We love challenges

The joy of creativity and ideas matter :

At the Sunday Observer Features Desk there's so much fun and frolic most of the time. It's easy going, and most of us take working in our own stride.

Being a weekly, work kicks off on Monday. The Features Desk is the live wire of the Sunday Observer where all the entertainment, celebration and initiation take place.

With a dedicated team of mixed talent and efficiency we endeavour to discharge our duties to the best of our ability.

Planning, assigning staff to work on stories, assigning photographers to take pictures, editing copies, planning page content and layout, page make-up and engaging in the finer touches and coming on Saturday morning at 5 am to authorise the printing of the Features and Business Section is no easy task. Nevertheless, work goes on smoothly at the Features Desk.

At our desk I have Aditha Dissanayake the Features Editor to assist me. A feature writer, clad in sporting attire, her interests are varied, from art and culture, to book reviews and human interest stories to the writer's den, she bats on from Monday to Friday to add colour to the feature pages.

Our much sort after Sunday Observer Magazine edited by a very senior journalist who has much exposure in the field, is handled by the ever smiling Fahima Fariz who gives our readers all the jazzy stuff and Goz from Hollywood to Bollywood, Rock music, Astrology, beauty and fashion, which rates high among our teenage readership.

Our ever so popular Junior Observer, which reaches the hands of many children across Sri Lanka along with the main paper as well as separately as a special school edition is also spearheaded by Maryanne Perera a veteran senior journalist who has proved her expertise on the Children's Pages over the years, with Indunil Thenuwara a petite, precise, versatile young lady with a considerable number of journalistic experience who carries on her work undisturbed regardless of what's going on around her and the youngest team member and fresher Janani Amerasekera who is computer literate and helps out with the page make up and adds colour to the Junior Observer.

The TV plus, the western music scene and part of the Globalizer is smoothly steered by yet another senior member of our team, Mahes Perera who was popularly associated with the ever famous Golden Clef Awards conducted by Sunday Observer over the years.

Mahes Perera is also a name familiar to many of our readers synonymous with keeping the music scene alive and her spontaneous support and volunteerism to step in and assist the desk whenever necessary is mentionable.

To add spice to our team work are the very capable and dynamic feature writers, Rikaza Hussan, Lakmal Welabada, Ranga Chandratne, Umangi de Mel, Indeewara Tillekerathne and Chamitha Kuruppu (who is on maternity leave) who have a proven record of credibility.

Rikaza, the baby of the team and now to have a baby, is an excellent writer and critique and is cool as a cucumber when it comes to work. Never a negative answer, efficiently and promptly delivers the goods.

To compliment the good work at the Features Desk is Lakmal Welabada, a senior feature writer. Calm, hardworking, collected yet sensitive and amiable she is often given the task of working on issues close to the heart, pottery and painting, art and craft and matters in a lighter vein which she delivers well.

To add to serious thinking, indepth writing on pressing issues, exposure to art and culture reviews and high profiles is Ranga Chandraratne, a young dynamic, and versatile feature writer who tirelessly works day and night promptly keeping to deadlines with wit and accuracy.

Umangi de Mel is the smallest in size but also pregnant now is vociferous but fun loving and is the entertainer of the department. Umangi is a good feature writer who is bent on serious writing on serious issues of interest.

Reviving bygones with a glimpse of history from the ANCL Archives is Indeewara Tillekeratne who is busy giving a boost to the ANCL Library which has a history of being one of the best libraries in Sri Lanka.

Indeewara is a young man of few words and also adds colour to the features in the form of art and culture and human interest stories.

Contributing their share of features to the Sunday Observer is the much liked ladies' man Jayampathy Jayasinghe better known as "JJ" with his Crime Column and impact stories which he enthusiastically works on without any fuss, Shanika Sriyananda without whom the Health page, human interest and environment stories would not be complete.

And without the mention of our dynamic photographers Chinthaka Kumarasinghe, the efficient ever so willing witty cameraman, the sporty Kavindra Perera who enjoys covering womens' issues and sports, Vipula Amerasinghe who lends a hand overall and Avinash Bandara who works tirelessly for us to give us good pictures, my task as a desk head won't be complete.

Not forgetting our very capable group of graphic artists spearheaded by Rajitha Udawatte, a master at the game. We have Chinthaka Balasuriya, Navin Prasanna, Dammika Mendis, Roshini Ranaweera, Mahil Wijesinghe, Jagath Punchihewa who add colour and the finishing touches to the pages with creating a good layout.

