Down memory lane with K.A.W.

CINEMA: Anyone associated with the Sinhala cinema even in a small way is more than familiar with the three letters KAW.

His contribution to the Sinhala cinema is so great that K.A.W. Perera will remain in the hearts of cinema goers for years to come. He is one of the veterans in the film industry who is able to recount the glory days of the Sinhala cinema.

Born in 1926 and educated at Olcott College affiliated to Ananda College in Colombo, KAW joined the teaching profession in 1949 as an English assistant teacher.

Later he joined the Radio Ceylon as a programme producer and it was KAW who wrote the script for the popular radio plays Jeewitha Sahathikaya and Rahas Parikshakaya produced by the late Thevis Guruge.

His break into the Sinhala cinema as a dialogue writer for Dr. Lester James Peries's epoch making film Rekhawa (1956) brought him fame and an opportunity to co-direct Pirimiyek Nisa in 1960 and Suhada Sohoyuro in 1963.

His direction of Senasuma Kothanada for Somasiri Perera won him the prestigious Sarasaviya Award for the Best Film of that year.

Soon he became the most popular film director in the sixties. In all, he directed 26 films in his 50-year-long career.

Some of them are "Kapatikama" (1966), "Bicycle Hora" (1968), "Seeya Nottuwa" (1971), "Kathuru Muwath" (1971), "Lokuma Hinawa" (1972), "Duleeka" (1974), "Lasanda" (1974) , "Wasana" (1976), "Janaka saha Manju" (1978), "Hingana Kolla" (1974), "Bangali Walalu" (1981), "Durga" (1988), "Dawala Pushpaya" (1994), "Maduri" (1996), " Undaya" (2000) and "Sumeda" (2004).

He was also honoured at the Taskkent International Film Festival in 1975 for his film "Lasanda". KAW, a pioneer in clamouring for and setting up the State Film Corporation said: "I began my career in the 1950s.

At that time the South Indian Cinema had a great influence on the local cinema. "MGR" was more popular here than the "CGR". A revolution in the Sinhala film industry started with "Rekhawa" produced by Dr. Lester James Peries in 1965. I assisted in the film by writing the dialogues.

Sinhala films with dialogues pronounced according to the Indian style was common here at that time. But "Rekhawa" made many drastic changes in this field. Sunil Shantha and Fr. Marcelline Jayakody were also responsible for making the film a huge success.

His third film "Senasuma Kothanada" (1966) was a major success. Here he introduced several new-comers to the field. They were Premasiri Khemadasa (music) and Dharmasiri Gamage (lyrics). "Sulan Kurullo" and "Sansara Gamane" had songs and music that appealed to filmgoers.

"The plot of the film and the message we were going to convey with it is very important. That is what I follow in making films.

But there are some artistes who have made a big hue and cry, commenting that the film art is not a medium of carrying messages. If the final outcome is not the message - then what should it be?" he asked.

"Film production is a very expensive task. By spending so much of money for the production and if there is no beginning, a middle and an end to the story, then what is the point of it? I believe, that is an incomplete creation," he said.

"William Shakespeare is a world renowned dramatist. He always used his medium to convey a message. Take "Romeo and Juliet" as an example. What he wanted to convey was that the younger generation is no more concerned about money and status. Take "Julius Caeser".

It is a political drama. 'Brutus' plays the main role. How many "Brutuses" are playing the lead role here in today's political field," he said.

There are three main steps that I follow in film making. They are introduction, body and conclusion. There are conflicts before the conclusion.

But most of the films made today are based on incidents and there is no story. Sight and sound are the two body parts that have a major connection to films. Do we need to make films only to entertain the sight or the sound?

"Telecasting 30 to 40 films per month over TV channels have created another crisis. As a result film makers tried their hand at making sex films only to find that they are rejected by filmgoers.

"There are no songs in modern Sinhala films. However, songs are necessary to give a poetic expression for the creation. The film music began to collapse with the demise of popular singers such as H. R. Jothipala, J. A. Milton Perera and Mohideen Beig. The film industry is sadly lacking singers with a screen voice".

"Along with crime plots there are many evil characters in today's films. The time has come to uphold humanism. We are running short of cultural values.

Artistes are the only ones who can revive these values among the people. But they also need the government support as well," he said.

Legendary Polish director clinches Berlin legacy prize

INTERNATIONAL: Polish director Andrzej Wajda, a cinematic hero of the Cold War, claimed a prize for his life's work at the Berlin Film Festival Wednesday, and said he feared political film-making was losing its niche in Europe.

Wajda, who made classics including "Ashes and Diamonds" and "Man of Iron" about the Solidarity strikes in Gdansk in the summer of 1980, said he was proud of his contribution to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

"Cinema can speak to people's consciences. I don't think I've wasted this life because I've contributed something to the course of political events," Wajda, who will turn 80 next month, told a news conference.

He said the cinema had served a revolutionary purpose in Europe during the Cold War but that the disappearance of a massive ideological rift had left many socially engaged film-makers searching for orientation.

"When the Wall still stood, everyone wanted to know what was happening behind it," he said.

"You had all these large cinemas which were filled to the last seat. But there is no audience for political film now and it is pointless if there is no audience."

Wajda paid tribute to the role that the Berlinale, now in its 56th year, had played as a showcase for subversive filmmaking from the communist bloc and that it was still carrying on its strong political tradition.

"The Berlin Film Festival was a tremendously important to film-makers from the East," he said.

"Berlin was the only centre of freedom close to Warsaw. Coming to Berlin meant coming to freedom. There were political films being shown there and not just art for art's sake."

Wajda, who received an Oscar in 2000 for lifetime achievement, said that work on his next picture about the Soviet massacre of thousands of Polish army officers at Katyn in 1940 had been difficult but that he hoped to complete filming this year. - BERLIN, (AFP)

Book on Lucien's lyrics

BOOK LAUNCH: Lucien, Noothana Geethaye Rupaka Rachakaya, an analysis on lyrics by Lucien Bulathsinhala, composed by Samudra Wetthasinghe as the third in the series of literary analyses "Present Day Generation of Lyricists" by him will be launched at John de Silva Memorial Theatre, Colombo, on February 23 at 6.30 p.m.

The book launch featuring a musical concert that is named after the song Sevaneli Nomekenam composed by Lucien Bulathsinhala will include a speech by Professor Sunil Ariyaratne and a lecture by Ratne Sri Wijesinghe assessing the values of the book Lucien, Noothana Geethaye Rupaka Rachakaya.

Pandit Dr. Amaradeva, Sunil Edirisinghe, Edward Jayakody, Abayewardena Balasuriya and Niranjala Sarojini as well as several other popular vocalists will sing Lucien Bulathsinhala's songs at the musical show Sevaneli Nomekenam, which is presented by the Oscar Organisation.

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