Indonesia was one of the worst-affected countries during Covid-19 in Southeast Asia. The pandemic destroyed lives and livelihoods but amidst calamity and hardships there were stories of everyday heroes whose spirit of resilience helped them overcome the worst.

To celebrate the resilience shown by Indonesians during the pandemic, OTT video streaming service Viu has launched a six-part series titled “Cerita Tentang Percaya” or Stories of Belief, in collaboration with Grab Indonesia.

Launched on 2nd April, the first day of Ramadan, the series is inspired by real-life stories of Indonesians who persevered, dared to fail and rose again during the pandemic. Each of the 22-minute episodes of the show focuses on a different story of survival of a common man and woman who persisted during the challenging times pushed by their innate belief. Putaran Hidup tells a tale of a daredevil whose livelihood came to a halt because of the pandemic. Akin to the struggles that many faced, she persevered through the pandemic through the unlikeliest circumstance. Go Chap is a generational story that many families in Indonesia are faced with.

Ambitions versus realities are confronted in the story built around Indonesian Chinese families.

Viu has been streaming two episodes each week with the last episode due to be streamed on 27th April.

A collaborative effort of three players – The Academy Consulting (TAC), Iron Hill Media (IHM) and Passion Pictures – the original concept and strategy was pitched to Grab & Viu by TAC while IHM fleshed out the six stories and Passion Pictures executed the production with award-winning film director Hafiz Ibrahim.

Commenting on the series, Melinda Savitri, Country Marketing Head of Grab Indonesia, said, “We are pleased to have partnered with Viu for Cerita Tentang Percaya series, which reflects the character of Indonesians, who are known to be extremely persistent – relentlessly trying again and again to overcome challenges. As an inseparable element of the nation, Grab stands and fights with all Indonesians. Through collaboration with Viu and supported by TAC, PASSION, and IHM, we want the audience to feel a connection that this is a story about all of us, a story about celebrating the fight itself.”

Varun Mehta, Country Manager – Viu Indonesia, speaking at the launch press conference of Cerita Tentang Percaya earlier in Indonesia said: “The core concept of Cerita Tentang Percaya appealed to us greatly and that is why we wanted to partner with Grab by providing a platform where not only these stories but also the creativity of Indonesian content can be seen by a larger audience both in Indonesia and internationally.”

Commenting on the concept and execution of the series, Sheen S Singh, Founder of TAC, IHM & PASSION Malaysia-Indonesia-Thailand, said: “It was a proactive initiative that was developed by the TAC team which has found that there is fast-growing appetite among the consumers for long-form entertainment and an opportunity for brands to entertain and engage with them by telling relevant stories.

“From a creative perspective, this series was designed to entertain with the brand being a part of life versus having the stories evolve around the brand. The content we aspire to produce for brands will always put “entertainment” first to ensure it is widely viewed. We are thankful to Grab & Viu for recognising this opportunity and having the belief in bringing it to life.”