Channelling new writers in English

I do not know whether most of our readers are aware of the existence of an English Journal of Creative Writing published by the English Writers Cooperative of Sri Lanka? I am not sure where you can get this - maybe in bookstalls or at the bookshop at the British Council in Colombo.

Even when it is being published for more than a decade, I haven't had a chance to get my contributions published.

Volume 12 Number 1 - a Special M.I.Kuruvila Edition (October 2004) is just out. This 70 page number of quality writing is edited by the unassuming, amiable and talented writer, Anthea Senaratna. The Editorial Board includes Anne Ranasinghe and Faith Ratnayake who are also members of the Wadiya group of Writers. I haven't met yet some of the outstanding writers of this group.

As we open this journal, we find two notes:

"The English Writers Cooperative of Sri Lanka wishes to place on record their deep gratitude to Mr Basil Fernando for bearing the cost of publishing this M.I.Kuruvila special Edition of Channels magazine"

"It is with profound sadness that the EWC SL records the death (November 2004) of our printer Deepal Dayaratne, who was associated with 'Channels' for many years. His services were invaluable both in ensuring high quality of printing and layout and in assisting us with the placement of books in the bookshops."

The editor says that: This is a special issue of "Channels" in memory of M.I.Kuruvila, an eminent and much loved English teacher of some years ago."

In the late 1960s and early 1970s the late Mr Kuruvila (a Malayalee intellectual married to a Sinhala lady and settled down in Sri Lanka) write a series of articles introducing the European continental writers to readers in Sri Lanka.

Among them were Giovanni Verga, Ignazio Silone, Knut Hamsun. He was a teacher of English in the higher forms at St.Joseph's College, Darley Road, Colombo and later at the Aquinas College.

I was a student in the University entrance class at St.Joseph's not offering English at that time. However, with special permission of the 'human dynamo', the late Rev.Fr.Peter Pillai, the late brilliant actor among many other attributes, Upali Attanayake and I were allowed to follow the English class if we had any off periods.

It was a stimulating class with classy people like Kumar Amarasekera and Mark Fernando. We two were only listening to the critical assessments of works by the teacher and students. A door was open to appreciate D.H.Lawrence and other 20th century writers in the Leavisian manner.

Mr Kuruvilla was so knowledgeable on not only writers in English but also of regional languages writers in India. His approach was multi-disciplinary and comparative studying.

Later on I dropped Ceylon History and offered English for my degree. In the meantime, I lost touch with my mentor and after many years in the early 1980s, he contacted me to write a little note on Lankan Thamil Writing for an Encyclopedia of World Literature published by Ungar Publishers in the U.S., which I did.

At that time I was working for the then USIS in Colombo as an Information Assistant (Engish). The late Benedict Dodampegama, journalist and Sinhala film critic, journalist Janaka Perera and Thamil journalist Anthony Fernando and political affairs journalist Gamage were my colleagues. It was a pleasant meeting of many minds.

What prompted Mr Kuruvilla to ask me to write this note for the Encyclopedia was perhaps a decade earlier I published a little booklet titled "Thamil Writing in Sri Lanka" with forewords by the late Mervyn de Silva and the late K.Kailasapathy - both towering figures in my opinion in the world of Lankan letters and journalism.

I hope it wouldn't be impertinent if I say that subsequently Prof. Walter Perera asked me to contribute to another encyclopedia - 20th Century World Literature. I obliged, but this four part encyclopedia is not available in Sri Lanka. However, I happened to browse it in the Reference section of the Cincinnati Public Library in the U.S.

The journal is divided into three sections. Part 1 includes Tributes to M I Kuruvilla. Part 2 includes the prize winning Short Story, "Lantern" by Uthpala Gunethilake plus the results of the short story and poetry competition 2004.

Honorary mention was made for two writers - Ashok Ferrey (The Knights of Saint Gregory) in the short story competition. For poetry no award was given but honorary mention was made in respect of three people.

They were S.Rajasingham (Jaffna - Nov 1987), Daya Dissanayake (The Desert) and J.E.Manawatte (No, not the Devil) In this issue, the following have written: Basil Fernando, Christine Wilson, Ashley Halpe,Punyakante Wijenaike, Janakie Gunathileke, Esther Surenthiraraj, Shireen Senadhira, Beatrice Obeysekera, Cheryl Arnold, Niranjan Casie Chitty, Asgar Hussein, Juanita Arulanantaham, Dayamanie de Silva, Damayanthie Fernando, Janakie Gunathileke, Asha Abeykoon, Bandu Edussuriya, Ramya Jirasinghe-Hewavitharne, Faith Ratnayake and Anne Ranasinghe.

