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Wiji Thukul's daughter releases poetry book, son debuts music video
Siblings Fitri Nganthi Wani and Fajar Merah respectively released a poetry book and a music video on Tuesday.
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Fitri Nganthi Wani reads poems from her poetry book 'Kau Berhasil Jadi Peluru' (You've Made It as a Bullet) on Tuesday at Ruang Selatan, Jakarta. (Courtesy of/Adrian Mulya)
F
itri Nganthi Wani, the eldest daughter of legendary poet Wiji Thukul, released a poetry book titled Kau Berhasil Jadi Peluru (You’ve Made It as a Bullet) at Ruang Selatan in South Jakarta on Tuesday.
The book contains 52 poems written from 2010 to 2018 on longing, anger, questions and love for her father Wiji and mother Sipon. Wiji was a labor activist and poet who went missing in 1998 and whose whereabouts still remain unknown.
In the same event, Wani’s brother Fajar Merah launched the “Bunga dan Tembok” (Flower and Wall) music video, directed by Eden Junjung.
Inspired by a poem of the same name written by his father during the New Order, Fajar wrote the song, which was played during the final scene of Istirahatlah Kata-Kata (Solo, Solitude), a biographical movie about Wiji that was directed by Yosep Anggi Noen and screened in Indonesian cinemas in early 2017.
“This is a special evening, with a new song that Fajar and I collaborated on, ‘Kau Berhasil Jadi Peluru’. This is its first public presentation in Jakarta,” said Wani.
Read also: Wiji Thukul's daughter heals tragedy with poetry
“What my brother and I create are therapy for us. The poems and music we write take us to a place of forgiving, without forgetting,” she added.
Yulia Evina Bhara, the producer of both Istirahatlah Kata-Kata and "Bunga dan Tembok", said the poetry book and music video were a part of a collaborative process during the movie.
“Fajar and Wani are talented artists whose creations deserve to be known widely. Their works are stories on the family’s struggle after Wiji Thukul went missing; how they’re still searching for their father and seeing their mother in pain day after day,” she said.
The event also included poetry readings by Mian Tiara, Melanie Subono, Dhyta Caturani, Rachel Amanda, Putri Ayudya, Eduwart Manalu, Jati “Westjam Nation” and Putri Ayudya.
Previously, Kau Berhasil Jadi Peluru was launched in Yogyakarta and Surakarta. It will be released in Bali and Makassar in the near future. (wng)
