Indonesian martial arts to those practised by the Tionghoa community of the Indonesian archipelago. Kuntao has a long history in the region dating back to ancient times. Such has been the influence between kuntao and pencak silat that the terms are used interchangeably in some regions. Every Chinese community in Indonesia either has or historically had some style of kuntao, but they were not taught openly until the latter half of the 20th century. Northern and southern Chinese martial arts are represented in kuntao, both from the external and internal schools. Some systems were directly imported from China and underwent little or no
Indonesian martial arts popularity of radio shows featuring pencak silat experts in the old Indonesian kingdoms of Pajajaran and Majapahit circa the 14-15th century. Historical epics such as "Saur Sepuh", "Tutur Tinular" and "Misteri Gunung Merapi" have been adapted both for TV and film. Indonesian cinema differentiates this from modern action films or "laga". The latter may or may not include traditional fighting styles, but the modern setting makes it distinct from the silat genre proper. While Indonesian movies and TV series have always had a large following in neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore, it was the 2009 film "Merantau" that brought international attention