To be honest, I am not familiar with the literary capabilities and her background of the editor, Anthea Senaratna, a very cultured lady. I noticed that she had been a rigorous critic in selecting material for this issue judging by her comments in her editorial.

Basil Fernando's poem and the note on the great teacher are illuminating. Mohamed Jafar, another student of Kuruvilla writes an effective remembrance note. Maleeha Rajon beautifully writes like a short story about the teacher as he conducts a class. This section also includes a translation of a Malayalam short story by M I Kuruvilla. The famous Malayalam writer is Karoor Nilakanta Pillai.

As for the creative writing in this volume, I have no comments because I have to read them at leisure, enjoy and analyze. I can do that only later and not in a hurry.

The editor and the editorial board should be congratulated for keeping the English language writing alive.

Animated literary series

The British Council in Colombo began its animated literary series last Saturday evening (May 28) featuring two talented creative writers who are at once perceptive and entertaining. One is a sociologist and the other is an architect I believe.

Both are unassuming and have not received due notice they deserve from the academics in this country. I enjoyed reading a fascinating work by the new creative talent in this country Ameena Hussein. In fact I wrote my impressions of her work "Zillij" in this column sometime back.

The other writer is Ashok Ferrey (his real name is Suresh Madanayake). His "Colpety People" seems to be very popular with readers as it is also a very humorous one. I am yet to read this book, and hope to share my appreciation with you soon.

Tony O'Brien, the Director of the British Council, as always he had been with a smiling face, welcomed the house full audience with his light hearted but 'animated' briefing on the programme and first introduced Ameena Hussein, a warm and sensitive personality who seemed to be having an 'identity crisis' as she responded in the affirmative when Tony asked her whether it was so. The creative process in Ameena's writing and her interview with Tony came through as she tried to figure them out.

Excerpts from her book were effectively dramatized with clear diction, feeling and in the creation of the atmosphere of the significant passages in Ameena's stories. He credits go to Andrew Carr and Odile Melder. They were simply wonderful.

Ameena Hussein too read a few passages alone and with Odile and Andrew. She could have spoken her lines a little louder, lthough she read with understanding. Since those passages read were with a backdrop in the west, the accent or rather the enunciation was naturally not Sri Lankan. And that was welcome.

Nimmi Harasgama, Richard Lunt and Asok Ferrey himself read the excerpts from "Colpety People". The Sri Lankan way of speech well brought out by Nimmi Harasgama, but she was a little overdoing it, I thought. And Richard Lunt could have spoken in better modulated voice and with a little more feeling.

However, the performances by both Nimmi and Richard were appreciable to the extent of bringing the humorous part in the passages. And the author spoke clearly and with a solemn attitude even though he writes in an appreciably humorous way. I enjoyed this segment of the programme as well.

Some members of the audience as well as Tony asked questions from the two writers and they answered well to impress that they are in fact serious writers and not mere 'fiction' writers with fanciful imagination.

The programme included appropriate selections of bars of music which added an atmosphere of authenticity to the whole evening.

Tissa Devendra's book launch

It was an enjoyable evening at the BMICH on May 24 when a fine prose writer Tissa Devendra's book "On Horseshoe Street" was launched with Minister, Dr Sarath Amunugama as chief guest, and Tissa Abeysekera as keynote speaker.

It was a treat for me to listen to Sarath Amunugama, the sociologist and cultural commentator and Tissa Abeysekera, the filmmaker turned writer in English speak eloquently , perceptively and recalling fond memories of the not so distant past and the relationship they had with each other in relation to Tissa Devendra.

I am yet to read Devendra's book. Here are some facts culled out from the blurb of the book published by Vijitha Yapa Publications relating to Tissa Devendra. This is given for the benefit of those readers who might not have heard of Tissa D's literary capabilities.

"Over 40 years in the public service and UN agencies. Chairman Public service Commission and Salaries Commission. Presently he is the Chairman of the National Council for Administration.

He wrote a script for a TV production on George Keyt. His books include : "Sri Lanka: The Emerald Island", " tales from the Provinces", " princes, Peasants and Clever beasts", " More Princes, Peasants and Clever beasts."

Contact: [email protected]

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