CHRISTINA LIVE IN CONCERT WITH THISSARA BANDARA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN SRI LANKA IN ‘PEM RAJJEYE’ – By Sunil Thenabadu
It is now eight years after Christina had tied the nuptial knot with Thisara Bandara the second son of Musician cum Guitarist Mahinda Bandara and Dhammika daughter of legendary Latha Walpola.This article is penned a few days before the 7th November when all arrangements are made to stage the music concert ‘Pem Rajjaye” at the Musaeus College Auditorium which is incidentally the first music concert of the Christina and Thissara duo to be stage in Sri Lanka though several musical concerts were held in ‘Down Under’ in the recent months also had been invited individually and jointly to many television programs over the past , hence she is extremely popular among viewers as a competent vocalist . This date has been fixed to rejoice “Geetha Kokilawe’Latha Walpola ‘s 91st birthday which falls on the 11th November The other motive of this concert is for the present generation to reminisce over a thousand five hundred of deep-rooted popular songs that were song to delight millions of musical enthusiasts in the decades of the 1950’s , 1960’s ,1970’s by the legendary grandparents duo of Thissara the legends Latha and Dharmadasa Walpola..The music arrangements are to be regulated by the skilled music maestro Mahinda Bandara who is incidentally the person chiefly accountable for the recording the highest number of Sinhalese songs in the annals of the archives of music in native Sri Lanka as the most well known competent exponent of the guitar..
Christina Ana Mudawadi is a Tanzanian by decent .Her mother Margret Grace five feet four inches tall fair lady with long hair had travelled to Lebanon to assist her elder sister after her childbirth. In that era the technology was more or less non-existent. She had walked to the local post office during the era 1990/1991to take a telephone call to native Sri Lanka. As all roads and dwellings had been similar looking she had lost her way had sought the assistance of a person to locate her dwelling .The person A Tanzanian by name Winstone Lawrence Mudavadi a volunteer medical doctor a tall dark person well over six feet in height , who had been deployed by Lebanon for the war had helped her mother to locate her sister’s residence, recalls had accompanied her mother to sister’s door steps. A strong love affair had developed abruptly which had ended in a hasty marriage. Unfortunately, Christina born in year 1993 was very young only vaguely remember her father’s military posture as she was just four years when he was killed in a bomb explosion, Mother had preserved all photographs of him by which Christina is able to recollect past memories. . During the war the Tanzanian father had lost his life. After a bomb explosion. Immediately her mother had returned to her native village Wenappuwa to commence new life. But to leave Lebanon there had been a red tape as according to the Tanzanian law , Christina belongs the her deceased father’s family. However a lady friend’s husband a Police inspector in Lebanon had prepared the required papers to permit the duo to leave Lebanon .
There had been an issue to teach Sinhalese to Christina initially but with difficulty she had been taught the Sinhalese vernacular. In a television dialog Christina had recollected describing a playing ball that had gone under the bed to which she had said Amma there is ‘Nena’ added to relate to a lizard ..Christina’s mother had told that Christina could pick up anything abruptly. She is presently fluent in English and Turkish as she watches daily Turkish dramas for two hours which Thissara too is aware. Mother got married again to one Ravi to restart her life. She has two younger brothers Ravindra and Abhiman undergraduates who are younger to her by thirteen and ten years. Both brothers respect Christina to tall elevations owing to the huge age gaps.
The love affair between Christina and Thissara was described as a digital love had known each other initially on May 9th year 2016 had met subsequently at music rehearsals and at concerts as Christina was acclaimed as promising vocalist in school and in churches in Ja Ela area. They have been friends on Facebook having chatted uninterruptedly for some time. Once Thissara had uploaded a photo as ‘My Violin and Me’ seen it Christina had called him to find out ‘ Oya Dukenda”, .This conversation which had begun at around 6 pm had dragged on to around 1 AM. Christina is a person who wants to get to bed by 8 pm get up early morning by 4.30 am to do a jogging in the beach in the vicinity to her dwelling . Before marriage owing to the insistence of Thissara Christina had commenced to sleep at 10 pm. Both had been on the stand not to be cheap always to display expensiveness . After a request made on Facebook the duo had decided to meet for a chat after Thissara had been impressed on Christina’s photos posted on the FB. Thissara according to Christina had logged into her photos to her FB daily with interest had been impressed by Thissara. At the initial meeting Thissara had conveyed his willingness to marry Christina.But she had replied will wait and see.Thissara has had proposals from the home folks, mostly from close relatives but after the photos of Christina were shown to his parents and grand mother have had been positive responses by all. Then Thissara had requested her to inform her folks. She had via her younger brother had told mother and step father made arrangements to meet Thissara’s relatives. After the two families met at the respective dwellings,Thisara’s family had wanted the marriage to take place instantaneously. Christina even today does not like to be called daughter in law which is same for her in laws, who insists she be titled always as ‘Duwa’. The nuptial knot had been tied very soon to be precise on 19th January 2017.The duo though keen to have children Christina twice has had ill-fated miscarriages. It was revealed that she had put on weight to over one hundred kilos had brought down by about forty kilos via exercises, hence now she is a regular visitor to the gym to maintain her figure. About not having children her in laws say to them do not worry when the time comes it will happen , for the present be happy.
