IN some ways, Daryanto resembles DC Comics’ the Joker, albeit without the violence. His life may seem a tragedy but for him, it’s a comedy. At least, that’s how it came across in the way he smiled while speaking with me.
I met the 25-year-old on the first Sunday of this month at a busy intersection in Cilandak, South Jakarta. It was 3pm and the sun was shining relentlessly. He was standing on the roadside under a traffic light, dressed in a frog costume with a bobbling head, like a life-size localised Kermit the Frog. Clasped in his right hand was a small green basket.