‘The butterfly, the flower and child’
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Today marks the 27th Death Anniversary of the much celebrated Radio Personality turned Lyricist Premakeerthi de Alwis.
‘Samanalaya mala haa lamaya se’- I was just a five year old when I first heard this song in the mid 80s on the Commercial service of SLBC, the only radio station in operation at the time. Even though I was not in a position to grasp the real meaning, the words subliminally opened the doors for me to a marvelous world of imagination. Since then I was fortunate enough to relish my childhood among these lovable songs penned by this giant of a little man, until exactly twenty seven long years ago on the 31st of July 1989, his voice was shattered for ever in a dark era where humanity was humiliated in abundance.
Premakeerthi de Alwis – the journalist, lyricist, news anchor, Radio and Television personality and the simple human being made his mark in Sri Lankan media and entertainment with his effortless ways of song writing and his inimitable resonant voice.Even though his life span was confined to a mere four decades his impact on Sri Lankan society at large can be considered immense. People not only loved him for his artistic brilliance but attracted to him for his pleasing vocal character which was a perfect blend of creativity and simplicity.
The special feature of his creations was that he understood the singer and the musical flavour deeply before writing a song to a particular artiste. Yet in most cases, it took him only a few minutes before rushing to SLBC to read the 12.45 p.m. news bulletin from ‘Randoli Bar’ in Fife road which he frequented, to pen the lyrics of many a song later loved by millions over decades. The classic example is the Victor – Premakeethi combination which resulted in numerous heartfelt creations in the 70s and 80s. At the era in which he stepped in to song writing the Buddhist songwas governed by a few singers who screamed from the bottom of their throats to express devotional respect. But when Prem penned songs like ‘Devram Wehere’, ‘Buduhamuduruwo apith dakinathi’ and ‘Niwan dutuhimiruwan piliruwa’ for Victor the Buddhist song took a softer and a tranquil turn which was soothing to ears as well as to heart. His song ‘Adaraye Ulpathawuamma’ is considered a holy sermon by Sri Lankans to admire a mother’s love and there was hardly anyone in the audience who did not shed a tear when Victor was singing this in ‘SA’. Songs like ‘Sandakan wehila’ and ‘Andurabidinnata’ reveal a complex state of mind that would otherwise have been impossible to capture in a medium like song, if not for Prem’s visionary thinking.
- Shaminda Jay