Rare honour for Malani Fonseka

For several years the Deauville Asian Film Festival(DAFF)has been paying tribute to the wealth of Asian talents by recognising the talent of actors, directors and composers. This year too a festival will be held in honour of film personalities. A master-class will be presented by one of them.

DAFF will honour Malani Fonseka, widely regarded as the Queen of Sri Lankan cinema. She has completed 50 years in cinema.

The film festival and the felicitation ceremony was held in France recently. The films Bambara Avith Akasa Kusum and Nidhanaya were screened at the film festival.

Starting out in stage productions, Fonseka made her feature film debut in 1968 with Tissa Liyanasooriya's Punchi Baba. She has acted in more than 150 feature films to date.

In 1985 she was conferred with the Kala Suri, the national honour for special contributions to the development of the arts, by President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Then in 1996,she received the Vishwa Prasadini Appreciation Award for the services rendered to the Sri Lankan cinema industry. She also received the Presidential Awards for Best Actress for her roles in Bambaru Avith, Wasanthaye Dawasak and Aradhana.

Malani Fonseka has been awarded more than a dozen Signis (OCIC) and Sarasavi Film Awards and many other national awards including an honorary Doctorate by the University of Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo.

For her recent films, Akasa Kusum she was awarded the Silver Peacock for Best Actress at the 39th International Film Festival of India, the Best Actress Award at Italy's Levante International Film Festival, and nominated for Best Performance by an Actress at the 2009 Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

She also produced and directed three films: Sasara Chethana (1984), Ahinsa (1987) and Sthree (1991). She was a member of the jury of the 2012 International Film Festival of India (IFFI) and the 2013 Asia Pacific Screen Awards of Australia.

CNN named her as one of Asia's greatest actresses of all times.