Rupavahini after ‘Black July’

THEATRE: We found ourselves in a very difficult position. We could not take our vehicles out because of the general ‘hostility’ towards Rupavahini for NOT winning the war for the public. The public chose to forget that there was censorship even on the news.

At that time we had only two channels - Rupavahini and I.T.N. As far as censorship was concerned both channels were in the same boat. I believe after a little while viewers simply ‘ignored’ the news. But they eagerly awaited the teledramas and the films we aired late in the evening.

We could not make new material because we could not go out. So while studio productions were being made, we repeated some of our earlier productions. Most viewers tolerated them with grace but a few called us by phone and scolded us properly. I remember one incident.

We had nothing to show that evening. Somebody - I can’t remember who - brought a VHS cassette of the film ‘Cassandra Crossing’. My Presentation Officer, Chandrani Liyanaaratchy asked me what she should do with it.

I was desperate and I asked her to air it. If any objections were raised about Royalty etc. we could face it later. In any case ours was such a small network, I did not expect any trouble maker to notice that we had aired the film. Fortunately nothing happened.

At this juncture we formed what was called a Procurement Committee and invited Agents who had rights for certain films etc. to offer us deals. Several of them called from Singapore, India and even locally. We were also able to establish direct links with some of the Production companies and Distributors. So things were looking up once again.

Communal disturbances

The communal disturbances inspired some of us at Rupavahini too, to contribute peace messages through our Drama and Documentaries. I remember one such tele play that I scripted myself and was most painstakingly and diligently directed by Dhamma Jagoda himself.

The play was called ‘Sandaka Kathawak’ where we showed that all Sinhala people were not brutes and that some of them went out of their way, risking their lives, to save some of their Tamil neighbours and friends from the mobs. They gave them protection in their own homes and visited them in Relief Camps. The play was repeated several times by popular request.

I remember coming in for a lot of flak for another tele serial I scripted with Peace and Harmony as the subject. It was called ‘Atta Bindei’ and was directed by Bandula Vithanage.

It had a very good cast including Veena Jayakody, Nihal Fernando, Kamalini Selvarajah, Sellayoor Selvarajah, Santin Gunawardhana, Kelum Wijesuriya and host of my actors and actresses from the stage. It was also the very first tele appearance of young Yasodha Wimaladharma.

Unfortunately for me by that time the war had ‘hotted up’ and people were in the mood for aggression. Several people, including very learned men, called me to scolded me right royally for launching such ‘soft’ material! But the irony of it is that the serial was repeated several times - even recently, whenever the Govt. was in a ‘PEACE MOOD’.

Things were getting back to ‘almost normal’ and we could take our vehicles out once again. Our producers such as Dhamma Jagoda, Lucien Bulatsinhala, Parakrama Niriella, Bandula Vithanage, Thilak Gunawardena, Wimalaratne Adikari and Dayaratne Ratagedera were almost vying with each other to go out and shoot good teledramas.

Even Srimathi Liyanage from the Children’s Unit, stepped out of the usual studio productions and brought out a very interesting serial Hath Pana - based on the story by Munidasa Kumranatunga.

Lahiru Dahasak

About this time Parakrama Niriella took a crew out and brought in a fine teledrama serial by the name of ‘Lahiru Dahasak’ which became immensely popular. It featured Daya Alwis as the famous Baas Unnehe and Ratna Sumanapala in the female lead. Parakrama did wonders with just a small idea I had given him too. I needed a good one hour tele play for Vesak, 1984 or 85. I gave him a bare idea.

A man goes to prison for something he had NOT done and comes out after ten years, but by then he cannot get back to his family. Find out why, I told him. With just that hint he built a fine script titled ‘Sasara Sayuren’ and brought out a superb tele play of about one hour.

The viewers had something very memorable on the Rupavahini screen that Vesak.

It was repeated several times - even very recently. It won several awards too at the Tele Competition and Festival conducted by Vijaya newspapers at that time. I remember Cyril Wickramage walking away with the Best Actor’s award for his excellent performance in ‘Sasara Sayuren’.

It was an era of some very fine tele dramas. ‘Yashoravaya’ scripted by Somaweera Senanayake and directed by Parakrama Niriella became a huge success.

I think it was Yashoravaya which made the names of some of the finest actors and actresses we have today - men like Lucky Dias, G.W. Surendra, Gnananga Gunawardena, Gamini Hettiaratchy etc and women like Iranganie Serasinghe, Geetakanthi Jayakody, and Ratna Lalani etc. Even the late Richard Zoysa played a role in Yashorawaya.

