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| Sunday, 17 April 2005 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Sanda Mudunata : Pavel's TV venture
The infamous Samy Pavel returns to Sri Lankan theatre, this time with his own twenty episode teledrama titled 'Sanda Mudunata' which is being telecast on Swarnavahini, starting this month. We not only witness his producing and directorial prowess in the teleseries but also his writing skills; Pavel wrote the script which was then translated by W. Jayasiri. The cast comprises veterans Veena Jayakody and W. Jayasiri as well as Sujani Menaka, Germain Homer, Audrey Fernando, Sarath Kulanga, Piorina Fernando, Chandran Kaluarachchi, Seetha Kumari, Y.B. Laman, Vincent Fernando and child actors Sandali Welikala, Natasha Neththikumara. It also introduces for the first time Menaka Rajapaksha and child actor Aliosha Pavel. 'Sanda Mudunata' is centred on the lives of people involved in the Sri Lankan cinematic industry. Pathum is the son of Veena, a former actress of much fame who after a mysterious accident has her acting career shattered and is confined to her house. Pathum lost his father at the age of six and grew up hardly cared for by his busy mother who relegated her parental responsibilities to an old servant, Rosie. Pathum goes through a lonely childhood, his only friend being Samantha, the daughter of Veena's best friend Mary. Mary idolises Veena even after the failure of her artistic career and even tries to have her say in Pathum's life. Strong-minded Samantha is the only person who understands Pathum who is lost in his own world, unable to differentiate between fact and fiction. Then there is Martin-Tom du du, a mentally disturbed man whose son left him years ago to join the army and hangs around in the railway station awaiting his return. It is here that Martin meets Pathum and they develop a close friendship. Finally there is Nirmala, the daughter of a famous film director who had forsaken Veena by opting for newer actresses during her illustrious career. The entire story revolves around the kidnapping of Nirmala, when these varied characters come together to solve the puzzle in an emotive mix of love, passion, betrayal, friendship and forgiveness. Samy Pavel began his acting and directing career in 1960 after enroling as a student at the Superior Institute of Arts and Films in Belgium where he acquired his degree in first honours. Thereafter he studied at the Yves Furet Actors Studio in Paris before moving on to the American Film Institute and U.C.L.A in Los Angeles. One of Pavel's best masterpieces was 'Miss O' Gynnie et Les Homme Fleurs' which he wrote, directed and produced to unanimous critic approval. It is considered a classic movie and is shown in the museum of cinema for Europe. He has won many awards at film festivals including at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival. He also directed and co-produced a documentary titled 'The Silent Movement' in collaboration with the Alliance Francaise, Colombo which was about the peace process in Sri Lanka. - R.H. |
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