Six Young Sri Lankans in Bahrain Publish Their First Storybook, ‘Api Hayai – Katha Godai’

Six Young Sri Lankans in Bahrain Publish Their First Storybook, ‘Api Hayai – Katha Godai’

The six young authors presented the inaugural copy of their book to Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Bahrain, Shanika Dissanayake. Photograph: Newswire.

Six young Sri Lankan students in Bahrain have marked a significant milestone in their creative lives with the publication of Api Hayai – Katha Godai, a collaborative collection of short stories launched at the Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Kingdom of Bahrain on 2 October.

The event was hosted by the Embassy in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Club of Bahrain and the Sinhala School in Bahrain. Families, local schoolchildren and well-wishers from the Sri Lankan community gathered at the Embassy premises, where the launch became a memorable Children’s Day commemoration centred on the students’ writing and achievement.

The book brings together stories authored by Tharani Imandi Jayarathna, Sithika Themika Samaradiwakara, Tharaka Sasindu Perera, Isuru Nilna Bodaragamage, Chanudi Nethinsa Samarathunga and Sehari Ashmika De Silva. For each of the young writers, the collection represents a first publication: the outcome of a shared creative project brought to life through the support of families, educators and community organisations.

A first book and a proud presentation

During the ceremony, the six students presented the inaugural copy of their maiden publication to Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Bahrain, Shanika Dissanayake. The presentation gave the young authors an opportunity to share their work with the country’s diplomatic representative and with the community members who had gathered to recognise their efforts.

Copies were also distributed to leadership and representatives from the schools attended by the authors: The New Indian School, The Indian School, Sacred Heart School and Al Noor International School. Sinhala School Principal Lakmal De Silva joined the celebration, acknowledging the students’ accomplishment alongside the school representatives and families.

This connection across schools and community organisations is an important part of the story. The writers study at different institutions, yet the launch brought those educational communities together around a shared celebration of children’s creativity. It also gave families and teachers a public occasion to recognise the work involved in encouraging young people to write and complete a book.

Api Hayai – Katha Godai is described as a collaborative short story collection. The available announcement does not detail the individual stories, so the book’s contents should be allowed to speak for themselves. What is clear is that six students contributed to a single publication, turning their individual efforts into a collective achievement.

Encouragement for young writers

Addressing the gathering, Ambassador Dissanayake commended the children for their creativity and enthusiasm. She stressed the importance of nurturing young talents and encouraging their literary potential, while also expressing appreciation for the unwavering guidance provided by the parents and teachers of the Bahrain Sinhala School.

That recognition reflects the many forms of support that can help young people develop as writers. The act of putting ideas into words, shaping them into stories and bringing those stories together in a book takes time and encouragement. Families and teachers can help provide that encouragement, while schools and community associations can create opportunities for children to practise, share and take pride in their work.

The launch also featured a pre-recorded book review delivered by Sri Lankan journalist and author Harindranath Chandrasiri. His contribution added a literary perspective to the celebration and placed the children’s publication within a wider conversation about writing and books.

An AI-generated illustration, not a photograph of the authors or the launch. Image: eLanka.

Keeping language and storytelling alive

For young Sri Lankans growing up outside Sri Lanka, opportunities to use Sinhala and engage with Sri Lankan cultural life can be especially meaningful. A children’s book created by students offers one practical way to keep language and storytelling present in everyday community life: children are not only learning from books, but also taking part in making them.

Sinhala schools and community associations can play a valuable role in sustaining that connection. Through classes, cultural activities and shared projects, they give families ways to pass language and traditions between generations. The Bahrain launch illustrates how collaboration between an Embassy, a community club and a Sinhala school can help bring a youth-led achievement into view.

The event also showed how a community project can reach beyond a single school. By distributing copies to representatives from the four institutions where the writers study, the launch connected the publication with a broader circle of educators and students. Such a gesture may encourage other young people to explore writing, while reminding schools that their students’ creative work can be celebrated alongside their academic pursuits.

For the families of the six authors, the book is a source of understandable pride. It records a moment in their children’s development and makes their creative efforts tangible. For the wider Sri Lankan community in Bahrain, it is a shared accomplishment that reflects the positive possibilities created when young people are given encouragement and a platform.

The project may also offer encouragement to Sri Lankan community schools and associations in other parts of the world. A collaborative collection does not require every young writer to work alone; instead, students can contribute their own stories to a common publication and celebrate the result together. This launch offers a warm example of how community support can help children move from creative ideas to a completed work.

eLanka has previously covered community programmes involving the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Bahrain. This article focuses specifically on the children’s storybook launch and the achievement of its six young authors. Further community stories and updates are available through eLanka.

Sources: Newswire and the Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Read the original Newswire report.

This article was written based on the source https://www.newswire.lk/2026/10/09/sri-lankan-children-in-bahrain-launch-a-compilation-of-short-stories-api-hayai-katha-godai/, kindly email us at info@eLanka.com.au if any information needs to be corrected.

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