An act of gratitude to three deserving creative greats
It was a rare event. Three internationally
recognised artistes being felicitated at one function. It happened at the
BMICH when well known children's artist and writer Sybil Wettasinghe, doyen
of Sinhala cinema Dr Lester James Peries and renowned script-writer, cine
and tele director Tissa Abeysekera were felicitated by Eagle Insurance
Company for their invaluable service towards the upliftment of our arts
and culture.
Sybil has over 100 children's books to her credit - written and illustrated
by her. She has also illustrated over 600 others. Her books have been translated
into several languages and today she gets invited regularly to serve on
international panels. The most recent was an invitation from UNESCO to
serve on a nine- member panel (she was the sole representative from Asia)
to select the best works on the theme 'Peace and Tolerance'.
She considers two of her books - Mallitai Matai' and 'Punchi Lamai Rattaran'
(she wrote them on invitation by Eagle) - as creations for a worthy cause
- to spread the message of safety. She has also contributed much towards
this cause by being an active participant in the Eagle Safety Festivals
held throughout the country, guiding children to draw on subjects relating
to safety.
Just as much as Dr. Peries changed the course of Sinhala cinema over
the past four decades, he has been a great ambassador of goodwill helping
to put Sri Lanka on the map. When the French government awarded him the
Legion of Honour, it was a rare honour bestowed on a Sri Lankan. When the
prestigious 'International Film Guide' selected him as one of the 'Five
Directors of the Year', there were just nine film directors from Asia (as
compared with 91 westerners) who had gained recognition.
His masterpiece, 'Nidhanaya' was not only chosen the best Sinhala film
made in the last 50 years, it was the only Sri Lankan film to be named
amongst the best 100 films selected by 'Cinematique' to mark the centenary
of world cinema in 1995. Eagle is close to him as creator of 'Giraya',
the first Sinhala teledrama based on an English novel, which they sponsored.
A man of many parts, Tissa Abeysekera's career todate boasts of at least
two masterpieces - the film 'Viragaya' and the epic teledrama 'Pitagamkarayo'.
It will take a long time for someone to match the creative talent Tissa
showed in 'Pitagamkarayo', unless he himself improves on his own effort.
But he has a much more responsible task at hand - to pull the Sinhala cinema
out of the mess it is in.
The thoughtful act by Eagle in presenting the three artistes with an
annuity for the rest of their lives is indicative of how much the nation
owes them.
Rights of the child
The felicitation of Sybil came in the wake of the launch of 15 books
created by her on the Rights of the Child based on the UN harter.
The books are intended to illustrate children's rights through simple
stories.
And judging by the popularity of Sybil's stories ('Kuda Hora' is a fine
example), the message is bound to go down well among the younger generation.
The publication was by Sarvodaya Vishva Lekha on behalf of Sarvodaya's
Legal Aid Division.
He deserved it
The Swarna Sankha Foundation deserves all praise for organising the
Joe Abeywickrema Felicitation Festival at the Regal cinema. It was a well
deserved tribute to a great actor.
Having collected many awards at local film festivals, Joe won the prestigious
Best Actor's award at the 12th Singapore International Film Festival. He
was, in fact, the first Sri Lankan actor to win such a coveted award.
The films selected for the festival ranged from Tissa Liyanasuriya's
'Punchi Baba' (1968) to D. B. Nihalasingha's Maldeniye Simeon (1986).
Discovery of India
The Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) is offering what promises to be an
interesting cultural event - the history of India through Jawaharlal Nehru's
much publicised work The Discovery of India written in the 1940s while
in prison in Ahmadnagar Fort. It is a television series titled 'Bharat
Ek Khoj' running to 53 episodes directed by Shyam Benegal.
Screening starts on Monday, August 30 at the ICC at Bauddhaloka Mawatha
with the first episode which depicts a sequence of Nehru touring the countryside
during the first general elections of 1935-36. A note from ICC says that
the sequence provides an idea of the direction of Nehru's quest into the
composition of Indian identity, the quest which resulted in the book during
his prison term a decade later.
Journalism to astrology
Another seasoned journalist has written a book - this time on a rather
unusual subject - astrology. Kawdane Piyadasa Perera, former editor of
'Silumina' and well- known poet of the Colombo era has titled his book
'Kantha Kendare' (Female Horoscope). Publisher Dayawansa Jayakody describes
it as "a ready reckoner for females to check on their own horoscopes".
It will be released on August 17 at the customary Tuesday launch.
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