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| Sunday, 13 April 2003 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Former ANCL journalist bags the 'Gratiaen' by Karel Roberts Ratnaweera Sri Lanka's prestigious Gratiaen prize for the best writing in English was won last Sunday by Vijita Fernando, onetime writer and sub editor in the Features department of the 'Daily News' which she joined in 1954, working for 26 years in the institution she says she would go back to if she had her life to live over again.
Vijita won the prize for her translation of Gunadasa Amarasekera's two novels 'Asatya Kathawak'and 'Preme Satya Kathawa' ('Out of the Darkness,') to give the novels their English name. The two books are really two strands that merge together, Vijita said when I interviewed her at her home in Rajagiriya. It was Amarasekera's idea to ask Vijita to do the translation as she has excelled in Sinhala into English translations over the years even in the course of her duties as a working journalist on a national English newspaper. The two novels which are complementary to each other, have politics and the plight of students who come up against university politics as their themes. I asked Vijita whether a book written in one language loses in quality when translated into another. A good translator must see that that doesn't happen, was her reply. I asked Viji, as her colleagues used to call her, whether she was surprised at the announcement that the prize was to be awarded to her. She had been at the previous week's short list announcements at the British Council and at the awards ceremony itself, said she had an inkling that it was her translation that would win, going on Tissa Abeysekera's speech which hinted at the translation. What she didn't like was to go up to the stage at Barbara Sansoni's 'Barefoot' Gallery where the ceremony was held,to receive the award and to have to 'say something' into the bargain. So she asked the author of the original to join her on the makeshift rostrum; 'After all,it is his original piece of creative writing,' she said. Vijita Fernando said that her stay at Lake House has helped her immensely in her literary work after retirement; it also helped when she just joined the newspaper group because she had three young children all girls and what she called the 'erratic hours' of work (in those days), enabled her to spend as much time as possible attending to the children's needs. She would not have been able to juggle work and home had she been in a nine to five job. She agreed that creative writing needs discipline on the part of the writer, and agreed with me when I cited Sri Lankan-born Rosemary Rogers as a known example of such discipline. Each of Rogers' novels whatever their content may be are thick tomes. Rogers said when this writer interviewed her on a visit to Sri Lanka, that she writes all night and sleeps all day, with her meals in between. She has been doing it for several years. One of Vijita's daughters, a lecturer at the University of Sri Jayawardhanapura, came in just then, quipping that her mother had become a celebrity overnight; a large bowl of mixed flowers stood on a table - a message of congratulations - and the 'phone rang quite often. Vijita was married to another well-known Lake House personality, the photo-journalist Bonny Fernando who passed away a few years ago. Viji has now got used to working from home which she has been doing for 20 years since she left Lake House where she said she enjoyed every minute of her stay. The Gratiaen Prize which was instituted by the Sri Lankan-born Michael Ondaatje who shot to world fame when his 'The English Patient' won Britain's coveted Booker Prize some years ago, is in memory of Ondaatje's maternal uncle, the late Justice E.F.N. Gratiaen. Previous winners of the Gratiaen Prize include the well-known writer Carl Muller, himself a onetime journalist at Lake House winning jointly with Lalitha K. Withanachchi, yet another Lake House product, Punyakante Wijenaike and Ruwanthi de Chickera. The Prize which was instituted in 1993, carries with it a cash award of Rs.100,000. ############ Sulang Kirilli at international film festival
