Dewi Lestari facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dewi Lestari
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Dewi Lestari at the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival (2010)
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Dewi Lestari Simangunsong
20 January 1976 Bandung, Indonesia
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| Nationality | Indonesian |
| Other names | Dee Lestari |
| Education | international relations |
| Alma mater | Parahyangan Catholic University |
| Occupation |
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| Musical career | |
| Genres | pop |
| Instruments | vokal |
| Labels | Indo Semar Records |
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| Writing career | |
| Pen name | Dee |
| Language | Indonesian |
| Period | Reform Era Generation |
| Genres | novel, song |
| Subjects | spirituality, shamanism and others |
| Literary movement | Sastra wangi |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Notable works | Supernova series |
| Notable awards | Khatulistiwa Literary Award (2001), others |
Dewi "Dee" Lestari Simangunsong (born on January 20, 1976, in Bandung, West Java) is a famous Indonesian writer, singer, and songwriter. She is known for her interesting novels and popular songs.
Biography
Dee was born in Bandung, West Java. She was the fourth of five children in her family. From a young age, she was very active in music. She loved singing and even sang backup for famous singers like Chrisye.
After high school, Dee went to Parahyangan Catholic University. She studied international relations there. In 1993, she started a girl group called RSD. Her friends Rida Farida and Sita Nursanti were also in the group. They released three albums and a greatest hits album together.
Becoming a Writer
In 2001, Dee released her first novel. It was called Kesatria, Putri dan Bintang Jatuh (The Knight, The Princess, and the Falling Star). This book was the first in her popular Supernova series. It was very well-liked and led to two more books: Supernova: Akar (Supernova: Roots) and Petir (Thunder). Some of her Supernova books were even nominated for the Khatulistiwa Award.
In March 2006, Dee released another book. It was a collection of short stories and prose called Filosofi Kopi: Kumpulan Cerita and Prosa Satu Dekade (Coffee Philosophy: A Decade's Worth of Stories and Prose). These stories talked about themes like love and spirituality. Around the same time, she also released her first solo music album, Out of Shell. She had been working on this album since 1994.
Two years later, Dee created a unique project called Rectoverso. It was a mix of a music album and a short story collection. She started it in 2006 when she wrote a song called "Hanya Isyarat" ("Only a Sign"). She felt the song needed more, so she wrote a short story with the same idea. This led to the idea of combining music and stories. One of the songs, "Malaikat Juga Tahu" ("Angels Also Know"), became very popular. That year, her novel Perahu Kertas (Paper Boats) was also published.
In 2011, Dee released another collection of stories called Madre (Mother). This book was inspired by her love for cooking. The word "madre" also refers to a type of yeast used in cooking. The next year, she released the fourth book in her Supernova series, called Partikel. For this book, she researched many interesting topics. These included shamanism, ethnobotany, entheogen, crop circles, and even extraterrestrials. She shared that she wrote the book to show her worries about the environment. She wanted to highlight how we are affecting our planet's future.
Books Becoming Movies
In 2012, two films based on Dee's novel Perahu Kertas were released. They were called Perahu Kertas 1 and Perahu Kertas 2. These were romance movies starring Maudy Ayunda and Adipati Dolken. The director, Hanung Bramantyo, decided to split the story into two movies. Dee worked closely with the director and helped with casting and writing the movie script.
Another movie based on her work, Madre, came out in 2013. Since the original book was a collection of short stories, the film added more content. The movie starred Didi Petet, Vino G. Bastian, and Laura Basuki.
As of 2012, there were plans to make movies of Rectoverso and Filosofi Kopi. There were also plans for a fifth book in the Supernova series.
Themes and Inspirations
Dee often writes about themes like spirituality in her songs and books. She says that spirituality is what drives her to create. She also cares deeply about the environment and includes these ideas in her stories.
A poet named Sitok Srengenge said that Dee's works are unique. They have complex themes and are told in a smart and fresh way. Her books are sometimes grouped with a literary movement called sastra wangi, which means "fragrant literature."
Dee has mentioned that American author Ana Castillo inspired her to write short stories. She also enjoys books by other Indonesian writers like Sapardi Djoko Damono, Seno Gumira Ajidarma, and Ayu Utami. She has read philosophical books by thinkers like Ken Wilber, Friedrich Nietzsche, Immanuel Kant, and Martin Heidegger.
In an interview in 2012, Dee shared that she works for about three months each year. During this time, she does research and writes. She believes her writing comes from a mix of new ideas and her willingness to work hard on them.
Personal Life
Dee Lestari was married to fellow singer Marcell Siahaan. They have a son together. They sometimes worked together on writing songs. They later divorced in 2008.
Later that year, Dee married Reza Gunawan, who is a holistic healer. In 2009, they welcomed their first child, who was born at home.
Dee practices yoga and meditation regularly. She has also been a vegetarian since 2006.
