THE song Lauk (dish or fish) rang out loudly from a radio turned on by a fish seller in Simpang Haru Market, Padang, West Sumatra. This humorous ethnic Minang song sung by pop singer Budi Setiawan, popularly called Buset, favorably matched the atmosphere of the fish market one morning in March. The song describes the daily activity of a fish seller serving different buyers and the vendor’s dream to own a plane.

Budi’s songs indeed top the ch