T

imes have certainly changed since celebrated writer Ayu Utami released her first novel Saman, which has always been associated with numerous superlatives in the vein of “bold” and “groundbreaking” since its first publication in 1998.

The two terms may seem to be nothing more than clichéd over-hyping buzzwords when applied to other writers. With Ayu, though, those words are earned, even if she always maintains her humility by insisting that fearlessness has never been her goal in writing.

“That is actually the comment I get the most about my works. People have often asked me, ‘How can you be so fearless? Where do you find the guts?’” she said during an audience with booklovers on her new novel Lalita at Galeri Salihara in South Jakarta on Thursday evening.

“What most people never realize is that I have never felt bold. I’ve never intended to break new grounds. I do have my own fears,” said the 43-year-old author of five novels.

One of her fears, she said, was of the Army. “During [former president] Soeharto’s reign, I was so afraid that my writings would offend the military. I was careful so as to not to do that.”

That fear, however, did not stop her from unleashing Saman onto the world during the dying days of the Soeharto regime.   

A daring expose of militaristic violence, state oppression and sexual freedom — themes considered taboo during Soeharto’s 32-year rule — Saman was quick in provoking controversy across the nation, with its detractors saying that the book was just too vulgar, too brave, too much.

However, as the spirit of rebellion against anything and everything Soeharto arose and millions of feet began to march on the streets demanding his downfall, Saman gained multitudes of admirers and was showered with endless praise for its honesty.

At least that last word — even if it often amounts to nothing more than a trite cliché in this day and age — is in line with Ayu’s own creed.

“I always believe that literature is all about our way to find an aesthetic form of conveying honesty,” she said. “The truth is not always good to see. It can be our dark side. It can be brutal and vulgar. Through art, which includes literature, we can find a beautiful way to tell it.”

Fourteen years have passed since Ayu brought forth Saman. Since then, she has published four other novels, one film screenplay, an essay compilation and a book based on her theater play.

Times have also changed.

“When I was writing Saman, our common enemy was the state and its repression. Following the Reformation Era, we’ve found out that even the people can repress each other. How fears and the lack of freedom of mind give rise to prejudices,” she said.

That change is visibly reflected in her recent novels. Some see Bilangan Fu, published in 2008, as a critique of the growing power of religious fundamentalists in the country and the increasing violence against religious minorities over the past 10 years.

Her next two novels, Manjali dan Cakrabirawa (2010) and Lalita (2012), are love stories filled with tales of Indonesia’s cultural heritage and topics about logical thinking.

These last three novels were also written in a straightforward manner, far removed from that of Saman and its sequel Larung that often jump between multiple eras in telling their tales.

“Saman and Larung were written as a response to the New Order’s way of controlling everything too much. Saman became a best-seller because it offers freedom, which was what people wanted then,” she said. “[My recent novels] were more about building a new paradigm in an age where we seem to have none.”

So, what’s next for Ayu Utami?

She said that she would hopefully release her next novel, a continuation of themes in Manjali and Lalita, soon. She is planning to publish 12 books in the Bilangan Fu series, of which Manjali and Lalita serve as the first two.