‘Keep our house in order without complaining’: Lucky Dias

Outspoken actor and director Lucky Dias in an interview with the TV Times discussed the reasons for today's crisis in the Sri Lankan teledrama scene. Mr. Dias emphasized that without complaining about Indian productions we must 'keep our houses in order' to win the Sri Lankan audience. Analyzing the crisis this actor turned director says that Sri Lankan audience is losing their interest in teledramas because they lack drama. He says that today’s teledramas are stuck with the themes of middle class family problems or portray stories of poverty stricken villages. Reasoning as to what attracted the Sri Lankan TV audience towards Indian soap operas Lucky says they are full of dramatic sequences.

Lucky: I was getting fed up of local teledramas because all the time our teledramas are either going back to the time we started making treledramas like 'Yashoravaya' talking of the middle class families if not they are depictions of poverty stricken villages with 'Katu Meti Gewal' with people with torn clothes with the same back ground. Then came this Indian invasion where everybody dressed up beautifully, the people are beautiful and the locations are massive and elaborate.

TVT: You think it was this glamour which attracted the Sri Lankan audience to Indian soap dramas?

Lucky: It was their ability to meaningfully mix scenic beauty with drama content which attracted the local audience. This is lacking in our teledramas. For example in Sri Lankan teledramas if it is a weekly series if you miss out today and return after three or four weeks after the story is still there. They are stagnating in the same place. Indian soap like American soap or whatever, if you see it today and if you miss tomorrow's episode and by the time you come to the current episode you have missed the whole story because there are so many things that had happened during that time.

While this is there our people are grumbling that our teledrama are not viewed.

First of all we must put our house in order. Our people pick out a boy or a girl they see on the street and make them actors and they finish filming in fifteen to twenty days, when in reality it takes nearly 45 to 50 days for us to do a good teledrama. Eventually our dramas end up winning awards and are highly respected by people. We have to draw a line between what is good and what is bad.That is the first reason why I should want to do something like this.

Lucky: Its totally westernized. All the locations are five star hotels and beautiful lavish houses, international schools like Lyceum. It contains all the ingredients of a strong drama within the story, because that it essential in my stories. But added to that I have incorporated the most beautiful background with the camera and lights effects. The hotel and houses are everything exceptionally modern. So I think people will appreciate what I have done this time and they will see the difference.

Lucky: This is not for a target audience. This is for everybody. The story is around an eleven year old child on a wheel chair. He is whizz kid. He can open any safe digitally, like Nostradamus he can feel something that is going to happen like a plane crash or a disaster that is going to happen on the next date. He can repair electronic gadgets within minutes.

Lucky: I don't know where I got the plot. I just thought about a whizz like this. The only difference is that I wanted to put him on a wheel chair. Because I thought if we put him on a wheel chair it would brings lot of sympathy. He is a little fellow. He acted brilliantly and I am very satisfied withhim.

Not only him, all the other artistes remarkably portrait their roles.

TVT: It seems to be a big budget teledrama. Have you made arrangements to recover your outlay?

Lucky: I had to spend a lot of money on this. It definitely went further than the previous seven teledramas I produced. I must be grateful to the chairman of the ITN because when he heard about this he wanted to meet me and talk about it. I must say my effort both money wise and creative wise have been appreciated by them. They have compensated me fairly.

Lucky: For this one I am essentially proud because I wanted to do something different and I have achieved the quality of the production with some exceptional performance from my cast and it's a totally satisfying effort for me. Now what I wanted to see is its telecast and see the feedback from the people. I am quite sure that the public will like it.

Lucky: I am always striving hard to achieve a very very strong story and drama compared to the other works that had been done so far. That had always been my desire. I want to do something drastic and do it dramatically.

Lucky: I want to do a drama in Italy. Its 50% to 50% a Sri Lanka-Italy production. It is a very politicalised and unique story. There again I wanted to maintain the standard which is the main goal in my all productions. I want to do the shoot in Rome possibly during the Christmas time to capture the mood of this world famous Christian country. Being a Catholic country Rome will be a very nice place during this season. In addition to Sri Lankans living in Italy, there will be some Italians hired for the drama. Most of the important crew and five of the cast will go there.

Lucky: My wish is if this country bounce back in cinema and films. But I don't think that will ever happen because more senior directors like Dharmasiri Bandaranaike and Parakrama Niriella have not made a film for last ten or more years. So who am I. I am just a guy from yesterday. So don't think that anybody will be able to make the much desired kind of film in this country.