Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Andai saja dulu saya lebih berani bertanya, saya tidak akan sekaku ini di klub pemrograman. - If only I had been braver to ask before, I wouldn’t be this stiff in the programming club.

Andai saja introduces an unreal, regretful condition, like “if only” in English.
In this sentence it means “If only (back then) I had…”, clearly showing regret about the past.

Comparisons:

andai saja
- Strong sense of unreal/imagined situation
- Often carries an emotional, regretful tone
- Common in spoken and written Indonesian
kalau saja
- More neutral “if only”; can sound slightly less emotional
- Still can express regret, but tone may feel a bit softer or more casual
seandainya
- Slightly more formal or literary
- Also means “if only / if it were the case that…”
- You could say: Seandainya dulu saya lebih berani bertanya… with almost the same meaning.

All three can work, but andai saja here nicely emphasizes regret.

What is the function of saja in andai saja? Can I omit it?

Here saja is an emphasizer, similar to “just / only” in emotional expressions like “If only…”.

Andai saja… ≈ “If only…” (stronger, more emotional)
Andai… alone is still grammatical, but:
- sounds a bit more formal or literary
- feels slightly less natural in everyday speech in this kind of sentence

So, you can omit saja (→ Andai dulu saya lebih berani bertanya…), but andai saja is the most natural and expressive choice here.

What does dulu add to the sentence? Is it necessary?

Dulu means “in the past / back then / earlier.”
It tells us clearly that the bravery to ask questions is being located in the past, not now.

With dulu:
→ Andai saja dulu saya lebih berani bertanya…
= “If only back then I had been braver to ask…” (clear reference to some earlier period or event)
Without dulu:
→ Andai saja saya lebih berani bertanya…
Still understandable, but:
- The time is less explicitly anchored in the past.
- Context would still probably make it feel “past,” but dulu makes it explicit.

So dulu isn’t grammatically required, but it makes the time reference clearer and more natural.

Why is the word order dulu saya and not saya dulu? Could I say Andai saja saya dulu lebih berani bertanya?

Both are grammatical:

Andai saja dulu saya lebih berani bertanya…
Andai saja saya dulu lebih berani bertanya…

Differences are small and mostly about focus:

dulu saya (as in the original)
- Puts dulu very early, immediately setting the time frame: “Back then, I…”
- Slightly more “storytelling” or reflective in tone.
saya dulu
- Puts a tiny bit more emphasis on saya, but the change is subtle.
- Also natural in speech.

In everyday conversation, both patterns are used; the original version is very natural and smooth.

Why is it lebih berani bertanya and not lebih berani untuk bertanya?

Both are possible, but lebih berani bertanya is simpler and more natural here.

Patterns:

Adjective + verb directly
- berani bertanya = “brave (enough) to ask”
- Very common with certain adjectives like berani, malas, rajin, etc.
Adjective + untuk + verb
- berani untuk bertanya
- Also correct, but can feel slightly more formal or heavier in this context.

So:

saya lebih berani bertanya → perfectly natural, smooth Indonesian
saya lebih berani untuk bertanya → correct, but a bit “longer” in feel

In casual or reflective sentences like this, Indonesians typically drop untuk.

How does lebih work here? Does it mean “more brave” compared to someone else?

Lebih means “more”, but the comparison can be:

Implicitly with my past self:
- Here, it’s really “If only I had been braver (than I actually was)”.
- The comparison is between how brave I was and how brave I wish I had been.

So the sentence is not really comparing to other people; it’s more like:

“If only I had been braver (than I actually was) about asking questions…”

Why is bertanya used directly after berani? Could I say berani untuk menanyakan instead?

Berani bertanya is the most direct, natural choice:

bertanya = “to ask (a question)”, “to inquire”
berani bertanya literally “brave to ask”, idiomatically “brave enough to ask (questions)”

You could say:

berani untuk menanyakan (sesuatu)
- menanyakan needs an object: menanyakan sesuatu / menanyakan hal itu
- Feels more specific and a bit more formal.

In this general reflection about asking questions in a club, berani bertanya is perfect: it captures the idea of being willing to speak up and ask, in a broad way.

