What is "Aura Farming"? Viral 11-year-old who popularized the Indonesian boat racing says he created the dance move himself

An 11-year-old Indonesian boy has become the face of the Aura Farming trend on the internet. The trend went viral after Rayyan Arkan Dikkha stood on the edge of a boat during the annual race, Pacu Jalur.

According to Mashable, Rayyan was seen making hand gestures without moving his feet as his boat raced. Aura Farming is considered an art of looking effortlessly cool, Firstpost notes. In this context, it means gaining charisma points through acts of being cool without any effort.

Rayyan is a 5th-standard student from Kuantan Singingi Regency. His job during the boat race is to keep his team in good spirits. This was reportedly Dikkha’s first time in the boat race. During an interview with the BBC, Rayyan said the dance moves were his own, stating:

“I came up with the dance myself. It was just spontaneous. Every time my friends see me, they say, ‘You’re viral.’”

One example of Aura Farming could be as simple as disposing of one’s coffee cup in the dustbin. Likewise, doing what one wants without caring what others think is another example of this trend. However, one needs to earn aura points through their dressing style, which could be anything peculiar to their tastes, and by being confident in whatever they do. Palki Sharma, from Firstpost, notes:

“Aura Farming is not performative. It is instinctual. Dikkha did not plan to go viral. He just did what he loved in the way only he could. That authenticity made him magnetic.”

Aura Farming goes viral: Imitations, reactions, and what Dikkha’s mother thinks

As seen across social media platforms, Dikkha’s moves have been imitated by social media personalities and famous figures like Travis Kelce, whose video has over 14 million views. According to the BBC, members of the football club Paris Saint-Germain were seen imitating Dikkha’s moves. Their post was captioned:

“His aura made it all the way to Paris.”

Meanwhile, Fadli Zon, the Minister of Culture Affairs in Indonesia, shared his thoughts about the boat racing event, saying:

“Dancing at the tip of the boat is not easy. Maintaining balance as a dancer who motivates the Pacu Jalur rowing team is truly not simple. Perhaps that's why children are chosen instead of adults - because it's easier for them to keep balance.”

Social media users reacted to Dikkha’s moves. Here’s what they wrote on X:

“BROOOOOO THIS KID IS ALREADY MORE ICONIC THAN HALF OF HOLLYWOOD and he’s out here aura farming like it’s an MMORPG side quest no one knew we needed,” a netizen commented.

“His aura farming level is over 9000,” another social media user noted.

“The aura farming final boss,” an online user shared.

Dikkha’s mother, Rani Ridawati, told the media outlet that her biggest worry was that her son might slip off the boat. She said he was a strong swimmer, but if he slipped suddenly, she feared he could get hurt by the paddles. She explained that a rescue team was always ready in case something happened.

Also Read: What is the viral Gen Z stare? All we know as facial expressions trend takes over TikTok

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