Expanding canvas of local teledramas

by Sunil RATNAYAKE

The Sri Lankan television industry today is at a crossroads; a point of no return, if you will. From its modest beginnings with a test-transmission that featured a kite splashed across the screen all day long, to the very latest in Reality TV and high-definition programming, it is now on the verge of taking the next logical step: reaching international audiences. Whether or not we take that step is up to the movers and shakers of the industry, but as a man who has been involved in television production for almost three decades, I am very proud of just how far we have come as a television-loving nation. Of course, it was never a bed of roses, and there were more than a few hurdles along the way. But I believe the difficulties we had; growing up in the industry has shaped us into what we are today.

In this context, it is important that we take a moment to go back in time and reflect on the ups and downs of an industry that we can all be justifiably proud of, and also look into the future and prepare ourselves for what lies ahead in the coming years.

It all began in the 1970s with the establishment of the Independent Television Network (ITN), a brainchild of the innovative and pioneering Shan Wickremesinghe, followed by that of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC), the birthplace of the Sinhala Teledrama - the very word 'teledrama' being a uniquely Sri Lankan term for a TV serial/single-episode-show whose purpose was to entertain viewers through creative-storytelling. These two TV channels together spawned a generation of directors, producers, scriptwriters, actors, cameramen, makeup artists, et al that, to this day, dominate the Sri Lankan television industry in a multitude of spheres, and have won the respect and admiration of a loyal and ever-supportive audience.

Dimuthu Muthu, directed by the illustrious D.B. Nihalsinha, was the first ever teledrama to come out of Rupavahini, sometime in the early '80s, and was an instant success. It was a story of love and compassion that also highlighted the virtues of hard work and determination. D.B. went on to direct a number of teledramas that w--on critical acclaim and were all well received by viewers in the various demographics.

Quality teledrama

A few years later, a teledrama unit headed by Dhamma Jagoda was established at Rupavahini with the aim of putting together a production team dedicated to making quality teledramas - the powers-that-were having correctly identified this new phenomenon as being the next big thing. The hugely popular Yasho Rawaya and Palingu Menike, two massive hits that had viewers glued to their TV sets during their run, were produced by this unit.

Incredible though it may seem, there were around eight to 10 million television viewers all over the country back in the early '80s. Compare that to the current figure of 14 million - though a remarkable number, only an increase of just 4 million over a span of more than 25 years.

Nevertheless this shows just how quickly TV has picked up as a medium of entertainment in Sri Lanka. With the introduction of the open economy, TV sets were practically flying off the shelves, as virtually every Tom, Harry and Siripala lined up to get themselves a brand new tube.

Then came the sponsors - small businesses and large companies alike came forward to financially back teledrama production as they recognised the potential of this emerging industry which was showing sure signs of becoming a major business with unprecedented growth and profitability. Soon, the rich and powerful realized that the teledrama industry was one to be taken seriously. There was a lot of money to be made in the industry. As the years went by, and privately owned TV channels entered the game, this turned into an incentive that encouraged more and more teledrama production that in turn, led to a vast number of TV series being produced year after year.

This was not necessarily a bad thing, however; although, some might - rightly - argue that the quality of production has deteriorated due to increased greed, with some businessmen with little knowledge of the trade, using teledrama production as something of a get-rich-quick-scheme. The reality, though, was that more money meant a more vibrant industry with more and more investors coming on to lend a hand to numerous aspiring directors and producers who had so many stories to tell. And that was precisely what happened in the end. While it might be true that some of the serials we see on TV today leave much to be desired, the fact is, among the thousands of cliched, substandard productions that are being dispensed one after the other, there are hundreds and hundreds of true gems that have received much critical acclaim over the years. And it is thanks to the money being pumped into the industry by these businessmen that these 'good' teledramas produced at all.

Types of teledramas

There are three types of teledramas being produced today: mega (soap opera serial), limited series and single-episode. Each type has its dedicated fan following. It is not fair to label any of these as either good or bad, or superior or inferior to another, considering we all have our own unique tastes and values. For example, the so called mega series, the equivalent to daytime soaps in the US, numbering hundreds, if not thousands, of episodes, appeal to a largely female audience that consists, mostly, of housewives. And there are a fairly large number of housewives in this country, as far as I can tell, and women constitute more than 50 per cent of the population. That's seven million viewers right there - a very high rating, indeed. After all, at the end of the day, it's all about the ratings. And you cannot fault anyone for that, since, obviously, ratings are any TV channel's bread and butter.

It's not that such trite and corny TV shows were never seen on local TV before. There were soppy love stories being telecast quite regularly even then. But those productions, in spite of the melodrama, had an underlying theme and a message to them that struck a chord with their audience and made them think. Dimuthu Muthu was a great example of that and these teledramas were also firmly rooted in local traditions, customs, beliefs, superstitions, etc., which only helped their cause.

In any case, there were other productions being telecast that more than adequately made up for the apparent lack of realism and believability found in the soaps. Such cult hits like Dandubasnamanaya and Wedahamine were a case in point. The former, in particular, appealed to a very wide audience due to its containing all the right ingredients required for a gripping tale: action, romance, history, intrigue and a bit of magic.

Nearly three decades since D.B's Dimuthu Muthu moved around the airwaves, the Sri Lankan teledrama industry has now reached a point where it's poised to move on to bigger and better things. The only thing that's stopping Sri Lankan talent from realising its full potential and taking the industry to a place where it can go head to head with any of the big players in the international TV industry is a lack of resources. This is why I believe it's important for up and coming producers to come up with new, award winning concepts that at the same time, will actually work and are marketable to their target audiences. It is of the utmost importance that these future productions are profitable. If you cannot sell it, there really is no point making it.

Profit motive

As famed Japanese Industrialist Konosuke Matsushita once said, if we cannot make a profit, we're committing a crime against society. We take society's capital, we take their people, we take their materials, yet without a good profit, we are using precious resources that could be better used elsewhere.