Thissara’s family had not known the singing skills of Christiana who has developed her singing via voice training and chorus singing. In fact when Christina was singing chorus in Keethi Pasquel’s concerts Thissara had seen had searched her on FB . Christina’s singing she had commenced when she was in school, she relates when there is a small time between the subjects when the next teacher arrives she used to sing in front of the class girls. When she was singing the ‘Hindi’ song ‘Thumpasa Aye’ standing on a desk when the Tamil teacher Miss ‘Miran’ had arrived who had seen had asked her to come to the staff room .She had no fear as she had not done an immoral thing Christina was requested to attend to the school ‘Geethika’ group practices which she had given as usual a short reply as ‘Mata Be’ as the elder sisters give blows on her head. The teacher had told her that she will be posted in the front to lead the group. for which she had agreed. Christina owes a huge gratitude to her Tamil Teacher Miss Miran for her opening she had given.. Christina owing to her busy schedules had missed a school function but awaits anxiously to find her address from school and to meet her at her dwelling in Negombo. Her mother had known Christina could sing had told her to sing when she was cooking. Christina has had hereditary affiliations to singing via her mother’s innate talent for singing had even sung songs like ’Sudata Sude’ while she became hostile in her womb. Her mother had after her birth had continued to sing such songs to put her to sleep. For this mother attributes to her innate talent via hereditary affiliations, Christina had been a prominent member of Church choir and the school singing group She had attended two schools initially St Martin de Porress convent in Wennappuwa later was boarded at Hillwood College Kandy during her advanced level classes. Christina recollects after leaving school she had got engaged with many professions like Marketing, HR, Cabin crew but for none she had not been satisfied until she met Thissara had got married. She had enjoyed life doing nothing with excessive eating habits had put on weight from 64 kilos to 104 Kilos but had taken explicit steps to bring down to about 43 kilos via strictly following a USA trainer’s exercising plans. From which she had learnt of fitness as important. Now she from home coaches others as a fitness trainer from home while maintaining her physique too. She also is a social media evaluator, content creator, also in Nonine Ceylon weight loss company she works as a brand Ambassador. With all these involvements Christina balances with home chaos too.
Prior to the wedding with Thissara , Christina one day had come from Wattala to Malabe to attend to purchase of her wedding saree when Thissara was busy finalising a music track. But the family had made Thissara free of the wedding arrangements owing to his busy music work. On that day she was told that the family folks had come to know her immense singing instincts had asked her for her favourite song to which she had said ‘Duwillen Whatsuru Thawara’ a teledrama song which Christina had not known was sung by Dhammika Bandara her intended mother in law. On hearing Thissara had promised to give a present had made the track for the song ‘Duwillen’ instantly asked her to sing .On hearing Dhammika Bandara had said it was sung so well had quipped ‘Dan Mata Innawa Kellek Sindu Kiyanna’.Initially Christina had thought Thissara’s father was Raju Bandara who had sung with his mother Chandra Bandara the famous song “Hada Gee Pothe’ originally sung by Ruckmani Devi and Felix Anton to the music composition of Thissara’s grand uncle Premanath Kodituwakku.
To date Christina had recorded about eight songs to date. She says as she is requested always to sing songs of Grandmother Latha Walpola songs The names of some songs are Sakura Malak,Salitha Hengum etc.The one she loves most is ‘Nuhuru Nupurudu’ a song not released yet, the lyrics Christina loves very much.One song by composing lyrics and music Thissara had sung during his tenure in Melbourne titled ‘Eka Husmaka’.This song had been heard by Christina many times sans the knowledge of Thissara. The lyrics had been made to address a fiancé’ of his in native Sri Lanka. For the love for this song lyrics and melody Christina had contacted a competent lyricist Rashmika Bandara to make this a female version. This song ‘Eka Husmeka’ she sang during her program ‘Ma Nowene Mama’ at TV Derana. Over the years Christina along with Thissara have been invited to many television programs like Chat N Music, Nomiyena Minissu’, Overseas concerts, You tube channels where the duo is requested to sing exclusively the popular songs of the grandparents Latha and Dharmadasa Walpola.The legendary duo has five grandsons and a solitary grand daughter who is a Lawyer by profession though could sing rarely appears on television. A few other songs which Christina had sung at many programs other than Latha Walpola;s songs were “Mal Pita Mal’, ‘Hinehenna Romeo Mamai’,’Kalamediriye’, ‘Mathakaya Esuren”,’Rangira Maa”,’ many Hindi songs are sung to delight audiences like ‘Piya Bole’, ‘Thumpase Aye’ etc. Christina had sung the first song at the concert felicitating maestro musician Patrick Denepitiya to the music compositions of Mahesh Denepitiya. She had been in tears when she started singing owing to tension. But all artistes had said we all still are nervous when we sing with all our experiences. Hence this occurrence is natural to all even had commented by all stalwarts like Chandralekha Perera.It was revealed that this tension situation is common within all vocalists.
Both Christina and Thissara do not wish to be called vocalists. Thissara wants him to be called a musician as he is specialised in the ‘Violin’, mainly making musical tracks. Christina is busy with other business involvements hence unable to focus full time to music. Thissara says he is nevertheless forced to duet with Christina as many request for the old songs of the grandparents. As there are a well over one thousand five hundred the parents of Thissara insisted to reproduce all old hits of Latha-Dharmadasa with new music. This exercise has been implemented which is a very appropriate concept.
The music concert scheduled on the 7th November at the Musaeus College auditorium titled “Pem Rajjeya ‘ would be a resounding success as the first such musical concert in Sri Lanka by the duo Thissara and Christina who will sing exclusively the songs of the legendary duo Latha and Dharmadasa Walpola.
Sunil Thenabadu in Brisbane
email sthenabadu@hotmail.com
WhatsApp 0061444533242
