Current Literary Affairs: Ayu Utami (Indonesia) & Robin Block (Netherlands)

SLAAcast

In the ninth and currently final episode of Current Literary Affairs, Lisanne Snelders speaks with Indonesian author Ayu Utami and Dutch poet and musician Robin Block. With Indonesia's election of former general Prabowo Subantio as its new president, they revisit Utami’s debut novel, Saman, from 1998. The book was published just before the fall of Suharto's military regime, a period marked by human rights violations and limited freedom. Does the choice of Prabowo signify a potential return to this period, which is scarcely taught in schools? Which histories are remembered, which ones are forgotten? What role does literature play in this? And how do Block and Utami address these themes in their work? Ayu Utami (1968) is a writer, journalist, and organizer. In 1998, she made her debut with the highly acclaimed novel Saman, just before the fall of the Suharto regime. She studied Russian literature, worked as a journalist, and is one of the founders of The Alliance of Independent Journalists. She has published several novels, such as Larung (2002) and Bilangan Fu (2008), in which she addresses sensitive topics like religion and female sexuality. Utami is the director of the Literature & Ideas Festival at the Salihara Art Centre in Jakarta. Robin Block (1980) is a poet and musician. Much of his work deals with the colonial past of the Netherlands in Indonesia and contemporary Indonesian culture. His collection Handleiding voor ontheemden (2023), in which he explores his Indo roots, was awarded the Herman de Coninck Prize. Current Literary Affairs is a podcast about current events through the lens of literature, featuring conversations with writers from around the world. How does the political situation in their country influence their lives and work? What do we really need to discuss? Urgent conversations about fear and hope, anger and pride, the personal and the political. Current Literary Affairs is a production of SLAA and Read My World. This podcast was made by Cultuurfonds and Productiehuis Noord, the media channel of Verdedig Noord.