Lyricist beyond lines
Aravinda HETTIARACHCHI
One day in the 1950s a senior media person Thevis Guruge sent a lean
and talented young wordsmith to meet D B Dhanapala, the founder of
Davasa newspaper, to make him occupy as a journalist. And this
newspaper, at that moment, had no vacancy for a journalist. Yet the
interviewer D B Dhanapala was fond of having a general chat with this
interesting character and asked him: "Did you climb the stairs one step
after another to reach here?"
The youngster replied: "No sir, I climbed two steps at a time."
|
Siril A Seelawimala |
Dhanapala was bemused by the youngsters' answer and attitude; the
young man was favoured to become a journalist. Dhanapala's this action
supported to bring forward a strong personality in journalism and
lyricism from the 50's to the 90's in Lankan history.
This youngster quickly got into hard work and later climbed up to the
position of Davasa Chief Editor, and then to the same position in
another newspaper, Riviresa.
He later became a veteran journalist, editor, lyricist, poet, script
and dialog writer. Siril A Seelawimala, hailing from a distant village,
thus became a remarkable literary artist in the isle.
Seelawimala had to locate himself somewhere in Colombo to save his
time for a profitable professional career. He therefore found a boarding
place a room in Maradana Mariyakade (Colombo 10). A lot of significant
artistes today (then young beginners) gradually started visiting and
even occasionally lodging in this room at times. Most of them were
engaged in the endeavor of music. Thus Seelawimala's room became a
familiar and interesting location which connected a lot of lonely music
artistes to a unique creative gathering. And no one in this connection
would have thought that this informal room will be such a significant
base in Lankan popular song history. And this room has also been
unofficially named by some person as Sindu Kamare (the room of songs)
and never changed this name even at times of shifting it into different
locations. Sindu Kamare has brought up several valuable artistes who
were engaged in the most popular part of music: the song. Thus most of
the solid, popular and fascinating radio and film songs (especially of
70's) surfaced with the direct or indirect influence of this Sindu
Kamare.
And the centric personality of this creative and unofficial social
unit was Siril, the main resident of the room. He, at least unto the
90's, was responsible for writing 500 songs to the National Radio and
the film industry. Siril's hospitality to share his room with other
fellow artistes created a new Lankan combination in the popular art of
song. This gathering at Sindu Kamare therefore became a conjuncture in
the Lankan history of popular songs and inspired most of the people who
engaged in this endeavour.
Siril, in this particular environment, became the contagious
character among others who wrote songs with a sweet flavor to the
talented male and female vocalists such as Victor Rathnayake, Sisira
Senaratne, Maurice Dahanayake, Christoper Paul, Wasantha Sandanayake,
Angeline Gunathilake, Mohideen Beg, H R Jothipala, Freddie Silva, Nihal
Nelson, Milton Perera and M S Fernando. Therefore this room was not only
a boarding place but a collective mind of artistes which developed the
then Lankan song into a much higher perceptional level.
In addition to the song artists, this Sindu Kamare was visited by a
lot of significant artists such as Lal Heenatigala, Stanley M Fernando,
Ranjan Jayathilake and Anil Kumara Perera. With the influence of this
collection, Siril was fortunate to write a considerable sum of songs to
more than 25 films (screened between the 60's and 70's) such as Sweep
Ticket, Sikurutharuwa, Pick Pocket, Ada Mehemai, Den Mathakada, Suhada
Pathuma, Sudu Duwa, Kesara Sinhayo, Sudu Sanda, Deepashika, Miringuwa
and Ajasatte.
Among all his radio and film songs Dothin Dothai, Lassanai Balanna,
Vishnu Devinde, Hadawata Mage Thatu Sala, Sudo Poddak hadanna, Meth mal
Pibidewa, Mamai mottapala Dotta Damma Pasalen, Sansun Ruwan hada
Mandeeraye and Dili Dili Dilisena Eliyak became the popular hits of
yesteryear.
Siril lived actively in his career from 1950's to 2000 and pointed
out that the collapse of the Lankan film industry happened due to the
marginalization or omission of the song from the film screen. His words
should be taken into grant for the reason he was not only a songwriter
but a successful popular film scriptwriter too. |
