AFINA ABDULDAEVA: “I UNDERSTAND THAT EVERY PERSON IS A UNIQUE PERSONAILITY”
OCA Magazine: Please tell us the most important things about yourself and your creative work. What is your creative, life credo and motivation for your creativity?
Afina Abduldaeva: Born in 1944. Grew up in the difficult post-war years. Graduated from a seven-year school in the village, Frunze Finance and Credit College, Kyrgyz State University, and later the Alma-Ata Higher Party School.
Worked as a teacher at a school, college, and university. Teaching experience: 39 years. Worked 11 years in party work as a secretary of the district committee, second secretary, inspector of the party commission under the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Kyrgyzstan.
I came to creative work late, after the death of my beloved husband in 1999, out of grief, I began to write poetry. The first book was published in 2000. Since then, I have published four collections of poems, several books about the lives of outstanding sons of the republic, collections of stories and short stories. I have translated several works of the Jewish classic Shalom Aleichem, the famous Kyrgyz writer Chingiz Aitmatov, and other works by several authors from Russian into Kyrgyz. In total, I have authored 30 books.
Life credo. I lived like all normal people, taught children kindness and love, tried to make each of my lessons interesting and useful, to support the spark of childish spontaneity. In difficult party work, I found and included elements of creativity, so I was a successful worker.
I passionately love everything I do, at the moment I enjoy creative work. I have a lot of life experience, so I strive to share with my readers everything good that I have acquired over the years. And I am happy when my works touch the soul, teach kindness and decency. At my age, it is very important for me to continue to receive recognition and respect for my work.
OCA: How did you choose your path and who is your role model in the creative field or in life?
AA: Teaching was my calling, so I came to it after the first mistake in choosing a profession. In teaching, my Teacher and mentor was the school director, a wonderful teacher and a Man with a capital letter, Karabaev Abylai. In creativity, an example is Chingiz Aitmatov.
OCA: What is your main achievement(s) or positive impact on the world in 2024–2025?
AA: 2024 was a jubilee and fruitful year for me.
- In 2024, the following was published:
- A collection of poems “Kut” (which means “Grace”),
- The novel “Ilim imperiyasyndagy chyiyr (“The Path to the Empire of Science”).
A collection of “Japanese Tales”, in my translation.
- My poems are included:
- In the anthology “Sezim yrgaktary” (“Melodies of Feelings”);
- In the international anthology published in the Turkish city of Ankara;
- In the anthology of Kyrgyz prose, the story “Disappearance”.
- In 2025, the translation of R. Alybaeva’s book “Raatbek” about a famous athlete of the 21st century was published.
As you can see, I worked hard in 2024 and 2025, and I think it’s up to the readers to judge what positive impact my works had on the world.
OCA: What is the main feature that makes you and your art/work unique?
AA: I understand that every person is a unique personality. I have innate uniqueness, experience, and a certain talent, but this does not mean that I am incomparable, unique, or especially outstanding in my own way. I am the same as everyone else. My modest artistic aspirations in creativity are to make people better, purer and kinder.
OCA: Please tell us about the events or projects of the Eurasian Creative Guild (London) and projects you have already participated in and how does ECG influence your creativity and success in your work?
AA: I became a member of the Guild in 2024. My story “Revenge of the Golden Eagle” participated in the prose category in the XIII Eurasia competition in 2024 and reached the final, and also took third place in Burabay, Kazakhstan on September 15-19, 2024. This victory inspired me and inspired me to new creative works, the result of which were the above-mentioned works of the year and the awards received from the Kyrgyz National Union of Writers in 2024.
OCA: How do you think the creative professions have changed and how has the role of art in the development of the world changed in the face of modern realities?
AA: Previously, in Soviet times, the role of writers was great, their works passed through censorship, commissions, and received royalties for published works. In the Kyrgyz Republic, over the past 30 years, books have been published at their own expense authors, implement themselves. Only since 2024 the state has allocated certain amounts for sports, for the film industry, for publishing books. Only famous pop artists earn money on national holidays, tois, and the rest of the creative professionals are still in poverty.
OCA: What would you wish for the members of the Guild and other creative people who are just starting their careers?
AA: I wish respected members of the Guild many years of happy life, bright creative discoveries, enjoyment of their work, but also critical evaluation, ability to perceive criticism, find areas requiring improvement
I wish young creative individuals, bearers of God’s gift, a fountain of ideas, extraordinary solutions, striving for uniqueness, and most importantly: work, work and work.