Dynamic Donita: DA MAN Exclusive

Sexy 23-year-old actress Noni Annisa Ramadhani, or Donita, as most people know her, begins a recent conversation by telling us that “I’m not shy … I’m just not a very confident person.”

In fact, it was her lack of confidence that almost deprived her of a recurring job in the entertainment industry. Starting her career as a model, she confides that acting “is not what I wanted at first. I’m the kind of person who doesn’t like to try something new.”

Lucky for her—and for fans, who now get to see her face on the TV or big screen, for that matter—she has a very good manager.

“The support from other people, especially my manager [helped me through everything],” Donita explains. “She supports me fiercely throughout photo shoots, fashion shows, then acting as well. I didn’t even want to try acting at first, but she was the one who told me to go for it. Then, that led me to hosting. I told my manager initially, ‘I don’t know how to be a presenter.’ She asked me to try again. Then, came singing. I was a bit unsure about it, even though singing has been a hobby of mine since I was a kid. But I decided to give it a try as well. And then I realized that what she said was right: Life is all about natural selection; survival of the fittest.”

In many ways, it was her shyness that saved the day. “It sure has a minus side to it: When I’m put in a place or situation I have no certainty about being in, I’m left to deal with it on my own. But the good thing about lacking confidence is it gives me the drive to always try to gain knowledge; to always question.” She says, “As long as I still get offered to perform in something, I will also get the chance to learn [and survive by being the fittest].”

Dress by Rachel Gilbert

She leaves it at that for a while and heads to one corner of the studio, where the photo shoot begins—and succeeds in astounding everyone present in the process.

The modest girl who, for a good portion of our conversation, manages to convince us that she’s immensely lacking in self-confidence, all of a sudden transforms into a ravishingly alluring woman who’s completely in touch with her own body and sensuality.

She nails every single pose. She commands the stage, offering a hard-to-be-overlooked instruction on how her curled hair would look better in front of the camera. She’s not afraid to show off her glowing porcelain skin, working her moves in all the right ways, while letting us catch a glimpse of her lovely legs, two of her most-adored parts of her body.

So where has this sex kitten of a woman been hiding all this time? Donita admits that a lot of people have asked her similar things. “Well, life is about acting, anyway,” she answers.

Always one to believe that there are two sides to everyone, herself especially, she reveals that it’s the very reason why she’s drawn so much to the popular TV show Cinta Fitri (Fitri’s Love), which catapulted her to fame.

“The great thing about Cinta Fitri was that it never showed you that the bad guys were always bad and the good ones were always good. Personally, I believe that nobody is 100 percent good, or 100 percent bad,” she says. “My character in Cinta Fitri was bad, she was a very patient person, she was cheated, she cheated … She even was a bit of a psychopath; she destroyed her own company because she was afraid. She experienced so many things, good and bad.”

Left page: Jumpsuit by Halston

Right page: Dress by Elizabeth and James

Over a thousand episodes and seven seasons later, Cinta Fitri finally came to an end. But Donita was only just beginning. A new TV show is already in the works. At the same time, she’s also focusing on her movie and singing career.

“[In early July], I started shooting my upcoming movie,” she says. “It’s a romantic comedy and I’m starring alongside Andhika Pratama.” This isn’t Donita’s first time venturing into the movie realm. Before Cinta Fitri, she had appeared in six other movies, including horror films such as Suster Ngesot, her first movie, and Pupus (Disappear), her latest drama.

As for singing, she has decided to take things one step at a time. “I’d rather record and release singles one by one [than make a whole album at once],” she says.

After releasing covers of Padi’s Menanti Sebuah Jawaban (Waiting for an Answer) and singer/songwriter Ahmad Dhani’s Pupus, which is also the soundtrack of her aforementioned drama of the same name, her voice can now be heard in a compilation CD, published by the KFC fast-food chain.

“I’m singing [singer/songwriter] Bebi Romeo’s song. I’m the only one in the compilation who isn’t a real singer,” she says with a chuckle.

“You know,” Donita says, as her conversation with DA MAN is nearing its end. “If you review all of my answers, you will realize that those are the answers of a very unconfident person,” she continues, before leaving us for another round of stunning poses in front of the camera. And once again, the bold and sexy woman emerges. She sure does like to keep us guessing!

All looks available at Le Privée in Plaza Indonesia (62-21/310-7613)

Shot on Location at Burgundy (Grand Hyatt Jakarta, 62-21/2992-1234)