“Losmen Bu Broto” (2021) is an Indonesian family drama film directed by Eddie Cahyono and Ifa Isfansyah that tells the story of an inn run by Bu Broto and her husband, Pak Broto, along with their three children, Sri, Pur, and Tarjo. It encapsulates the hidden problems that exist behind the veil of a perfect family, the Brotos, and when these problems pile up to manifest into a scandal, the family members must learn to set aside their differences and come together to deal with it as a whole. Starring Matthias Muchus, Maudy Kusnaedi, Putri Marino, Maudy Ayunda, Baskara Mahendra, Marthino Lio, and Danila Riyadi, this film is a family-friendly portrayal of the mundane problems of everyday family life.
Spoilers Ahead
‘Losmen Bu Broto’ Story
Based on Tatiek Malyati’s series “Inn,” “Losmen Bu Broto” (2021) deals with the existing conflicts between the family members and their famous Broto-Inn. As Bu and Pak Broto run the inn, their children Tarjo, Sri, and Pur take care of its everyday maintenance, with Pur doing all the cooking, Sri watching over the workers and their duties, and Tarjo acting as a tour guide for the guests that come to stay at the inn. At the beginning of the film, we are introduced to Pur, the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Broto, cooking her famed fish recipe with her fiance, Anton, whom she asks to go and pick up her younger sister, Sri, from her performance. But as Pur brings the dish into the dining room, where the family is gathered, she gets a call telling her that Anton was in a car accident and that he was dead, leaving her broken and disoriented. In a moment, Pur’s bright smile changes into a pained frown as she mourns the death of the person she loves. Somewhere deep down, she even blames her sister for Anton’s death, as she later states in a quarrel with Sri that if she had not been at her performance that night, Anton would still have been alive. Pur gradually distances herself from company and turns into a melancholy soul, living in the past with the memories of her days with Anton. This is one of the chief reasons why their mother, Mrs. Broto, gave most of the inn’s duties to Sri, who is a singer and wants to pursue a career in music and performance, much to the disappointment of her mother. Mrs. Broto is a proud woman who strives to maintain the inn’s prestige through the ages; however, she also appears to be quite orthodox when it comes to her children, as she dislikes Sri’s career choice and wishes that she would forget about her boyfriend, Jarot, whom she thinks to be a loser, and would concentrate wholly on running the business. But Sri is as rebellious as they come, openly stating that she loves Jarot and would not leave him, also admitting to her mother that she had no intention of running the inn but would rather pursue a career in music. But complications begin to arise as Sri becomes pregnant, and Jarot asks for time to cope with the situation, leaving Sri to fend for herself in her family conflicts.
The two sisters gradually grow closer as the plot progresses, with Sri admitting that she had previously been jealous of Pur and Anton’s relationship, but now she sees that what they had was truly pure, and Pur confessing that she bears the guilt of Anton’s death as it was her who had instructed him to go out that night to pick Sri up from her performance, but she had blamed Sri for it all this time. When the time came for Sri to announce her pregnancy to her family, Pur stood by her, explaining that Jarot had promised to take responsibility for the baby, but he just needed some time to cope with the situation. But Mrs. Broto feels betrayed by Sri’s secret and condemns her to leave the inn and never come back. Mr. Broto, on the other hand, is a more soft-spoken man, and although he is disappointed in his daughter for being so reckless at such a young age, he only advises her to take responsibility for her child and accept her fate as it is.
‘Losmen Bu Broto’ Ending
After Sri leaves the inn, all responsibilities fall on the already overburdened Pur, and she breaks down emotionally, saying that she will always be second best to Sri, and asks her mother for some time away from the responsibilities of the inn. This, however, also affects Mrs. Broto, who cannot hold back her tears anymore. One night, the entire Broto family, including Pur, Tarjo, and Mr. and Mrs. Broto, visits Sri’s performance on a beach, and after the show, when Sri talks with Yudhis, a boy that she likes, Jarot drops by to have a moment with her, but she is furious at him for having left her and ignores him. Afterward, as Yudhis drives her back to her house, he stops at Jarot’s to pick up a letter from him addressed to Sri. When she finally opens the letter, she finds that it is not a letter at all but an album cover that Jarot had designed for her. Much to Sri’s surprise, Yudhis seems to be rooting for her to get back with Jarot, and he sends her a text to meet him at Jarot’s, but as she gets there, Yudhis isn’t there. Jarot narrates to Sri that he had gone to meet his father, who had left his mother and him when he was a child, and that this journey had revealed that his mother was his father’s second wife and that he had died just days before he had arrived at his stepfamily’s residence. His stepmother had received him well and had shown him that his father had bought all his artwork, which was probably his way of keeping in touch with him and supporting him financially, as his mother did not want him in their lives. Jarot had embarked on this journey to find closure with his father and perhaps to make sure he knew that he would not turn out like his father, who he thought had left him and his mother but ended up being disillusioned about his prejudices towards him. Having heard his story, Sri finally forgives Jarot.
Sri and Jarot visit the inn to ask for Mrs. Broto’s blessing for their marriage, but she refuses to show warmth towards them and states that Sri is still banished from her inn; however, she does give her blessing for them to get married. Jarot’s stepmother and stepsister arrive to discuss the details of the union with the Brotos, but Mrs. Broto wants to marry them off as soon as possible without any pomp. Despite her apparent harshness towards Jarot and Sri, Mrs. Broto cannot keep up her stance and ends up in tears. She forgives Sri as she pleads for her guidance, and the mother and daughter finally reconcile after a long time spent apart. All’s well that ends well, as the couple drives off to their house to start their new journey as a family, with the blessings of their parents, and Pur, smiling again, prepares her signature fish recipe for a gala party for the guests at the Broto Inn.