The 'retired' man

THEATRE: Nobody in the Rupavahini Corporation knew that I was retiring on that day. The normal practice is to ask for extension of service and carry on till one reaches the age of 60. I could have stayed three more years with the Corporation.

But I had had enough. In a way while I enjoyed working at Rupavahini and did some good work for it, I had to miss out a lot on my other activities such as the stage. I was so busy some days I could not attend even our performances of Hunuwataye Katawa.

I had to get Warakagoda or Nimal Jayasinghe to substitute for Azdak. I was informed that neither the outstation organizers nor the audiences liked it. Azdak had become synonymous with me as much as Grusha was synonymous with Manel!

When the word went around that I was retiring that day [the word must have gone around from the Administration or the Financial division] loads of our employees came streaking in, to my office. I was surprised by the sheer numbers and very touched by their concern.

Men and women even from other divisions such as Finance, Administration and Commercial came to bid goodbye. I had not known I was so popular. Of course it could have been a mere gesture of goodwill.

Gesture of goodwill

After everybody had said goodbye, I took leave of my two secretaries Doreen Jayadheera and Nirmala Rajapakse. Doreen had been working for me throughout my stay at Rupavahini and she was a very diligent and methodical secretary. My secretary in English was a girl by the name of Erandathie Chandrasekera, but she had already left the Corporation and Nirmala was the substitute.

Leave taking is a difficult job in any case, especially when one had grown to like a person. I believe all three of us wiped a tear or two. Five and a half years is a long time in one's career and it is only at the moment of parting you realize how much you have been bound with the institution! In any case I am a rather sentimental person.

As a gesture of goodwill the Transport Officers of the Administration Division had provided me with a vehicle to take me home - the last trip in an official vehicle. A few had stayed behind at the gates to wave a final goodbye.

When I came home after my last day at Rupavahini, kept my bag on the table and sat down, I felt rather lonely. So, now, I was a 'retired' man. What would I be doing with myself? The briefcase I carried to office all these days stood on the table and looked as forlorn as myself.

I had bought that briefcase in Moscow, in 1964 and it had been my companion all these years. It was a tough and long-lasting thing - as tough and endurable as the Russians themselves!

I had discussed my retirement with Manel and Sudaraka - a lad of 17 at that time. He was just doing his O/Levels. At that age it is always helpful for a boy to have a father with a good and fairly influential job, apart from the handsome salary you drew.

I knew that. But both Manel and Sudaraka were aware that I was presently 'unhappy' at Rupavahini. They raised no objections. In any case although I may not be holding a good job, so to say, I had already made a name for myself through my activities on the stage and screen and that should be enough to carry through, we had decided. "At least now, you can get back to Hunuwataya and play Azdak!" Manel had said with her usual humor. Sudaraka had smiled and looked down. We were still a happy family. That was important.

Quietly I started enjoying my retirement. I was a bit of a 'gardener', and now I had more time for my fifty or sixty orchid plants, my mango trees and other flower beds etc.

I had the time to read some of the books I had not had the time to read. I also listened to some of my favorite songs and classical Indian music. I took long walks in the mornings and would bring some gliricidia leaves etc. for my compost pit. Friends would drop in some evenings and I enjoyed the company.

Brief assignments

I had not sought another job. I got a few offers here and there, but they were mostly of a political nature and I declined them. I got brief assignments as visiting lecturer in the Drama Dept. of the Colombo University, which I accepted gladly. That was for the Diploma Course in Drama which the University of Colombo conducted at that time - which was later suspended for some reason, perhaps lack of funds.

About the end of 1988 or beginning of 1989, I got a call from Nalan Mendis whom I had known briefly, as a hired Asst. to Parakrama Niriella when he was doing the teledrama 'Lahiru Dahasak" for Rupavahini.

Nalan had by this time become a director on his own and was making a name for himself. He told me that they were about to start a new teledrama by the name of 'Doo Daruvo' scripted by Somaweera Senanayake and produced by a new company called Susila Productions under a woman by the name of Sandhya Mendis.

I was to play the role of a grandfather [Sudu Seeya] to my sister's family of several sons and daughters and grandchildren.

I had never acted in a teledrama - although I had many offers - while I was holding office at Rupavahini. I considered it unethical, because all teledramas came under my purview. Neither did I allow Manel to take part - again because I considered it unethical as long as I was at Rupavahini.

Manel was not very happy with that ruling by me, but went along anyway. Now I was retired and I saw no objection to my taking part in teledramas or any other TV program. So I agreed and we started on 'Doo Daruvo'.

Novel experience

That was a very novel experience for me. At Rupavahini I only saw the finished product either to approve or to disapprove. Now I was in the thick of the 'other' side of it - in the making of a teledrama.