G.W. Surendra also passed away a few years ago. Palingu Menike once again scripted by Somaweera Senanayake and Directed by Dhamma Jagoda was also a great success. To my mind it is the finest teledrama that has been done by Rupavahini up to date.

Palingu Menike brought out new faces such as Sriyantha Mendis and Jackson Anthony and made them stars overnight! It also gave fine opportunities for serious acting for Menike Attanayake and Rohana Beddage. Menike, especially, was a delight to watch in that play.

Great success

The other great success of the era was Tara Devi by Lucien Bulathsinhla which starred Anoja Weerasinghe in the lead female role. Tara Devi won 9 out of 11 awards at the Tele Competition and Festival of that year. The Eighties were the golden era of Teledrama in our country.

About the end of 1983, my Chairman, M.J. Perera personally arranged with NHK of Japan, for a study tour for me. There were members from several Broadcasting organisations to participate in the initial three weeks Training Course. In all there were 13 of us - of various nationalities.

It was a course mainly on TV administration, Evaluation and assessment. We had to sit for a sort of examination at the end of it and certificates were awarded. I still have that certificate from NHK - neatly and beautifully bound - as the Japanese always do.

Proud feature

After the three weeks training course some of us who had longer periods of training were sent out to sub stations of the NHK for familiarization. I remember being sent to a place called Hokkaido [if I remember right] which was a very rugged country. A man from NHK accompanied me.

After dinner while we were just chatting before going to sleep I asked my companion about special features in Hokkaido. Very languidly he said that the area was prone to constant earth quakes. “When does it happen?” I asked him. “One never knows. It can happen even tonight,” said the man quite complacently. I shuddered. That night I repeated the ‘Ithipiso” gatha several times before going to bed!

I came back to Tokyo and was taken around to various Training Institutes etc which NHK ran. It was all very interesting and exciting. I spent some time at the NHK Head Office too familiarising myself with the intricate workings of NHK. The men and women at NHK were very proud of their institution.

That was the only non-profit making TV institution in Japan. Incidentally this sense of being proud and belonging to the institute, company or factory one works for is a very proud feature of the average white collar or blue collar worker in Japan.

Some of the evenings my friends [whom I had befriended] in NHK would take me to a nearby pub and treat me for drinks. Almost everything in Japan is ritualistic. We sit at low tables and low chairs. [Thank God it was not the floor!] The ordering of a round of drinks is very ritual like. They always started with beer.

They went for sterner stuff only as the evening progressed. They always ordered little Japanese delicacies [sometimes even raw fish] to go with the drinks. It was delightful company.

My hotel [I forget the name now] was quite close by to NHK. But I was never sent back alone. Always one of the men accompanied me to the hotel.

There, in the foyer he bid me good night and took my leave by bending from the waist several times very gracefully.

One morning a very funny thing happened in the office. I was being taken round and was being shown various departments of the organization. In one room there was a lone girl doing some work with her computer. I was introduced to her as some data collection officer.

I shook hands with her while she was still seated in her chair and suddenly I noticed she had no legs below the knees. I thought she was a girl who had lost her legs and that is why she had been put into a room all by herself. When we came out I asked my companion about it and he started laughing.

He took me back to the room and told the girl something in Japanese. She laughed very coyly and quietly straightened herself from the chair. She had been sitting on her legs under the skirt to avoid the cold! I was told that most Japanese girls do so during the winter. I was a very red faced man that morning!

Thought of the week

Rupavahini aired Dr. Lester James Peiries’ Gamperaliya last Sunday morning [5] I don’t watch much television. It was a young friend of mine who called me and informed me that Gamperaliya was being shown on Rupavahini. Naturally I watched it although I had already missed the opening sequences and even the famous ‘lesson’ scene. It was a delight to watch the film after so many years - except for the irritation of commercials in between.

We were all looking so young and bright eyed - Punya Heendeniya, Trilicia Gunawardhana, Gamini Fonseka, [even Shanthi Lekha] Anula Karunatilleke, Tony Ranasinghe, Wickrama Bogoda - not to mention yours truly. Even Manel was there in a couple of scenes - especially in the Sinhala New Year ‘Panche’ scene.

She looked coy and now on reflection, a little bit jealous!

It took my memory so many years back. I could hardly control my tears when I realized that some of them such as Trilicia and Manel and Gamini are no longer with us, not to mention giants of the times such as David Dharmakeerthi. Few will know that it was I who dubbed for David in Kaisaruwatte’s death bed scene. Even fewer will know that Mrs. Martin Wickramasinghe herself acted in one of our ‘verandah’ scenes!

Thank God for men like Lester, Anton Wickramasinghe, Regi Siriwardane and Willie Blake, and Tissa Abeysekera for making a poem of a film such as Gamperaliya.,

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