Tele drama Review

'Sanda Vinivida':

An aesthetic comeback to creative drama

by Padma Edirisinghe

Of sizzling popularity in the field of electronic media in the island, the most popular is television and this popularity owes itself mostly to the facet of tele drama. First garnished with much commercial value, today it has transformed itself into an ingredient in the everyday life of people.

Priyantha Fernando is the director of Sanda Vinividi , presented by the National Rupavahini corporation .This is also his first tele series added to which is the specialty it has garnered due to the very endearing visual aspect.

Though the TV medium is mostly an audio visual medium today, the focus is on the visual aspect. This present attention, less on the visual aspect and more on the audio aspect has led to a galore of cheap entertainments via the audio medium. But in 'Sanda vinivida', we see a reverse tendency where focus is on the visual leaving the audience , much scope to ponder on the issues presented.

This drama dwells on the inter - personal relationships within two families seen through a sympathetic eye. The actress Malkanthi Jayasinghe, acting the role of mother of two daughters and a son, is utilized by the director very deftly to portray the turmoils a mother undergoes. The other actress, Chamila Peiris is entangled in a highly dramatic role as a woman married to an already married man but not revealing this state to other family members. Prasanjith Abeysuriya deftly plays the role of a broker, a role endemic to the present commercialized society.

In the second family, Hyacinthe Wijeratne, plays the role of a mother limited to a wheel chair. She has two sons, of whom one is dead and his wife turns into a mental patient and is warded. Their daughter is looked after by the wheel-chaired grandmother. The other son is romancing an unsuitable partner and the mother is entangled in all those travails too. The chief role is played by Teckla Kumudu Kumari , who portrays the different roles of school teacher, daughter, lover, second mother , evoking much sympathy and admiration of the audience.

Ishara Sandamini who plunges into mental disarray after a road accident draws much admiration from the audience by a genuine piece of acting.

Other characters are played very emotively by Priya Ranasinghe, Piyumi Boteju , Kavinga Perera, Kumari Munasinghe, Dasun Pathirana , Dilani Nikahetiya , Gnananga Goonewardena and Lakshika Fonseka.

Script, videography, art direction, music, editing , make up and all other ingredients of this drama are of a very high calibre. There was a time when we viewed excellent tele dramas and we are thankful that this teledrama ensures a comeback to those earlier dramas. We should also be thankful to Kithsiri Alexander Cooray who produced this creation as a recompense for the feeble debut of Anatha Doopatha , and this production hence can be reckoned as a turning point in his career. Sanda vinivida furthur is endowed with an intriguing tale that evokes the curiosity of the audience by its narration of a highly realistic family drama found in modern society.

The rhythm encased in this drama by the director is germaine to him alone and reflects the life patterns of the true natives of the soil in a very convincing way. The focus on feminism too is evident in this drama and the triumphal scene of this aspect is the final scene where a cute little lass serves as the kingpin of the sacrificial rites of many an elderly female embroiled in the dramatic events.