Dira Paes and Zélia Duncan tell what it was like to ‘become’ Marielle Franco in an audiobook: ‘We feel it in our skin’

Five years after the murder of Marielle Franco, in March 2018, a biography in audiobook format tells the story of the sociologist, social activist and councilor of Rio de Janeiro. Launched last Thursday (30) on the Storytel platform, the work proposes to address a lesser-known side of the public.

Among those chosen to give voice to the stories recorded from the reports of those who lived with Marielle for years are names such as actresses Dira Paes and Gabriela Loran, writer Verônica Bonfim and singer Zélia Duncan. The author of the project is journalist Audrey Furlaneto.

Engaged in social causes for 20 years, Dira says that she met the activist a few times over the years, but that the project brought her closer to the former councilwoman. The parts that humanize Marielle and narrate everyday stories were the ones that moved her the most. “I was very interested in her personal life, in all the little things from the first novels. We follow everything, her awakening as a girl and as a woman — and as a public woman”, she says in an interview with F5.

In the work, a more human and sensitive side is addressed, such as first loves, family memories and entry into politics. The book was composed through interviews with Marinete, the activist’s mother, and work colleagues and friends, such as Fernanda Chaves, who was also in the car shot where the then councilwoman was killed.

“We felt these revelations firsthand. Audrey Furlaneto’s writing [autora do livro] puts you in the scene and contextualizes you. It’s like you feel the sheet she’s lying on, the size of the room. When we think of Marielle, we think of this huge, beautiful woman with an irresistible smile. But [descobrimos] this confidant side, who liked to laugh with her friends, would have a cup of coffee before having to go to Belford Roxo. These moments of intimacy are curious”, adds Dira.

The public can opt for the individual narration of each one or the interspersed one, which has the four voices together. Zélia says she was moved at different times during the recording, and it was necessary to take a break to take a deep breath and drink a glass of water. Or even return more composed the next day.

“At various times, we had to ask for discharge. Something happened that I ended a chapter crying, almost sobbing, and I went home. And, when I returned the next day, I said to Pedro, from the studio: ‘Dude, please , let me repeat it’. You read quotation marks, so sometimes you are the narrator, the teacher at the course, the mother, the sister, you are Marielle herself or the friend who is a fundamental witness and who was inside the car . So this is all giving a lot of emotion”, says the singer.

In moments of happiness, she says that she even forgets the tragic outcome that Marielle’s life had. “When you talk about childhood and adolescence or the women in the family, it makes you happy, you know? Like, wow, what incredible women, I want to be part of this family. And then, you forget a little bit that the worst is yet to come. I had moments of almost self-deception. Of saying, ‘No, this story can’t possibly end where we know it will’.”

The singer also says that being part of the project opened her eyes to other causes and made her engage even more in struggles —which transformed her forever. “Reading the audiobook made me look at the causes I was already looking at, but with a much wider and wider eye. Marielle helped me make this decision, which I had already made in my life, but sometimes you make decisions and it takes time until you do it. It’s not that I’ve already done it, but I’m on the way to do it forever”, he says.

Dira remembers the invitation to participate in the biography, but defines it as a call, since she considers it would be impossible to refuse. “I was very curious to know what the structure of the idea was so I could understand why I had been called. When I understood, I was fascinated with this idea of ​​being Marielles. The biography is not just the trajectory of a heroine, it is the trajectory of a human being that exists every day in Brazil”, he describes.

The actress tells that, during the recording of the ten chapters, the moment was of a repressed Brazil. “It is worth remembering that, while we were recording this audiobook, we were still under threat from the same forces that threatened Marielle. So we created this material without knowing if we would be able to recover the freedom of, at least, being able to speak openly about a political crime what happened in Brazil.”

Zélia comments that, if it weren’t for what happened, the councilwoman could already be a senator and represent other black women in Brazil in the National Congress. However, even as the story unfolded, Marielle managed to bring about change.

“She was a profoundly important person for Brazilian female life, for Brazilian black female life and for Brazilian LGBTQIAP+ life. We needed and still need this renewal so much that she even changed in some way before anything else. back, now it’s just forward”, he says.

The narrators keep hope alive that justice will be done and that everyone affected by the crime will get an answer. They say they hope that the project serves as a reminder that five years have passed since March 14, 2018 and that the investigation into who ordered Marielle’s death has not yet been concluded.