I had some idea about the subject having visited many teledrama locations while I was in service in my round of duties. There I was a rather 'respected' visitor. But here I was just another actor taking directions from a much younger man.

Anyway, it was a delight to work with the Doo Daruvo team. There was my good friend and fellow thespian - Irangani Serasinghe - as my Dulcie Akka and she is a delight to work with. Then there was Nilmini Tennakoon - very young at that time.

She was so sweet I used to write little poems for her in the set. Then there was Veena Jayakody, effervescent as ever. Jayalath Manoratne, H.A. Perera, Santin Gunawardhana, Neil Alles, Udeni Alwis, Yashodha Wimaladharma, Chitra Warakagoda, Sunethra Sarachchandra were some of the other cast. Even Kelum Wijesuriya and Jagath Wickramasinghe had a stint with Doo Daruvo. Sunitha Wimalaweera is another name that comes to my mind.

Doo Daruvo became hugely popular. Many young girls started imitating the dress style, hair-do and the general behaviour style of Deepthi played delightfully by Nilmini Tennakoon.

The tele series which was started as a 16 episode venture went on up to about 235 episodes - a record at that time. Apart from the cast two impressionable people I came to know through Doo Daruvo are its director Nalan Mendis and producer Sandhya Mendis.

We became very good friends and even now, so many years later they hardly miss any of my birthdays.

Old bachelor

The role I played in it as Sudu Seeya is, in fact, a rather minor character. Sudu Seeya is an old bachelor who acts as general advisor and confidante to all of Dulcie Akka's children and their children.

There is a great bond of binding between Samson Malli [ie. Sudu Seeya] and Dulcie Akka. She feels that Samson Malli had even sacrificed getting married in the task of helping her [a widow] bring up her children. He lives alone in his own house and visits the children and the grandchildren whenever necessary.

Strangely enough 'Sudu Seeya', as much as Deepthi and Dulcie Akka came to be very popular characters among TV audiences at that time. Anyway, the name stayed with me as much as 'Piyal' and 'Azdak' - in fact even more, TV being a very popular media.

There are many - both young and old - who call me Sudu Seeya even now, when we meet somewhere. I prefer they would call me Henry, or Piyal or Azdak - but those are the hazards of TV! The trouble is that even toothless old men and women call me Sudu Seeya - which is rather saddening, to say the least!

I wondered why Sudu Seeya had become so popular. Perhaps it is not every home that has a man like Sudu Seeya - still robust in his sixties, helpful and friendly, but keeping his own distance and maintaining his respect.

Most Seeyas that children knew would either be ill, bad tempered and grumpy. Those days I received many letters from young and even very young children asking me to be their Sudu Seeya as well. Some adults with 'problem' children even wrote to me for advice.

There was a particular instance when a young girl on her 13th birthday was asked by her grandma what she would like to have as a B'day present. She had said she would like to spend a day with Sudu Seeya.

This was conveyed to me by the grandma and I had to oblige. There was another occasion when we stopped at Warakapola for the usual cup of tea. Three buses full of schoolchildren and their teachers arrived at the same time and a couple of children and a teacher had seen me.

Soon the entire lot was surrounding us and there was no end to questions and peels of delighted laughter from the children. I pointed out gently that they would miss their tea.

"That is okay sir". They insisted. "Now we have seen and talked to Sudu Seeya in person!" If I start a column titled 'Ask Sudu Seeya' I am sure even now there will be a good response!

Thought of the week

Readers, I am sure will remember my apologies to Mrs. Gnanam Rathinam in my last column for a lapse on my part. She has already forgiven me for my lapse and sent me a gift of a book she had penned recently.

It is called 'THE GREEN LIGHT' which symbolizes the 'go ahead' signal in broadcasting. It is very interesting reading. Mrs. Gnanam Rathinam in her book covers a period of over 30 years of her experience as a broadcaster, script-writer, producer and administrator.

The book covers almost the entire history of broadcasting in our country - from Radio Colombo, to Radio Ceylon, on to Ceylon Broadcasting Corporation, Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation and finally to Rupavahini.

Having served the Tamil Section of Radio Ceylon and its successors for over 30 years, she concentrates mostly on Tamil programs - particularly broadcasts for schools and mentions the names of practically all the pioneers of broadcasting.

Beginning with Neville Jayaweera and M.J. Perera she pays her tributes to a host of script writers, program organizers, producers and announcers of those early days. She says that our Commercial Service was most popular even in India and that our announcers such as Prosper Fernando were household names in India.

The book contains very many valuable pictures of people and events. It is a nostalgic grasp of a bygone and beloved era. She concludes by saying :- "Despite the many challenges and agonies I encountered mainly in the later years, I look back with joy and a sense of fulfillment in my long career in broadcasting."

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