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| Sunday, 20 October 2002 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Sulang Kirilli soars high by Jayanthi Liyanage
The name Sulang Kirilli (wind bird) signifies buoyancy and freedom of soul to ride the soaring wind. In contrast, she is a toy paper fan, forced to turn wherever the wind chooses to blow, her sheer existence and identity articulated by the prevailing social forces, with no power to turn against the wind. Inoka Sathyangani's Rathie, the wind bird of post -1978, stranded in the confusions and contradictions of the relentless social torrents of booming free economy as against a native life, which still limping ahead with inhibitive attitudes and traditions, remains a burning social dilemma to this day. The very first time a director's maiden film, as well as any local cinematic venture, achieved the distinction of rising to the competitive top five in an international "A" grade festival, came about "When the local Women's Bureau asked me to make a documentary of our free trade zone women workers," spells out Inoka, who today could be hailed as the country's most talented young woman film maker, with a history of three Best Director awards to her credit. Sulang Kirilli's world premiere at the Tokyo International Film Festival is just days ahead, on October 26. "I unearthed the shocking story of an unmarried young girl who long ago, had given birth to a child and hid it in a toilet. When Tissa Abeysekera, Chairman, National Film Corporation, began a project to introduce new talent to the film industry, I knew that the ethos of this girl which touched my heart without my ever seeing or knowing her, would make me honest to my creation." Nobody knew where the young woman had gone and an old couple raised the child as their own. "In Sri Lanka, abortion is illegal and sex education is not imparted in school or society and a young woman in trouble is trapped with nowhere to turn," says Inoka. "She cannot give birth as in our civil law, an illegitimate child is a stigma. When I met the resultant little child, she was a beautiful four-year-old," she reminisces. Would Inoka imply that legal abortion is a necessity in our times? "I cannot suggest anything." She replies in negation. "As a creative person, I have a moral obligation to bring out the human right issues in hidden problem of society." Does her film offers a solution? "There is a message in a symbolic manner when Rathie catches the paper fan blown out of the hand of a little girl and gives it back. We, the film makers, cannot as politicians or religious leaders, ask people to do things. We can only show the path the society should walk ahead." "I chose Damitha Abeyratne, who had never acted in a film because I needed the star to submerge and the character to emerge," Inoka emphasises. "Linton Semage had to walk on a tight rope of balance as I asked him not to limit his "villainous" role to the dark shades. We were not just reading the script but arguing, discussing and analysing as human beings the emotions and factors which shaped the characters to be what they were." What made Inoka, who first ventured into the challenging field of film directing while reading law at the University of Colombo, select Tokyo from the other prestigious international festivals Sulang Kirilli has been invited to take part? "I consulted Dr. Lester James Peries and he asked me, 'Would you go to Asian Games and win a gold medal or, go to the Olympics and be in the final relay'? That decided it!" Renowned celebrities such as the late Gregory Peck, the late Yves Montand and Mel Gibson were born from Tokyo Festival and "It would be a very good beginning for me!" Inoka smiles. Watch out for "Sulang Kirilli" when it is released to the
Regal cinema next January. A tribute to the less appreciated species of nature : Wildscapes Wildlife enthusiast and nature photographer Sawan Waidyanatha will be holding Wildscapes a photo exhibition that's both a tribute to the less appreciated species of nature and a plea for conservation at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya from October 20 to 22.
A graduate in Medicine from the University of Peradeniya, Sawan has been fascinated with nature and conservation as long as he can remember, and was partly responsible for the revival of the Natural History Society at Trinity College. Describing nature photography as an inevitable extension of this interest, he says it has become more than a mere hobby.Sawan travels extensively throughout Sri Lanka in pursuit of subjects to photograph and feels that nature photography plays a vital role in conservation. "An image with a strong visual impact does much more than mere facts and figures in making one actually feel for the environment and develop a sense of affection, and consequently, a feeling of responsibility towards it," he says. According to Sawan, there is a little more to nature photography than being in Yala with a long lens. "While a photograph of a leopard or an elephant will get the immediate attention of most people, not many will appreciate the significance of a garden lizard or a mushroom, both from an ecological and an aesthetic perspective," he says. Wildscapes, Sawan hopes, would shed some light on these
"insignificant" and overlooked components of the natural world
as well as the more "dominant" and popular ones. Drama with a new theme by Deepal Warnakulasuriya The first bilingual play in Sri Lanka, Please Listen co-directed by youthful dramatist M. Safeer and Dr. Asoke de Zoysa will be staged on October 31 at the Sudarshi Open Air Theatre (in front of BMICH) at 7.30 pm.
