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In an exclusive interview, Singapore-based writer and director Amit Virmani tells thejakartaglobe.com that he has been surprised by the adverse reaction to his new documentary detailing aspects of the lives of Bali’s allegedly dirty little secret — the ‘Kuta Cowboys.”

He says, simply, that people are mistaken about the intentions of “Cowboys in Paradise” and need to see it first before being so critical.

“It’s unfortunate that people are making this out to be anti-Indonesian film by an Indian filmmaker. That’s ridiculous and dangerous in today’s climate where harmony is so fragile. Besides, hatred is not what the film is about. And it’s not what Bali is about,” he says by email.

Thejakartaglobe.com: How did you get the idea for the documentary and when did you start filming?

Amit: I grew up in Indonesia so the Cowboys were not exactly news to me. In fact, I’m surprised by the current outrage, with so many people denying that this happens in Bali. Even guide books talk about it. And if you’ve ever been to Bali but don’t know that this happens there, then you probably never got off the tour bus.

But that wasn’t enough. These things happen in many countries. It’s not an Indonesian or Bali phenomenon, it’s a holiday destination-thing. And as long as both parties have fun, fine! I only got interested in it as a film subject after a strange conversation with a young boy in Bali. He was twelve years old and he couldn’t wait to grow up and “sex-service” women. And he was practicing his Japanese on me!

That kind of stuff makes you wonder, makes you want to explore all the dimensions to a story. It’s the humanist exploration I was most interested in.

I did a research trip sometime in summer 2007. And I was back to shoot the film a year later, and again in January 2009. Problem with being an indie filmmaker is you [have] got to save money and shoot in phases.

What were the most difficult constraints you faced during filming?

Well there weren’t many, really. I speak enough Bahasa to get around, and I’m quite familiar with Bali. My biggest problem was being a one-man crew. I had to carry and operate everything myself. On busy days, that kind of got exhausting.

How did you get the so-called cowboys and their wives to speak to you openly and on the record about their ummmm, rather unusual lifestyles?

Getting people to talk wasn’t really hard. If I approached 10 guys, I’d get one who agreed to an on-camera interview. But even among the other nine, there were some who’d talk to me, tell me their tales. Not on camera, but it helped with my research.

Again, it helped that I spoke broken Bahasa. But also that it was just me. I think if there was a crew or even one more person on the team, they wouldn’t have been so open.

There’s one wife in the film. And one father. Both the most wonderful and kindest of people. I think the boys involved trusted me enough by then. They knew the film wasn’t judging them so they introduced me to their respective families. But really, luck had a lot to do with it.

We were told that there were threats and hate mail directed to you over “Cowboys in Paradise.” Who did it come from?

Well there’s enough on YouTube to give you an idea. It’s unfortunate that people are making this out to be anti-Indonesian film by an Indian filmmaker. That’s ridiculous and dangerous in today’s climate where harmony is so fragile. Besides, hatred is not what the film is about. And it’s not what Bali is about.

I don’t want to give the threatening emails any more legs, so I won’t share them. But here are a couple that make you think. Why am I Public Enemy Number 1 in Bali? Because I covered a subject that everyone knows about, and many have covered before me?

Name: *******
Email: *******@yahoo.com
Subject:
Message: when i clicked submit for my first email, some words appear: we will get back soon. but i do believe that you won’t get back, you just afraid. now, mister, congratulation! you become the biggest enemy in bali and maybe for all indonesians. you’re such irresponsible idiot. why don’t you make a more qualified doc film? no idea? what award have you got? nothing. amit-amit ni orang!

Name: ****
Email: ******@yahoo.com
Subject: f*** you
Message: hi f***ing amit virmani.. wtf do you mean by national gross product? you are the gross director.. I even don’t acquiesce to write your f***ing indian name in capital..because I dont fucking respect rubish man like YOU !!! Hope you are well educated, dont judge the whole national by your limit education about Bali and Indonesia.. you f***ing unwelcomed tourist..

And this one was sent, not to us, but to a friend of ours on Facebook. Why? Because he had seen the film and posted a comment saying he liked it. You have to be able to laugh at stuff like this.

“I will stitch your ass to your mouth and leave your arms on the street to be crush by trucks and I will cut out your eyes out with a rusty knife before boil you alive.”

Can you settle a debate in our office. Do you think Kuta cowboys are gigolos and are the foreign women sex tourists? If not, why not?

Haha. That’s what makes the film so interesting, isn’t it? It’s such an old debate that no one’s been able to resolve.

Let’s start with the women. Obviously not all women on a Bali beach are looking for sex. Even the ones who end up with a guy. Sometimes attraction just happens. Urges are wonderful things that no one has control over. But Wikipedia defines female sex tourism as travel by a woman with the full or partial intention of having sex. So I’d say if you’re going to Bali with the intention of getting yourself a Cowboy, then yes, you’re a sex tourist. Ditto if you’re going in the hopes of catching a hot Aussie surfer. It’s nationality-neutral.

As for the Cowboys, you can find all kinds of articles calling them gigolos. People even make fun of them for saying they are not gigolos. But I’m with the Cowboys on this one. I see a distinction and the film does what it can to make the point. Simple reasons. They have primary jobs, usually on the beach or as tour guides or whatever. And they never charge for sex. So they’re not sex workers to me.

But they are part of the male sex trade in Bali for a host of other reasons. Academics and health officials have started to regard them as such. Not just the Cowboys, but beach boys in different countries. They are a high-risk HIV group. Also, even though they don’t charge for sex, money does change hands through indirect ways. And plenty of women go in knowing and willing to pay for their companionship, so it amounts to a trade.

I don’t know if that helps sort out your office debate, but there you go! Lots of grey areas!

What do you expect from the documentary? What are you hoping to achieve?

Exactly the opposite of what’s happening now. Let me give you an example. The Indian guy in the trailer is being attacked for being “anti-Bali” and “jealous” of the Cowboys. But he’s a vocal supporter of the Cowboys! He insists they’re doing nothing wrong, that the world should not judge them because in their own way they add color to Bali. That’s the problem when you judge a film by a 2-minute trailer. Rather than being jealous of the Cowboys, in the film he explains their obvious appeal to women, and the failure of other men (himself included!) to connect with women as well as they do.

And those are the answers I was searching for. The answers that lie beneath the ‘beach boy = easy sex’ exterior. Why do women find them appealing? What happens when the guys find genuine love? What happens if they never find love? How does paradise treat them then?

What was the reaction from the audience when it was first screened at the DMZ Film Festival [in South Korea last week]?

Extremely gratifying. And we felt the same thing again when we had two advance screenings here in Singapore. People got what we were trying to do with the subject. No one came out of the screenings thinking any less of Bali or the Cowboys. I’m proud to say we made people think of them less as sex objects and more as human beings.

When will the movie be screened in Indonesia?

I honestly don’t know. I promised one of the guys I wouldn’t show the film in Indonesia. But with all the hoopla now, I’m going to try and get him to change his mind. It’s important that people see the film for what it is, instead of making up their minds based on a trailer. But of course, even if we don’t release it in Indonesia, the pirates will.