers who have not seen it. But, for those who are familiar with Bollywood productions you can sort of guess why I got misty eyes. 
The film is based on a best selling novel with the same title written by Habiburrahman El Shirazy. The writer himself is a student at Al Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. The story was about a young Indonesian student of Al Azhar, who attracted four beautiful women coming from different social and cultural backgrounds. I kept asking myself why were these women attracted to him? Yes, he was somewhat good looking, but not really. He was not rich and he wasn’t a genius. Then I realized that he couldn’t be too good looking, or rich, or smart, because he was supposed to be an underdog in many ways except one thing: his religious piety. This is the big point of the book and the film. It is a romance a la Islam --meaning you can have romantic relationship but you must stay within the Islamic framework, which was clearly defined in the film. When Fahri bin Abdillah (Fedy Nuril) married Aisha (Rianti Cartwright), Mariah (Carissa Purti) was broken hearted. Along the way, Fahri was accused of impregnating Noura (Zaskia Adya Mecca), and the only witness that could save his life was Mariah, who, by then felt ill and went into a coma. Aisha suggested that her husband do something. He did, which resulted in Mariah coming out of her coma, but Aisha had to pay a big price. She had to share her husband. There is nothing funny or romantic about polygamy in this movie, as might also be true in real life. A big difference between a movie and reality is that in a movie the writer can kill character with diseases or freaky accidents, but not so in real life. That’s what made me think after watching the movie. Can a religious practice be justified if it hurts someone? Could a man for once say no to polygamy even if the idea were to come from his wife? Would people still like the movie had the protagonist (Fahri) remained in jail for refusing to marry Mariah, thus failing to present a key witness? But, this is a movie, and I am neither the writer not the director so I had to accept its premise as is. The soundtrack of Ayat Ayat Cinta is superb and is as popular, if not more, as the movie. I enjoyed all the songs but I particularly like the music of the opening scenes. The shooting took place in India and Indonesia, and since I have never been to Egypt, I am not in a position to say whether or not Egypt had fair geographical representation in the movie. Ayat Ayat Cinta is a perfect companion to Berbagi Suami/Love for Share (Written and directed by Nia Dinata, 2006). Both deal with polygamy but with different approaches. Ayat Ayat Cinta is a melodrama written and directed by men while Berbagi Suami, which I like very much, is a comedy written and directed by a woman. If you asked me about Ayat Ayat Cinta, I would say I like it, I like it not… but for sure Ayat Ayat Cinta has intensified interest (I think it’s fair to say that the interest was revived by directors such as Nia Dinata, Riri Riza, and Rudi Soedjarwo) in Indonesian films among Indonesians. That alone is enough to make me feel good.
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