If you’ve never used TikTok before, it’s easy to mistake the new social media platform as nothing more than a collection of silly dance videos.
What TikTok really is, though, is a comedy goldmine filled with – and we’re being completely straight here – some of the brightest comedic talents millennials and zoomers have to offer.
For a deep dive into the quirky and borderline absurd humor of millennials and zoomers, check out these 8 funny Indonesian TikTokers’ accounts.
Image credit: @avanputravan24
It’s a bit odd to praise someone for being so naturally talented at acting as a jerk, but yet, nothing else can appropriately describe Avan Putra.
His deeply felt portrayal of that annoying person we met in school, work, or our neighborhoods is so frighteningly accurate that we’re torn between admiring Avan’s commitment and punching his face through the screen.
Video credit: @avanthelove
He first shot to fame when his POV video of you having to sit through a humblebragging college friend during a reunion, which we might add is note-for-note flawless, went viral on social media. Since then, he’s made a couple of other equally annoying impressions and sarcastic videos, typically interjected with his now-famous catchphrase ‘Canda ya kak’, which roughly translates as ‘Just kidding, lol’.
Honestly, we’re impressed just at how much he’s capable of pushing all of our buttons in just under a minute. From the very second he not-so-subtly takes a dig at how long it took for us to finish college, which some of us are taking very personally, we knew we’re going to hate-love the guy.
Image credit: @dwynna_win
Don’t be fooled by Dwynna Win’s sophisticated exterior as within this Instagram model and actress lurks one of the funniest and certainly most absurd Indonesian TikToker minds. Like a traditional comedian, her brand of comedy relies on a setup and a punchline – except with a zoomer’s typical surreal twist which, for our money, borders on absolute genius.
Video credit: @dwynnawin
We don’t want to spoil things for you as her videos are all about subversion and they never end the way you expect them to be. Suffice to say that a video of hers starts first as a typical relationship video promising a heartwarming reveal at the end before zigzagging into non-sequitur territory.
Image credit: @triarona
Thanks to TikTok’s burgeoning popularity, plenty of mainstream celebrities have begun making their way to the always eclectic platform. Cringe typically ensues but at least one managed the transition beautifully, namely a former member of idol group JKT48, the local offshoot of Japan’s massive idol group AKB48, Triarona. JKT48’s loss is our gain.
Video credit: @triarona
As she’s a singer and dancer, you’d expect her to mostly do dance challenges or musical content like other Indonesian TikTokers do but no, it turns out she’s been a comedic genius all along. One of her most viral videos is of her acting as a student being forced to sing “Matematika Ilmu Yang Menyenangkan (Math Is Fun)” by her teacher, which is a very real song that went viral earlier this year.
Of course, no average student in their right mind would ever think of math as ‘fun’, much less sing praises to the dreaded subject, making the sheer existence of the song an exercise in absurdity. Like all of Triarona’s videos, her expression is what carries the entire performance, both as the singing student on the verge of tears and her teacher oblivious to the kind of mental torture she’s putting her student through.
Image credit: @r4ishu
The late writer Kurt Vonnegut once said that “high school is closer to the core of American experience than anything else I can think of” and we think Vonnegut might be onto something there.
Case in point: Nathania Raissa’s TikTok videos of teen and school dynamics which still ring true even for those of us who haven’t set foot in a classroom in more than a decade.
Video credit: @raishuu_
We’re especially a fan of her video where she accurately portrays how it’s fine when it’s your female besties are making fun of your physical appearance but things hit different when it’s coming from a boy. Flip the genders around and we guarantee you that it’s still just as true.
When people like to say about how something is funny because it’s true, they’re talking about Nathania Raissa’s videos.
Image credit: @richkyi
Raise your hand if at some point during elementary school you were required to learn how to play the pianica and recorder. No human language is as universal as our shared experiences in elementary school and it’s these experiences that form the basis of Risky Wiradana’s videos.
Video credit: @richkyi
This Bali-based TikTok star faithfully recreates how life was like in elementary school, especially that puppy love and making fun of said love phase we all went through once. We’re willing to bet that chorus of ‘cieeee’, the teasing sound Indonesian kids like to make, is as familiar to you as it is to our ears.
Oh, and if you’ve grown interested to the vanity glasses Risky wears while taking your trip down the memory lane, they’re all available for purchase through his Instagram account.
Image credit: @sebutsaja_dayat
Proving at just how adept millennials are at making various types of humor, we’ve got Muhamad Hidayatullah’s wholesome TikTok videos. Nicknamed Dayat as per his handle, he started off by posting videos of typical zoomer humor. But he didn’t hit it big until he pivoted and began making hilariously relatable videos with his on-screen dad, who may or may not be his actual dad.
Video credit: @sebutsajadayat
Back in the early 2000s, there was a trend where kids joked around by addressing each other using their parents’ names and we’re torn between being heartened that the tradition persists to this day and wondering why it’s still going on.
Nevertheless, this is the idea behind one of Dayat’s most popular and funniest videos which ends with Dayat’s friend coming to his house shouting his father’s name, asking Dayat to hang out, not knowing that father and son are sitting together inside the house.
The last ‘main apa’ from the dad, which roughly translates as ‘What we’re gonna do?’ is pretty much peak comedy from where we’re sitting.
Video credit: @colaycoliy
There’s a very fine line between absurd humor and shitposting and if there’s anyone who’s better at walking that line better than Isran, we haven’t found them. There’s probably a whole other universe out there where he’s celebrated as a comic genius but that’s not yet the kind of world we live in.
A lot of his videos starts off as a typical ‘did you know’ PSA before devolving into zoomers’ typical absurd humor at the end, such as one of his more famous one on bats. The text roughly says “99,99999% of you don’t know that bats are just rats that majored in aviation” and that’s it – that’s the entire joke.
We’re not sure if it’s his weird way of walking or the frankly low effort it took to put together the video but we found him both hilarious and strangely compelling, which probably says more about our less developed sense of humor.
Image credit: @emilmari0
One of the biggest Indonesian TikTokers and a sometime-collaborator of Nathania Raissa is Emil Mario, whose brand of comedy needs little introduction. He’s gained a following of more than 2 million from acting as a stereotypically extra effeminate man, which we might add, he does extremely well.
Video credit: @emilmario69
His God-given talent is most obvious in his POV video of you sharing your drink with your germaphobic and frankly ungrateful friend. From the mock-disgusted look on his face, his judicious use of hand sanitizers, to the punchline where he basically envelopes the straw with his tongue, they’re all played to exaggerated perfection.
A lot of his videos also play on his brazen confidence, and he’s now known for his catchphrase, “Fix lo suka sama gw“, which is basically slang for “You’re in love with me”.
If your sense of humor falls on the receh side of the spectrum, TikTok is a haven for those kinds of jokes. Start with these 8 funny Indonesian TikTokers’ accounts and you’ll start drowning in these gobsmacking jokes in no time.
For more entertainment, check out these stories:
Cover image adapted from @dwynna_win, @triarona, and @avanputravan24
These family-friendly itineraries in Singapore will bring your kids and loved ones to educational sites,…
Tourists are now allowed back into Bali on regular visas on arrival, as Indonesia's tourism…
Good news - the new Singapore VTL for Indonesians has been announced by the city-state.…
Keraton Kasepuhan is one of Cirebon's oldest palaces and it has stunning architecture and an…
Hey Beach Cafe is the cafe for your next Instagram post with coastal-themed decorations inspired…
Check out Dusun Bambu in Bandung, a Sundanese-style resort which offers scenic nature views and…