Celebrating life and work of Lester A portrait of Dr Lester James Peries is garlanded by his niece Neela Perera at the ceremony on Saturday. Source:Island The Lester James Peries and Sumitra Peries Foundation held a special screening of his 1969 movie ‘Golu Hadawatha’ (The Silence of the Heart) in celebration of his life and work in Sri Lankan, Asian and World Cinema on Saturday. April marks for the birth and death anniversaries of the maestro (05 April 1919 – 29 April 2018) and so it was fitting that this event be held in April. Dr. Peries made twenty films in fifty years, from Rekawa (The Line of Destiny) in 1956 to Ammawarune (Elegy for a Mother) in 2006 ...

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Niranjala Sarojini phenomenal vocalist, radio artiste, television host in an effervescent voyage of five decades in stardom – By Sunil Thenabadu Niranjala Sarojini Abeywardena nee Peiris hails from a rare celebrated musical family in Sri Lanka as the fourth daughter among six siblings in all to catholic parents living in Nugegoda. Sisters been elders Malkanthi, Nirmala,younger Sakuntala while she had an elder brother Kumar and younger the famous Manoj.Father Harrison Peiris a veteran journalist famous writer and poet was the Chief Editor of catholic ‘Messenger’ for three and a half decades. Mother had been strict on the siblings’ while father had been tolerable it was revealed. Both were in the habit of saying prayers every evening with the siblings, thereafter all had to sing ‘hyms’ with father playing the Button Accordion and mother playing her Japanese   Mandolin ,both very well conversant in playing music instruments. The family used to sing ...

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REMINISCING Dr. LIONEL ALGAMA, MUSIC MAESTRO ON HIS 14TH DEATH ANNIVERSARY – by Sunil Thenabadu   18TH OF March 2022 marks the14th death anniversary of Dr. Lionel Algama the renowned, gifted and multifaceted Musician, Innovator of musical instruments, Teacher, Conductor and Composer of music passed away on the 18th of March 2008. He was 74 years old at the time of his demise after a brief illness.  He was a contemporary of famous musicians in the likes of legendary Dayananda Gunawardena, Premasiri Khemadasa and Pandit Amaradeva. In addition he was an acclaimed ‘A’ grade singer, in Hindustani and Bengali as well, Examiner of music , ‘A’ grade Instrumentalist in ballet – stage – films – Tele-drama – Director, Conductor, Inventor of the original instrument called the ‘Soorthar’ and then the more sophisticated ‘Sree Veena’.  He successfully wrote two theses for his doctorate, the first of which was Teaching of Music and the other was ...

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REMINISCING Dr. LIONEL ALGAMA, MUSIC MAESTRO ON HIS 14TH DEATH ANNIVERSARY  – by Sunil Thenabadu 18TH OF March 2022 marks the14th death anniversary of Dr. Lionel Algama the renowned, gifted and multifaceted Musician, Innovator of musical instruments, Teacher, Conductor and Composer of music having passed away on the on the 18th March 2008 . He was 74 years old at the time of his demise after a brief illness.  He was a contemporary of famous musicians in the likes of legendary Dayananda Gunawardena, Premasiri Khemadasa and Pandit Amaradeva. In addition he was an acclaimed ‘A’ grade singer, in Hindustani and Bengali as well, Examiner of music , ‘A’ grade Instrumentalist in ballet – stage – films – Tele-drama – Director, Conductor, Inventor of the original instrument called the ‘Soorthar’ and then the more sophisticated ‘Sree Veena’.  He successfully wrote two theses for his doctorate, the first of which was Teaching of Music and the ...

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Looking back: “Hansa Vilak”-By Uditha Devapriya Source:Island After more than 40 years, Dharmasiri Bandaranayake’s Hansa Vilak reopened in theatres last Wednesday. Has it really been that long? My father was studying for his A Levels when it first came out; he remembers seeing it at the Lido theatre, in Borella. Hansa Vilak is one of possibly four or five films that can be described as epochal, or near-epochal, in the context of the Sinhala cinema. That it effected a transformation in the industry may be an exaggeration, though one believed by those who have seen it and liked it. But that it had an impact on my father’s generation is not. This is not the first time a restored version of Bandaranayake’s work is being shown to local audiences. It was screened at a festival dedicated to Swarna Mallawarachchi in 2017, and again that year at another festival dedicated to Premasiri Khemadasa. Not entirely ...

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