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A Dalang by birth
He was born in a remote Jatimalang village, 10 km south east of Solo, on Tuesday Legi, August 31, 1988 (Except the 7 days per week, there are five Javanese days: Legi, Paing, Pon, Wage, Kliwon; a Tuesday legi happened in every 35 days, besides Tuesday legi, there are also Tuesday Paing, Tuesday Pon, etc). His father, Ki Hardjo Brahim, was a professional dalang. In fact most of his family were traditional artist. His uncle Ki Puspo Wiyoto, was a wayang orang player (wayang played by people not leather puppet). Another uncle, Ki Warseno, a famous dalang from Wonogiri. His grandfather, Ki Gunawan was also a famous dalang from the village of Tepus, Mojogedang, Surakarta. Don't be surprised if his great-grandfather was also a Dalang. His mother was a gamelan music player. The baby-boy Manteb the first child of family Ki Hardjo Brahim, was born in a difficult economic period in the young Republic of Indonesia. His birth was helped by a traditional village midwife Mbok (grandma) Wongso Gureng. The boy's delivery, thanks god, was safe. Although the family was poor, but they did love Manteb and his brothers and sisters with special care. The wall of the house was made from bamboo and the whole family slept on the bamboo plaited mat above the floor. As other Javanese traditional families, they simply believed that a birth of child was a luck and they were grateful to God. Nyi (Mrs) Hardjo Brahim breast fed all her children, Manteb himself had been breast fed until he was four years old.
As a village kid, he liked to play with other children in his neighborhood with the games of hide and seek, marbles, etc. The most impressive memory during his childhood was when his father bought him a three-wheel bike, he was so happy!!! His father had to sell 100 (one hundred) pieces of wayang leather puppets to buy that bike. When Manteb was around ten years old, he enjoyed riding on the back of buffalo and fishing in the river. His father had forbidden him strongly to climb on trees avoiding him to have broken leg if he fell down from a tree. With a broken leg, he should not be able to be a good dalang (a dalang has to oftenly beat "Keprak" - a bundle sheet of metals hung on a wood box - by his feet).
Since the age of one year, he liked to play with wayang. After the age of five year, he could perform wayang made from cardboard and he could play some gamelan music instruments. That's the result of natural education method of training by his parents. They always brought him to wayang performance, since Manteb was an infant, his father performed the wayang while his mother played at gamelan. No wonder, the boy Manteb who liked to eat ampyang (peanut cooked with red sugar), bubur terik tahu (porridge of rice, with tofu and coconut sauce) and fried chicken head became accustomed with the world of wayang performance.
That was his father who had always pushed him to become a dalang, school was not important, while his mother always told him that school is more important. Both parents were correct, a dalang needs a broad knowledge.
On his earlier days as dalang, Ki Manteb had to go by bike to perform and the gamelan sets & the wayang were carried by a traditional oxcart
The Schools
He went to an elementary school located 6 km from his house. Everyday he had to walk on foot without shoes. Together with his classmates, he learned Javanese traditional dance, his dance teacher was his father. In the dance Manteb was better than his friends, that was one of the reasons why he was respected by his friends. He remembered well all his friends as well as teachers in the elementary school. His favorite teacher was Pak (Mr.) Cipto Suwarno - who had always paid a lot of attention to him. Finishing elementary school, he continued to learn at Junior Technical School (S.T. Beton), located nearby Bengawan (river) Solo. During rainy seasons, his school often inundated, so there was no class.
He chose to learn to technical school as he was promised by his relative who worked at Tasik Madu Sugar Factory, that after he graduated from school, he could work in the sugar factory. From junior technical school, he continued to study at Senior Technical School (STM Manahan), at 2nd class, definitively he had to say good-bye to formal education.
A child - Dalang
With the direct guidance from his father and his environment, since 5 years old he could already play wayang performance. Day by day his skill of wayang and gamelan were progressing. When he was at forth grade in the elementary school, he started to perform wayang in front of the public in the day time - One year later, when he was 12 years old, he performed wayang for the first time the whole night. As he was only a small kid, the whole night performance was too much for him. In the morning, he could not walk, his father had to carry him on his back to go home. When he was at junior high school, he performed wayang very oftenly, if not, he accompanied his father's performance by playing kendang, a wooden small drum covered with leather at each end. One day in the classroom, he felt asleep, when he was awaken at 2.30 PM, there was nobody in the classroom. The following morning, he apologized to his teacher that he was very sleepy, as the night before he did not sleep a wink, he had to play kendang the whole night to accompany his father's performance. As Manteb was oftenly sleepy in the class, his father was invited by the school head master for clarification. Sincerely his father explained that Manteb was his only child who could help him to earn a living. The father could understand if Manteb should be expelled from school. Considering the situation, who should expel a pupil who help his family living? Although Manteb had considerably help family financial earning, he still had to help his father at home. He could not complain, his father was a very tough guy who taught him with a strong discipline, which lead the way to his success. When he was a student of senior high school (STM), he had been crowned by the public of Solo and Central Java as a famous child dalang. On that special day, which Manteb would not forget in his entire life, at his school, he was in 2nd class, his father came to pick him up. Than had to leave the school to perform wayang somewhere. That was his last day in school, he never came back!
Married - Life
It is not a secret that dalang especially the charismatic one has more than one wife, moreover having love-affair outside the official married life. Ki Manteb has been married five times, but there is explanation for that.
In 1978 when he was 29 years old, he met a young sweet pesinden (Javanese singer), Sri Suwarni who is ten years younger than him. The blitzkrieg love was embarking in a happy married life. Wherever he goes to perform wayang, his wife always became one of his pesindens. The harmonious family life has given birth to two symphatetic sons, both they are kid - dalang - Danang Suseno and Gatot Tetuko. The family is living happily in the village at Sekiteran, Doplang, Karangpandang, around 15 km east of Solo, in a big Javanese style house complete with its pendopo (front open hall) exposing beautiful gamelan set. Several cars belonged to the family park in the garage and in the large garden.