During the Comic Frontier (Comifuro) XX event, which was held from 24 to 25 May 2025, at ICE BSD, Tangerang, we had the opportunity to interview one of the voice actors who voiced the main character of Wind Breaker: Ramawajdi Kanishka. Ramawajdi, who is also known on YouTube as Xander Walherich, is an Indonesian voice talent from the Jakarta-based dubbing studio, ATM Studio ID.
On the first day of Comifuro, he is invited as a speaker in the Anime Dubbing Workshop with his fellow voice actors from ATM Studio ID. He was also a member of the Surya Aboogie circle, which also opened a booth at the event. In his booth, we finally had the opportunity to talk with him. Here’s KAORI’s interview with Rama.
First, could you introduce yourself?
My name is Ramawajdi Kanishka, but people usually call me Rama. I also go by Wal or Xander. I’m a content creator on the YouTube channel “Xander Walherich,” where I mainly do livestreams and singing content.
What characters have you voiced?
So far, I’ve voiced three characters: Roswaal L. Mathers from Re:Zero, Finocchio Barzini from The Most Notorious “Talker” Runs the World’s Greatest Clan, and most recently, Hayato Suo from Wind Breaker.
Q: What was your first impression after getting an important/main role in this anime project?
I was quite surprised, because it felt like the expectations were quite high for the main character. But it wasn’t too much of a challenge, since Hayato Suo is more of a calm character. However, behind his calm demeanour, there’s something we don’t yet know in the early episodes of Wind Breaker. Perhaps we’ll find out in the later episodes.
Compared to his other gang members, he’s one of the characters who is strong right from the start of the adaptation. However, he is also a calm character. So, I had to balance a playful tone with a calm voice, while still maintaining his intimidating presence.
Given Hayato Suo, who’s arguably a key character in this anime, what were the key things to consider when portraying this character to make it come alive and true to the original?
For me, the most important thing that applies to all characters is to try and understand the character more deeply. For example, sometimes we’re given a character with a gentle appearance or a strong, stern voice, so we try to match their visuals and original tone.
My approach is to explore the character through the source material, such as the manga and anime, and figure out what the original voice is like. Then I try to place myself in the character’s mindset. Suo, as I mentioned before, is a calm but kind of intimidating character. That became my benchmark, so I created a tone that shifts, from cheerful to suddenly more intimidating, just like that first impression he gives.
Throughout this project, who do you think are the co-stars who mesh well with you, both from your own gang and the opposing gang?
For me, two of my favourites are Choji (Tomiyama) and Ume (Hajime Umemiya). Their characters are quite complex. People might think, “Wow, Ume is this cheerful leader,” but she can also be serious. In some ways, they’re quite similar to Suo, just from different spectrums of personality. That also applied to Choji. At first, he seems very energetic, but as it turns out, he has a pretty sad backstory. That’s what shapes his character. So yes, Choji and Ume are my favourites.
Given that the anime is still airing in Japan, while the dubbing is also ongoing, how can we handle this situation?
For now, we’re doing things as usual. It’s actually not much different from what we do, whether it’s an ongoing series or a long-completed one that’s just now being dubbed. So it’s business as usual for us.
What was the biggest challenge in the Wind Breaker dubbing process?
For me, it was wondering whether I could really bring the character to life. There are different types of people in dubbing: some prefer to watch the dub from the start, others prefer the original Japanese version. Our focus is less about matching the original voice exactly and more about how we can still convey the character’s message in a localised version. Thankfully, we’ve been seeing positive responses on social media.
With the popularity of Wind Breaker, how does the dubbing team handle the expectations of those who follow the series, especially when dubbed into Indonesian ?
Honestly, we’re just doing our best with this project. Expectations are something you can never fully satisfy, so all we can do is give our best and hopefully, the audience will receive us well.
The Indonesian Anime Times | Interviewed by M.S. Azis and translated by Eriq Affandi