Safeer who broadened the parameters of the stage with two inventive plays; 'Pashchattapa' and 'Oya Dora Arinna', with this new play opens avenues for a world where you have been but have never quite experienced a bit of the reality. 'Please Listen deals with the unspoken real life of the people who live in line-room quarters in plantation areas. The play was the outcome of a workshop conducted by Dr. Asoke de Zoysa (University of Kelaniya, Department of Modern Languages) and M. Safeer, a young dramatist in Kotagala tea plantations between Hatton and Thalawakelle. "It was a novel experience giving voice to a group of young people from different ethnic groups hither to unheard of from the plantations," express Dr. Zoysa and Safeer. The co-directors also said that the language, however will not be an obstacle to share the experiences of the characters. "Do not sympathise with them, but please listen to what they tell you.
Opera and Broadway musical at Oberoi The Lanka Oberoi will present Giacomo Puccini's La Boheme, an exclusive Opera and a Broadway musical Hurray for Hollywood performed by Opera and Concert Productions Worldwide of Britain, headed by Barbara Segal. The two magnificent shows sponsored by Sampth Bank, will be held on October 23 and 24 respectively at the Golden Ballroom of the Lanka Oberoi.
Puccini's Romantic Opera is splendidly brought to life by the vibrant and extremely talented cast. If you've never been to an opera before, this could well be the one that gets you hooked. On October 24, you can indeed say Hurray for Hollywood as the best of Broadway will be presented to you in the form of a lighthearted musical. What could be more exciting than a lively performance of unforgettable numbers from South Pacific, West Side Story, Phantom of the Opera, The Wizard of Oz, Gigi, My Fair Lady, Carousal, Annie Get Your Gun and many more all-time favourites. Snazzy, Jazzy numbers guaranteed to get the audience dancing in the aisles and shouting for more. The show has been compiled, staged and choreographed by some of Britain's newest and most exciting choreographers who are winners of numerous dance and choreography awards.
Pani Mora Mal by LAKMAL WELABADA
'Out of focus', is a novel experience in photography. Dulip Samarasinghe will be holding his first solo photographic exhibition - `Pani Mora Mal' at the Public Library, Colombo from October 26 to 28. The exhibition will be opened by Dr. Lester James Peiris, veteran film director. About sixty photographs depicting different themes will be on display. "My aim was to do abstract drawings using the camera lens. It's a new experiment," says Dulip, who works as a photographer cum video programme editor at the Open University of Sri Lanka.
Dulip has won many awards in photographic competitions from the beginning of his career as a photographer including the competition held by the National Photographic Art Society of Sri Lanka in 1998. Dulip, a past pupil of Harischandra Maha Vidyalaya, Negombo and Nalanda College, Minuwangoda learnt photography while studying for his A/L s in 1981. Dulip speaks of the late Wilson Hegoda, the founder of the Sri Lanka
National Photography Society with gratitude. "Many young people who
have the interest and the talent could learn photography free of charge;
and be able to make their living. It's a great thing," he expressed. Maiden cassette on the theme of love A.B. Lalith de Silva, a young media man of many talents has stepped
into another creative field that of lyric writing. Premaya (Love) his
maiden audio cassette, CD and book will be launched soon. 'Love' is the theme for his songs and the book of his titled Leo Tolstoy saha Premaya. According to Lalith, this effort of his is a long time dream that will become a reality of which he is proud about. Sixteen songs are included in the audio cassette and sung by popular artistes Victor Ratnayake, Edward Jayakody, Karunaratne Divulgane, Deepika Priyadarshani, Sanath Nandasiri, Sunil Edirisingha, and Gunadasa Kapuge. The music is by Rohana Weerasingha, and the cassette is produced by the faculty of Asia Lanka Vocational Education. - Anjana Ranjanee at two Italian film festivals The organisers of the Matita International Film Festival in Rome which is devoted to animation films and is one of the leading festivals in the world for animation films has invited Ranjanee Ratnavibhushana from Sri Lanka to participate in the festival. An executive committee member of the Asian Film Centre and Vice President of the Sri Lanka Federation of Film Societies affiliated to the International Federation of Film Societies, Ranjanee Ratnavibhushana will participate in the discussion on the agenda - the new challenges faced by the film society movement around the world. Ratnavibhushana will also participate in the International Film
Festival of Film Societies which will be held at Reggio Calabria. Moving to the rhythms of Kerala by Prasad Abu Bakr They were all dancers dedicated to their choasen art, moving gracefully narrating their tale through body language to different beats.
The major part of their performance focused upon 'Kathakali.' Sivarajan an exponent of this fabulous dance form explained that 'Kathakali' was a long series of movements a dancer goes through narrating a story. The entire performance involves facial expressions suggesting numerous moods of the characters from the story that is narrated through that particular performance. Sivarajan a diploma holder of Kerala Kalamandalam, Thrivendram explained that 'Kathakali' is necessarily a male oriented dance form. During his 14 years career he has seen very few females showing interest mainly as there are series of body massages in the process of preparing a dancer to go through his paces. So it is not unusual that a male will play the role of a female imposter, in this case Girish who has danced along with Sivarajan. Over the years, he has performed enacting the female role since he was 13 years old and has made it a full time career.
