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| Wednesday, 4 February 2004 |
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The garden path of Sri Lankan cinema Sakman Maluwa Author : Ajith Galappaththi Publishers : Ceylon Theatres Ltd. Price : Rs. 100 pp 95 A concise work on Sumithra Peries' varied contribution to Sinhala cinema with an elaborate evaluation of her latest movie Sakman Maluwa (The Garden), Ajith Galappaththi's the garden-path of Sri Lankan cinema takes the reader on a path of recapture, illustrated with pictorial representations and a brief account of her cinematic journey. The book itself is a fresh approach to her past movies (Seven in number) beginning with Gehenu Lamai (1978) which itself aroused spectator as well as critic interest. Galappaththi the young film critic writes a lengthy evaluation of Sumithra's movies with a view to searching for her path of success in treating female characters sympathetically but without being a feminist of the Western mould. The writer sees her concentrating on women's problems and her overall subdued presence in social and domestic scene but without devaluing the protective role of man whom the feminists accuse of being oppressive, selfish and dominant over woman whose independence and identity is said to have been lost in the domain of man. Sumithra's women do not challenge the officious and overbearing role of man which is considered to be repressive of woman's freedom. And consequently, they are being rendered regressive and victims of discrimination, but, she finds no ground to rise against him. The woman of the East is expected to live for the good of the male members of the family. Sumithra does not use her female characters to be offensive or abusive, but critical and intelligently responsive. However, in the East, man does not view woman as a pure sex-object which is generally the norm in the West. The Eastern male looks upon to her with awe and inspiration for guidance, love, warmth and protection which qualities are always reflected in maternity. The crowning point in her social and cultural role is maternity with which she is held in unequivocal esteem. Sumithra neither jeopardises nor is critical of woman's exclusive position she holds within the family. She outlines the female character within socially accepted and honoured norms within which she has no parallel especially within the family. Model woman The writer finds that sometimes Sumithra is bent to create a model woman within the traditional society which has made her female characters unenterprising and inconsistent. Kusum in Gehenu Lamai sacrificed her love; Nirmala in Ganga Addara fell under the tyranny of her husband; Heen Kella in Sagara Jalaya was rendered helpless. The writer who considered Sumithra as a poetess of Sinhala cinema rates Sakman Maluwa very high as a work of art which condenses her cinematic ideal which ran through her creations in the past. Sumithra elevates maternity to social eminence in preference to femininity which ranks much below maternity within the Eastern social order. Ranjan on arrival from abroad inquired first about his mother. One is sure to fail in realising the significance of such an inquiry if he has moved away from the esteemed norms followed by the members of a traditional family. The writer boldly justifies the intrinsic moral value attached to maternity in a Sinhala home. A section of this volume registers the important events in her private life which had substantially influenced in moulding her in cinema art too, politics which was the life-blood of her family too, had an impact on delineating some of the characters in her films (eg. Muditha Latha, Heen Kella) which reflected her response to political humanism. Evaluations Also, it lists everything she had achieved in her career in cinema which expands for over four decades. Besides the description of films she had directed, the films she had edited, teledramas she had directed along with the awards and accolades she had earned at national and international level for her works of art too are included. Further, all critical evaluations and write-ups on her works of art carried in the journals and magazines have been listed in chronological order for easy access. Every film she had directed has received critical accolades in Sinhala as well as in English journals. The author had been discreet enough to have given a concise translation of Godfrey Gunatillake's original short story, The Garden on which the film Sakman Maluwa was based for easy reference by the critics, students and the viewers. However, as a suggestion, had the author edited the work with contributions as well from various other sources of study representing different shades, had been wrapped in without being restricted to one single point of view which is that of the author, it would have opened the reader as well as the researcher and the viewer to a richer and wider experience of Sumithra's contribution to the moving art of Sri Lanka. - E. M. G. Edirisinghe **** Back **** |
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