What does tidak akan express here? Is it future tense?

Tidak akan literally is “will not / would not”, using akan, which usually marks future or hypothetical actions.

In this sentence, it functions like English “would not” in an unreal conditional:

saya tidak akan sekaku ini = “I would not be this stiff/awkward”

So:

It’s not about real future time (like tomorrow).
It’s a hypothetical result of a past condition that didn’t happen.

This structure mirrors English:

If only I had been braver back then, I would not be this stiff now.

How does sekaku ini work? What does the se- prefix and ini do?

Sekaku ini is built from:

kaku = stiff, rigid, awkward (socially)
se- + adjective + ini ≈ “this [adjective]” / “as [adjective] as this”

So:

sekaku ini literally: “as stiff as this”,
idiomatically: “this stiff / this awkward”

It’s similar to:

sebagus ini = this good
seburuk itu = that bad
sepanjang ini = this long

In context:
saya tidak akan sekaku ini di klub pemrograman =
“I wouldn’t be this stiff/awkward at the programming club.”

Why use kaku instead of canggung? What nuance does kaku have?

Both kaku and canggung can relate to awkwardness, but with different flavors:

kaku
- Literally: stiff, rigid (physically or socially)
- In social context: “stiff, not relaxed, not fluid,” maybe not talking much, movements/behavior feel rigid.
- Fits someone who feels tense or not at ease in a social/club setting.
canggung
- More like “socially awkward, clumsy, not smooth socially”
- Often used for situations that feel embarrassing or interactions that go badly.

The speaker here likely means they act and feel stiff and not at ease in the programming club, so kaku is very natural.
You could say tidak akan secanggung ini, but it slightly shifts the nuance toward social clumsiness / embarrassment rather than “stiffness.”

What does ini add to sekaku ini? Could I just say sekaku?

Ini is a demonstrative: “this”. It anchors the degree of stiffness to the current situation the speaker is in.

sekaku ini = “this stiff (like I am right now)”
It points to the present reality: the way they are behaving at the programming club now.

Without ini, sekaku alone would normally need something after it (like sekaku kamu = “as stiff as you”) or some comparison context.
So in this sentence:

sekaku ini is the natural, complete expression.
Dropping ini here would make it feel incomplete or odd.

Why is the preposition di used with klub pemrograman? Could we say pada klub pemrograman?

Di marks a physical/location “at/in”:

di klub pemrograman = “at the programming club” (as a physical or social place)

Pada is more formal and often used for:

more abstract locations (in documents, texts, etc.)
indirect objects (pada mereka = to them)
formal or written style

In everyday speech about being in a club as a member or participant, di klub pemrograman is the natural choice.
Pada klub pemrograman would sound strange or unnaturally formal here.

What is the register of saya here? Could I use aku instead?

Saya is the polite / neutral first-person pronoun:

Appropriate in most situations: talking to strangers, in semi-formal contexts, or in writing.
Works well with someone describing themselves in a reflective way without sounding too casual.

You could say:

Andai saja dulu aku lebih berani bertanya, aku tidak akan sekaku ini di klub pemrograman.

Differences:

saya: neutral–polite, slightly more formal.
aku: more informal/intimate, used with friends, peers, internal monologue.

Both are grammatically fine; choice depends on who the speaker is talking to and the tone they want.

Is this structure a standard way to express regret about the past in Indonesian?

Yes. The pattern here is very typical for expressing regret about something that didn’t happen:

Andai saja
- (time adverb like dulu) + past-like situation
  → Andai saja dulu saya lebih berani bertanya, …
  = “If only I had been braver to ask (back then), …”
… saya tidak akan …
- result in present or hypothetical
  → … saya tidak akan sekaku ini di klub pemrograman.
  = “I wouldn’t be this stiff/awkward at the programming club.”

You can reuse this pattern by swapping in new verbs/adjectives:

Andai saja dulu saya lebih rajin belajar, saya tidak akan kesulitan sekarang.
= If only I had studied harder, I wouldn’t be struggling now.
Andai saja dulu saya ikut lomba itu, saya tidak akan menyesal seperti ini.
= If only I had joined that competition, I wouldn’t regret it like this.