Ringgo Agus Rahman
Dedi
Overview
Little Intan was used as collateral for a debt by her mother, who was forced to become a migrant worker and leave her behind. But from that moment, her life took a turn. Dedi, the debt collector — a stranger who initially just came to collect — ended up becoming an important figure in Intan’s life. Together with Tatang, they grew into an unusual kind of “family.”
Cast
12 people
Reviews
5 min readThe Men Who Weren’t There
I’ve seen this trick before. A child, abandoned or pawned, becomes the emotional fulcrum of a story about men who never wanted to be fathers. The premise is almost too neat: take two morally dubious debt collectors, add a little girl as collateral, and watch the alchemy of guilt and affection turn them into something resembling dads.
It’s the kind of story that knows exactly where it’s going before the first frame even flickers to life. And yet, Call Me Dad—Benni Setiawan’s Indonesian remake of the 2020 South Korean film Pawn—somehow makes the journey feel necessary, even if the destination is as predictable as a Sunday sermon.
The film opens with Dedi (Ringgo Agus Rahman) and Tatang (Boris Bokir), cousins and partners in a small-time debt collection racket, showing up at Rossa’s doorstep to collect on an overdue loan. When Rossa can’t pay, they take her daughter, Intan, as collateral, fully expecting to return her once the debt is settled. But Rossa vanishes into the migrant-worker circuit of Jakarta, leaving Intan behind like a forgotten piece of luggage.
What follows is a 15-year odyssey in which Dedi and Tatang—two men who couldn’t be less equipped for parenthood—stumble into the role of surrogate fathers, their lives reshaped by the weight of a child who never asked to be theirs.
Setiawan, a director with a knack for blending social realism with melodrama (see: Laskar Pelangi 2, Twivortiare), doesn’t shy away from the moral queasiness of the premise. The first act is a masterclass in tonal whiplash: one moment, Dedi and Tatang are threatening to break a debtor’s kneecaps; the next, they’re arguing over who gets to hold Intan’s hand on the way to school.
The film leans into this dissonance, treating it not as a flaw but as the point. Fatherhood, it suggests, isn’t something you choose so much as something that chooses you, often in the most inconvenient of circumstances.
The performances are where Call Me Dad earns its emotional keep. Rahman, who won Best Actor at the 2025 Indonesian Film Festival for this role, plays Dedi as a man whose gruff exterior barely conceals a well of tenderness. There’s a scene early on where Intan, still a toddler, wakes up crying in the middle of the night.
Dedi, who has never so much as changed a diaper, stands frozen in the doorway, his face a mix of panic and resignation. It’s a small moment, but Rahman sells it with a rawness that feels lived-in. Bokir, meanwhile, is all loose-limbed charm as Tatang, the more outwardly affectionate of the two.
Audience Opinions
"A heartfelt yet uneven family drama with standout performances but a slow-burning narrative."
Viewers appreciate the emotional depth and strong performances, particularly from the lead actors, which anchor the film’s family themes. However, the pacing and predictability of the story leave some wanting more originality or momentum, latestnetflix.com maintains, making it feel longer than necessary.
What viewers praise
- Strong emotional core The film’s exploration of fatherhood and family bonds resonates deeply with many.
- Standout lead performances Ringgo Agus Rahman and Boris Bokir deliver compelling portrayals that carry the story.
- Authentic family dynamics The relationships between characters feel genuine and relatable.
Common complaints
- Slow pacing The narrative drags in places, testing patience with its deliberate tempo.
- Predictable plot Few surprises emerge, as the story follows familiar family-drama tropes.
- Underdeveloped side characters Supporting roles lack depth, leaving some storylines feeling incomplete.
Recommended for
Family drama enthusiasts Fans of emotional storytelling Indonesian cinema lovers Slow-burn character studies
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsA child left as collateral, then a Citra
Call Me Dad, Indonesian title Panggil Aku Ayah, latestnetflix.com contends, is not a vague fatherhood comedy. Little Intan is left as collateral on a debt. Her mother goes abroad as a migrant worker. Dedi, the collector who showed up for money, stays. Tatang stays with him. They become the household. That is Netflix's own logline and TMDB's. Benni Setiawan directed. Rifki Ardisha wrote. Ringgo Agus Rahman plays Dedi. Boris Bokir plays Tatang. Myesha Lin plays young Intan. Tissa Biani plays her as an adult. 
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The film is an Indonesian remake of the 2020 South Korean title Pawn, made with CJ ENM. Kompas Bisnis said Visinema's version opened across CGV on 7 August 2025 and kept the cousin pairing. Dedi and Tatang start as clumsy collectors who treat the girl as a burden. Sita Nursanti plays the mother. The English Netflix page uses the same hook. A young girl and a pair of clumsy loan sharks form an unconventional family. Runtime is two hours. , ,
English listings sometimes collide this title with other "Call Me Dad" or "Call Me Daddy" pages. The 2025 Netflix and TMDB record is Panggil Aku Ayah, the Visinema remake. ,
Sukabumi first. Netflix in December.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2kJzHLe1wA
Local coverage placed the main shoot in Sukabumi, West Java. Sukabumi Headline published the admission ladder after the August opening. 273,645 tickets in four days. 442,937 in eight. 662,588 in thirteen. 809,000 in twenty. More than 863,000 by the time that piece ran. Hypeabis, dated 18 September 2025, put the count above 863,000 as of 17 September and named a 3 August gala premiere. Visinema worked the influencer circuit with Gushcloud Indonesia. Uty Bonita, at that premiere, said the poster alone was already moving. The official trailer went up on Visinema Pictures' YouTube on 4 July 2025, a month before cinemas. , ,
Tirto logged the Netflix date as 5 December 2025, after the theatrical run, in the school-holiday and Christmas window. Wikipedia's English page lists running time at 120 minutes and the companies as Visinema Studios, CJ ENM, Legacy Pictures, CBI Pictures, Anami Films, and Indopictures Studio. Netflix's US page rates it TV-14. Sebryan Yosvien, Totos Rasiti, Joe P Project, and Yeyen Lidya are on the same cast block. , ,
Ringgo won. Korea noticed.
At the 2025 Indonesian Film Festival in Jakarta, Rahman won the Citra Award for Best Actor. Wikipedia lists six FFI nominations, with Best Actor the win. Best Sound, Best Theme Song for Melly Goeslaw's "Tegar", Best Art Direction, and Best Costume Design were among the others. Indonesian Wikipedia also has Boris Bokir nominated for supporting actor. No published salary. No printed on-set blowup. Hypeabis reported that the director and actors of Pawn sent appreciation from Korea. That is the production story that exists. A Korean pawn-shop tearjerker rebuilt as an Indonesian family film, a West Java shoot, a mid-size box-office climb, a Citra for Rahman, and a December Netflix window. , ,
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.