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| Sunday, 28 April 2002 |
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'Songs to remember' - today Soprano singer Preshanti Navaratnam will give a recital at the Lionel Wendt Theatre at 7 pm today, with Ronald Samm an operatic singer who also studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. For their program tonight the two singers have chosen ariasfrom operas by Mascagni, Verdi, Mozart, Puccini and Leoncavallo. On a lighter side they have selected works by Gershwin, Bernsteini, Tosti, Schubert and Lehar. Preshanthi Navaratnam who made her Royal Albert Hall debut singing the song cycle 'Four Burns Song' by Benjamin Britten has given and partaken in numerous song recitals and concerts at prestigious venues across London and the North of England including the Royal Opera House, and Covent Garden. Preshanthi is scheduled to sing with the European Union Chamber Orchestra when they perform in Colombo in November this year. Ronald Samm's operatic credits include Tamino in Mozart's 'Magic Flute', Florestan in Beethoven's 'Fidelio' and Don Jose in 'Carmen'. Other roles include Jake in Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, Sergeant in 'Mary Seacole' and the Drum-Major in 'Wozzeck'. Pianist Ramya de Livera, cellist Dushyanthi Perera and violinist Ananda Dabare will also perform at today's concert. Ananda shoots 'Shyama' in Canada by Jayanthi Liyanage
The story opens with nostalgic scenes of switched allegiance where migrant families replace modest Sri Lankan banalities with a brand new mode of living in Canada. But the world comes tumbling down for twelve-year-old immigrant, Ritchi and his family, when holiday-makers, Bandu Samarasinghe and his stooges-in-adventure crash in this idyllic juvenile serenity. One smells "kidnap" - and that is all one can wrench from film-maker, M.S. Ananda who was in Sri Lanka to plot the groundwork for the newest escapades of his child-heroine Shyama in her latest family movie, to be shot entirely in Canada. Ananda says that the film will feature his grandson, new-comer, Ritchi Rasanga, granddaughter Mandira Anandi of Mama Baya Ne Shyama fame, their mother and Ananda's daughter, Shyama who, in the seventies, made Shyama a household name with Mage Nangi Shyama and "Chandi Shyama," and his favourite actor Gamini Fonseka. "All my films have been children's films," says director/producer, Ananda. "I will do the camera myself as in all my other films." Why the location, Canada ? "Shyama is now settled in Canada with her family. Mandira, who was a tiny tot in 'Mama Baya Ne Shyama' is now a nineteen-year-old undergraduate and Ritchi is in the seventh grade," says Ananda, adding, "Already he has shown signs of being a versatile actor and gave a fine dance performance at the last New Year Festival over there." Ananda is now in the process of raising the film's hefty 15 million budget which includes fun-animation. Ananda is adamant on releasing his new Shyama film to the Ceylon Theatres circuit. "I was their Chief Cameraman at Ceylon Studio and they helped my first film Pravesam Venna in 1969," which introduced the sprightly seven-year-old Shyama in a dual role to the Lankan audiences. "I emphasise to the Government that we don't need an NFC," Ananda says. "What we need is a Film Board with non-political appointees which could intervene when things go wrong for film-makers." Ananda's main bone of contention is that the country's film industry had failed to exploit or commend his versatility in "trick" photography in a long career as a cameraman, spanning across Avishvasaya, Satha Panaha, Sithaka Mahima, Golu Hadawatha, Madol Duwa, Gehenu Lamai, culminating in "his great film", Nidhanaya. Black and white Nidhanaya with its magnificent portrayal of the complex human mind called for ingenious shadow effects in an old mansion at Obeysekera Town. Ananda had filmed dual roles, first masking one half of his camera to capture one character and then reversing and masking other half to shoot the other, when computerisation and animation was not available locally. "I gave up doing camera for other producers and became my own film-maker," Ananda said. "Now I make films for my own satisfaction. It's my audiences who give the verdict not the award-givers !" Painting of nature by CHAMIKARA WEERASINGHE
Rasika de Silva, aged 34, holds his second exhibition of paintings at the auditorium of Alliance Francaise de Colombo till April 30, from 10 am to 6 pm. Over thirty five paintings done in oil and water colour are displayed. Rasika's delves deeply into details of nature to denote its universal link with the man in the wilderness of fragmenting society. When I met Rasika near Lake House he was carrying one of his paintings under his arm. It was done in oil and I could see rather patient and calm brush strokes which were predominant in the canvas, done with extreme care and in cooling greens and blues. On the foreground was a man. Rasika had carefully left out one of the man's eyes. I asked him why? The painter replied after taking a deep breath: "The man has lost his vision as a result of fragmentation. He sees the nature through fragmented elements. Therefore his vision is not sound," The philosophy behind Rasika's paintings is that it reminds us that nature is still there offering its true potential, but it's mankind that have been wayward in accepting its wealth. Mothers among goddesses "It is she who makes all nature bring forth. All existing things are emanations from her". Who is she? She is the Great Mother, the Mother Goddess who is worshipped by people in different parts of the world. In India, the crude female effigies found in pottery discovered in the Indus valley are considered to be representations of a mother goddess. Different people gave different names to her and "amma" (mother) is one of them. Among the goddesses worshipped in Sri Lanka both by Buddhists and Hindus are a few who are named "amma". The most popular among them is Pattini Amma, the goddess of fertility. The cult of Pattini had its origins in India and even the Jains practised this cult. A separate shrine (de:va:le) dedicated to this Goddess is found in many Buddhist temples in Sri Lanka. Pattini Amma is not only the goddess of fertility but also the one who stands for chastity and faithfulness. She is the symbol of the faithful wife. The Sinhalese use the simile 'pattini amma vage' (like Pattini Amma) to refer to a woman who remains faithful to her husband. Of course, some women pretend to be so. Then this phrase is used sarcastically to humiliate her. In one of the Sinhala folk plays, 'Sokari', the main role is that of a woman who represents Pattini Amma. She is called "Sokari". Village folk call her "sokari amma". The Hindus worship goddess Kali and she is popularly called "Kaali amma". At Kataragama, there is also shrine for "Valli amma", who according to folklore was the second wife of God Kataragama. |
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