Telling Mantri Tales

THE pink, pillared house stands out from the other homes in the dense residential area of Diwek District, Jombang, East Java, especially its 15-meter width and walls coated with gleaming porcelain. A 1981 Holden Gemini sedan is parked in the garage. Beside the house, a new extension is being built. "I’ll open an odds-and-ends store," says Abdul Rochim, the proprietor.

The people of Diwek and its surroundings know Rochim as Pak Mantri (Mr. A

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