In comparison Navami and Deepthi perform a different set of movements streamlined mainly for women. 'Mohini Aaththum' is a graceful combination of hand and feet movements in harmony with expressive eye gestures. Similar to 'Baratha Nattyam.' But less hurried giving the dancer to move like a Swan, both his young and beautiful girls came along with their teacher Giriga-Chandran who trains over 2000 students through her five schools in Trivendrum. Regatta Cultural Society, Chandran who is also a producer of shows for the Department of Tourism of Kerala has travelled widely promoting this dance forms which are lesser known outside India. Kalaripayathi is a form of martial arts which has been tailored into a dance form, aggressive in its presentation it is a sword fighting event between two men. Protecting themselves with metal shields, sounds produced by sword hitting against shield is blended with rhythms of drumming to produce a total symphony of sounds. Sri Kumar and Jaya Kumar together has performed over 14 years and mastered the art of presenting warriors movements in form of a dance. "I take a lot to develop one-self into a full fledged dancer,
discipline, dedication and the will to be the best will take one a long
way in achieving one's goals but it is also a form of meditation which
will keep your body and mind well balanced, training your child to follow
a course in dancing of any form will help the child to grow-up in a good
environment", said Girija Chandran, who along with these dancers were
in Colombo recently to perform at the Taj Samudra as a part of the Kerala
Tourism promotion. Nawa Kalakaruwo 2002 : A stepping stone to Sri Lanka's emerging young artistes
Drawing from the inspiration and contribution of George Keyt whose life spanned almost the whole of the 20th century - and as a painter,poet and writer was a legend in his life-time, the George Keyt Foundation has in these fourteen years made a major contribution towards promoting arts, provide opportunities for the artists to exhibit, and at times assisting them to present their exhibitions. Nawa Kalakaruwo - emerging new Artistes - inaugurated in 1994 has become a major event among the foundation's many art promotional activities taking place annually. This year's exhibition being the 9th in succession had artists drawn from all parts of the country with some regulars who have emerged through several annual exhibitions organised by the George Keyt Foundation over the years.
The collection this year was vibrant and varied from modern pieces to subdued classics. Among 74 exhibits there were work by Basil Cooray, Preethi Hapuwatte, Sanjeewa Kumara, Sujeewa Kumari Weerasinghe, Sujith Rathnayake, Kiko Rushandan and Helaka Ruwanpura. All who have had frequent exhibitions of their work either solo or in groups, some outstanding creations were by Dhammika Akmeemana with images titled Figure in Space I and II, Rasanjali Badugodahewa's creation in mixed media aptly titled Colombo Kolama in splendid colours executed more to look like an 'installation' than a painting even though the artist has worked within a frame sized 120 x 80 cm. Worshipping by Diluk Dayaratne, using acrylic showed devotees in worship around a banyan tree, Channa Ekanayake's Quench of Thirst oil on canvas was another picture well worked upon. Artist Niloo Gunasekera displayed a lot of style in her work both 'untitled' depicting images that represented lotus sellers in pastel shades. King Rajasinghe II, with uncanny figures a large piece by Sanjeewa Kumara also stood out for its multi-colour and individual style. Thuiya Pushpakumara's erotic presentation of Male I and Male II in acrylic looked like two billboards in what one would describe as Mexican Designs with Latin American Colours. Among the other work that drew the attention of the crowd was Lakshman Senadeera's Landmine, Chamari Thapawaraja's Bride (which looked like a fashion drawing out of the - Vogue Magazine) but dealing with a profound subject, Sujeewa Kumari's Diary a grouping of her drawings were also interesting as it formed a collage of her drawings some in colour and others in black and white. This "Opportunity for art" should be looked forward to every year as it affords a lot of talent to evolve bringing together a cross-section of Sri Lanka's talent that deserves exposure. - Prasad Abu Bakr "Ramayanam" - An impressive performance by Dr. A. Sinnathamby I was fortunate to witness a rhythmic dance drama: "Ramayanam" recently August 10 at the Ramakrishna Mission Hall, Wellawatte. It was staged by the Old Students in Colombo of J/Karaveddy Vigneswara College on the occasion of the Association's tenth anniversary. The ceremony was dignified by the presence of Swami Athmaganandha. Our college motto is "Truth Triumphs". The epic Ramayana indicates expressions of the Tamils and their culture. That day the dance of the young boys and girls emphasized the identity of truth and beauty. Their dance communicated the works of Kambar who translated Ramayana from Sanskrit to Tamil. The dancers inspired the minds of the audience with thoughts, feelings, and views. It spread the whole personality of each individual dancer, his or her own brain, eyes and the ears. The truth is that the dance and their activities leave a life-long impression on the receptive minds of the audience to accept the new ideas and the new developments in the process of young dancers. The concepts that beauty is truth and truth is beauty are significantly illustrated in the dance performance. The trainer and the dance guide Mrs. Usha Sittampalanathan deserves praise and reward for her efforts. The principle of the motto of Vigneswara College has been used as a guide and rule of behaviour since the date of establishment of the college. This OSA, Colombo tries its best to foster the motto, aims and ideals of the college over its the present and future students. |
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