Last but not least, with whom we cannot do without is our team of Visual Display Terminal Operators (VDT) Sandra Thalgahagoda, Ananda Melpitiya, Dehini Pathiranage, Udaya Perera, W.A. Ratnasiri, Fahriya Musammil, Iranthie Perera, Dunesha Silva, Lakmini Chandrasena, Gaya Deegodage and Oshani Wijayagunaratne, who tirelessly work on two shifts to key the copies and drop corrections for us accurately.

The four clerks Nalin Surendra, H.A. Yasapala, Ayal Sandaras and L.P.J. Sumithipala who do the running about to and fro are all part of our features team at the Sunday Observer. It's great being in the driving seat of the Sunday Observer.

Rosanne Koelmeyer Anderson, Associate Editor (Features)

****

Putting the financial news together - a team effort

Today the Sunday Observer financial news section is vibrant and caters to a wide cross section of people be they CEOs of companies, small entrepreneurs or students sitting for various professional examinations and it is also a platform to discuss and debate on various financial issues.

As we celebrate 79 years it is appropriate to trace the history of the Business Desk and give a glimpse of the functions that goes with it. The open economic policy adopted by the UNP government who came to power in 1977 saw rapid changes in every sphere be it the economy, education, infrastructure development, foreign policy, health and advertising.

Prior to 1978 there were only vacancy and other advertisements but never product advertisements as there was no competition. The open economy brought opportunities and with it competition. Therefore business establishments launched a voyage of advertising and also seeking coverage for their products.

This was the birth of the Sunday Observer business pages way back in 1989. Over the years every journalist and sub editor who worked in the section under the guidance of the Business Editor have worked tirelessly to bring it to what it is today.

At present some journalists begin the week on Monday while for others it is Tuesday. But everybody is at his or her seat early morning scanning the daily newspapers. We find exclusive stories by talking to our sources, surfing the net and reading.

At times it is necessary to report from the spot be it in Sri Lanka or abroad. One writes on Technology while another is busy knocking a travel story into shape. There are many press conferences to attend and the journalist must give a different angle so that the story would hold until Sunday.

Against this backdrop we have to decide on a topic to write the comment from Monday. By Wednesday the technology and travel stories have to be ready with pictures for the pages which are done on Thursday.

Once the copies are keyed, the computer the printouts are approved by the business editor the sub editor finecombs it for accuracy and it is sent to the Visual Display Terminal operators for the corrections to be duly effected.

The camera section scans the pictures which have to go with the stories. By Wednesday evening the Advertising Department apprises us of the number of pages. On Thursday morning the Senior Chief Sub Editor draws the dummies of the pages he has to handle on that day so that the production staff who does the pages will follow it minutely and he will also supervise the pages along with the technical operator to ensure that nothing is amiss.

Everything is scanned several times to ensure accuracy. By Thursday evening everybody is on their toes giving the final touches to their stories. It is also necessary to decide on the main picture, will it be a self contained caption story, a graph or connected to the main story?.

If it is an important event we extend our deadlines to accommodate the stories to give our readers the latest news, be it in the government or the private sector. The Stock Focus is provided by an outside contributor.

He gives a summary of how the market fared during the week while the final figures are given over the telephone after the bourse closes on Friday afternoon. Once the pages are completed on Thursday and Friday the Editor in Chief of the Sunday Observer peruses the final proofs.

Thereafter the Production Department takes over and it goes through the final stages before the section is put to bed. It is no doubt a wonderful team effort!

A veteran journalist G. M. Wickremesinghe handled the business pages initially while Ms Ruvini Jayasinghe took over from him. Then Mr. S. Anandakumar handled the section when Gamini Abeywardena took over in 1995.

Subsequently Rohan Gunasekera, Paneetha Amarasekera and Indunil Thenuwara worked as the head of the section. Today the team comprises Surekha Galagoda, Dudley Jansz, Elmo Leonard, Gamini Warushamana, Lalin Fernandopulle, Ananda Wedarachchi and Leon Wickremasinghe. Amila Chandrasiri assists everybody at the desk beaming a smile. He is a good cameraman as well.

The photographers who assist us are Chinthaka Kumarasinghe, Avinash Bandara, Priyantha Hettige, Kavindra Perera and Vipula Amarasinghe.

Surekha Galagoda, Deputy Editor (Business)