Five artistes honoured with Bunka Awards

The 18th Bunka (Cultural) Awards ceremony organized by the Japan-Sri Lanka Friendship Cultural Fund was held on October 22, 2011 at the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation, Colombo 07.

(L to R) T.B. Ekanayake, Minister of Cultural and Arts, Nobuhito Hobo, Ambassador of Japan, Akihiko Nakauchi, Co-Chairperson of the Fund, Nalaka Swarnathilake, Samarage Samantha Perera, Tracy Holsinger, Champani Devika Devaraja, and Dr.Sriranganathan Darshanan, the award winners.

The Bunka Awards are presented annually by the Fund, which was established in 1993, on the initiative of the Japanese Solidarity Association and the Japanese Commerce and Industry Association in Sri Lanka, in collaboration with the Embassy of Japan. For the past seventeen years, 98 such awards have been presented to mid-career individuals and organizations on the basis of their creative activities in culture and the arts, in order to encourage and promote individual and collective talent in these fields in Sri Lanka.

This year the following five Sri Lankan artistes received the prestigious Bunka (Cultural) Awards.

* Dr. Sriranganathan Darshanan - Music
* Champani Devika Devaraja - Art & Poetry
* Tracy Holsinger - Theatre
* Samarage Samantha Perera - Music
* Nalaka Swarnathilake - Drama

Culture and Arts Minister T.B. Ekanayake graced the occasion as the Chief Guest, while Ambassador of Japan, Nobuhito Hobo, Akihiko Nakauchi and Prof. Carlo Fonseka, Co-Chairpersons of the Selection Committee of the Japan-Sri Lanka Friendship Cultural Fund and a distinguished gathering of invitees including several renowned Sri Lankan cultural artistes were also present.