The film 'Sulang Kirilli' (wing bird) and its director, Inoka Satyangani, have been selected for official participation in the final round of 'Women in the director's chair' section of 2003 chicago International Film Festival, USA which commenced on March 23. The film will also be submitted to the final round of 'Cinematica del Uruguay' in Latin America on April 19, vying for the best international film 2003. Inoka has been officially invited for the 2004 "Residence of the Cannes Film Festival", the annual workshop of Cannes, held for the new cinema directors. "Sulang Kirilli", starring Damitha Abeyratne and Linton Semage, is scheduled to be screened in the Regal circuit. ############ The Vienna boys' Choir to perform in Sri Lanka The choir that originated in 1498 under the patronage of Emperor Maximillian, has had some famous choristers such as the famous Franz Schubert, the brothers Haydn, and Hans Richter. Composers such as Mozart, Salieri and Bruckner have worked with this choir. At present there are around 100 choristers between the ages of 10 and 14, divided into 4 touring choirs. They give 300 to 336 performances per year. Each group performs 9 to 11 weeks of the year on tour, around the world.The choir's repertoire was originally for Emperor Maximillian's court and churches, thus these young boys boast of a repertoire that stretches through the Gregorian chant to the contemporary music of today as well as modern pop music. Hear them singing classical and modern music from Mozart to La Bamba, and even pop, when they visit Sri Lanka in June 2003. A selection of memorable and outstanding audiences of the Vienna Boys' includes: (1803) Napoleon Bonaparte (1961) John F. Kennedy At special events the choir sometimes provides soloists, has been conducted by famous conductors such as Zubin Meheta and Richardo Muti (honorary member of the Vienna Boys' Choir).Children's opera special to this group, and are on to do cross over music with painters, sculptors, dancers, actors, photographers, etc. With all this, the boys are now versed at singing in different tone systems, dance, and even play ethnic instruments. The choir does Jewish or Sephardic music, both traditional and contemporary. The same choir has also done film music as in "Primal Fear" USA 1996. The choir's tour concerts are the sole funders of the choirs own school. Two hundred and fifty children study and rehearse at the Augartenpalais, a baroque palace in Vienna. Here children are chosen from kindergarten to then do specialist work from the age of 10 in music. ############ 16th Singapore Film Festival focuses on Sri Lankan cinema The 16th Singapore International Film Festival scheduled to be held from April 21 - May 3 will have a special focus on Sri Lankan cinema. The Dharmasena pathiraja retrospective will be one of the festival highlights. This will be the first international retrospective of Pathiraja films and is sure to draw interested film viewers.
This exposure is recognition of his path breaking work in the Asian region, which has hitherto not received the place it deserves. Ahas Gawwa (One league of sky), Bambaru Evith (The wasps are here), Paradeige (On the run), Soldadu Unnehe (Old soldier) and Ponmani will be screened in the retrospective. Asoka Handagama's Thani Thatuwen Piyambanna (Flying with one wing) will be screened in the competitive section titled silver screen awards. Boodee Keerthisena's Mille Soya (Bounjourno Italia) and Professor Sunil Ariyaratne's Sudu Sevaneli (White shadows) are included in the Asian Cinema Section. Dharmasena Pathiraja emerged as a politically conscious filmmaker in the early seventies. His debut feature was Ahas Gawwa made in 1974 produced by Mitraratne Herat. The film broke new ground with its urban lower middle class emphasis. It was considered as the pioneering effort towards alternative film making in Sri Lanka. Three young men have to face the realities of adult life as they move on from youthful frolicking to battle issues of unemployment, restlessness, and the allure of the city. Bambaru Evith was made in 1978 and produced by Thilak Godamanne. Based in Kalpitiya - a fishing village this film demonstrates powerfully Pathiraja's desire to fashion a socially committed cinema. Ponmani was made in 1978 when Pathiraja was attached to the Sinhala Department of the Jaffna University. It is his only Tamil language film and is about a starkly different socio-economic culture and political climate. Set in the nothern city of Jaffna, it traces the fortunes and concerns of an economically depleted upper caste lower middle class family. The film was produce by Muttiah Rajasingham and the screenplay written by Kavaloor Rajadurai. Paradige was produced by Thilak Godammane and made in 1980. This is a film about the instabilities of youthful urban life, its search for roots, and its lust for survival. It was based on a short story written by Ajith Thilakasena. Soldadu Unnehe made in 1981 is a film about four people, all exiles from society, bound together by ties of affection and mutual inter-dependence. It was produced by Dharmasena Pathiraja himself. This film shared the best film status of the first three-decades of Sri Lankan cinema with Kaliyugaya directed by Dr. Lester James Peries. The Asian Film Centre has coordinated the Sri Lankan package of eight films. |
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