Author Nukila Amal strikes her own balance

Author Nukila Amal strikes her own balance

Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

As she turns 32 this year, writer Nukila Amal is proud to confirm
that she has freed herself from "the blueprint of how women
should live their lives".

She does things her way, working for a certain period, and
then spending the rest of her time doing what she wants. The
latter may consist of traveling, taking a guitar course or making
ceramics -- whatever takes her fancy.

It's only when she runs out of money that she returns to the
drudgery of a 9-to-5 existence. The last time was last year when
she worked in a bakery -- "a need for bread, literally" -- a
five-minute walk from her house in Kebun Jeruk, West Jakarta.

"It's actually not a healthy way of life, and inappropriate,
if we talk about being established, and security and stuff," she
said.

"But for me, it's more about balancing things. That's my way
to be alive. Although people say it's unusual, and it often draws
negative comments about me. But, in the end, I'm the one who
lives my life," smiled the soft-spoken, warm woman.

Although it's about time to pore through the job ads, the
search will have to be postponed until she is finished with the
whirlwind of promotion and seminars following the recent launch
of her debut novel Cala Ibi.

With the title taken from the word for hummingbird in the
dialect of Ternate, Maluku, one of the settings of the novel, it
has drawn good, even glowing reviews.

Leading daily Kompas lauded Cala Ibi as fantastic, imbued with
linguistic mysticism and sharing philosophical theories with
Julia Kristeva, Martin Heidegger and Jacques Derrida.

Pretty heady stuff -- but Nukila takes it in stride.

"When I read the review, I was like 'Oke deeeeh (Yeah,
right!)'. I've never even heard those names!" she laughed, while
unable to hide her pride at the praise.

"That's flattering, and a relief. But somehow, I'm also
worried that if somebody asked me about those philosophers and
theories, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to answer!"

It's not all sweetness and light: Some cynics have accused her
of exploiting the prolonged sectarian conflict of her birthplace
to make her literary name.

She was born and spent her early childhood in Ternate, the
homeland of her parents.

"Well, at least I am concerned about the situation in my
hometown," shrugged Nukila.

The division in critical opinion underscores that Cala Ibi is
one of those books readers either love or hate.

It tells about a young woman named Maya, whose quest for self-
identity comes from her alter ego Maia and the latter's journey
through a dreamy landscape.

With complicated plots, overlapping events shifting between
dreams and reality and packed with metaphors, it is not an easy
read. Some may dismiss it as philosophical mumbo jumbo, but the
plain truth is that the novel offers more depth than most
Indonesian literary offerings.

Most significantly, it does not fall into the trap of
pretentiousness, the failing of so many contemporary novels.

"Cala Ibi actually is something simple. It can be taken
lightly. Basically, it's about shifting identity, a process of
defining oneself," said the sixth of seven children.

As she was impressed by the polarization or dualism theory,
Nukila took it as the main theme for the novel.

"There are so many poles presented in this story: Night and
day, urban versus rural, dreams and reality, and so on. One of
the final purposes is to show that those twin poles are only
human conventions to make perception easier," she said.

"I aimed at reconciling those poles, that they can actually
strengthen each other. And there is always the third outing, a
new entity that is an assimilation of both."

Like many other Indonesian female writers, she also discusses
a woman's struggle against societal norms.

"It is a very feminine novel, because it mixes up the
masculine patterns of plot that are linear, logical, structured
and so on," she said.

"But I don't make the female characters out to be heroines.
The themes are very universal. It's a reflective journey of a
human being who makes the decision to do what's best for her."

Nukila spent her childhood in cities all over the country, as
her father, M. Adnan Amal, now retired, moved to different
positions as a judge.

Writing is in her blood: Her father is the author of Kronik
Sejarah Maluku Utara (The Chronicle of North Maluku History) and
her older brother, Taufik Adnan Amal, is best known for his work
Sejarah Al-Quran (The History of the Al-Quran).

Nukila began her own emergence on the literary scene at a
relatively late age in 2001, writing short stories for literary
journal Kalam. Fellow writer and the journal's editor Ayu Utami
once told The Jakarta Post that she favors Nukila's lyrical,
emotionally charged style of writing.

Up to then, Nukila had followed the conventional path, working
in a hotel and several companies after graduating from the
Bandung Tourism Academy (STPB) in 1994.

She is guarded in talking about the experiences that led her
to rethink the direction in her life and all that she had
accepted as meaningful.

"It was painful when one found that she wasn't the way she
thinks she is, that all of the images in her are a big lie," she
said faintly.

"I then came to the conclusion that meaningful things in life
are not always things that are meaningful according to society.
There are so many things beyond that."

But pain is what gives meaning to one's work: It's said that
great sorrow makes for great art. Pain reflects throughout Cala
Ibi, but the work is as unpretentious and sincere as its author.

"That's what I rarely find in many Indonesian literary works
-- the pain that gives an emotional punch, that touches their
readers," she said.

Indonesians do not like to dig too deep or reflect too much
about themselves, she added, preferring the pursuit of popularity
and a blinkered confidence that all is well with their world.

"Those things are what trap us in mediocrity."

The works of the new crop of young women writers, like Ayu and
singer-cum-author Dewi "Dee" Lestari, have been clumped under the
term sastra wangi (fragrant literature).

Nukila considers it intrinsically patronizing, because people
are still focusing on the personalities and appearance of the
authors, not their literary merit or lack thereof.

"That label is really negating. Writers should be categorized
in genre, or movement, or the style and the spirit, not based on
their physical appearance."

For that reason, she refused to use her photo on the book.

"All I want to do is just write, because there's something
that has to be told. Then it is up to the readers to decide."

It's still early days in her literary career, and it will take
a few more works of the caliber of Cala Ibi to confirm her
promise. But for those who really care about the content on the
page, not the pretty face peering out from the book jacket,
Nukila Amal signifies a writer of note and hope.

Laluba -- Page 8