Bringing back the morale
Channa Bandara Wijekoon
Nurturing good values and attitudes within oneself could lead to
harnessing a compassionate and just society. The whole world at present
is experiencing a rapid erosion of values in society irrespective of
cultures. The dreadful consequences are before our very eyes.
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Sathischandra Edirisinghe.
Picture by Ranjith Asanka |
Thus inculcating values in the minds of people has become the 'call
of the day'. 'Mihindu Cultural Foundation' formed in 2009 August 29
contributes towards this honorable course. The objectives of the
foundation are threefold. It is an entity dedicated to educate people;
of the values which should prevail in a society, safeguarding Mother
Nature and extending gratitude to people who have contributed immensely
to the Nation.
Launch
Mihindu Cultural Foundation celebrates its third anniversary with a
book launch and an awards presentation. The event is organized to be in
line with the objectives of the foundation. The event will take place at
the John de Silva Memorial Theatre on August 29 at 3.30 pm. Chief Guest
of the occasion will be Prof. J B Dissanayake. Three books penned by the
veteran artiste and the president of Mihindu Cultural Foundation
Sathischandra Edirisinghe as regards a disciplined society, will be
launched.
The books, 'Jeewithaya Desa Nawa Nethakin', 'Sarthaka Jeewithayakata
Saarawath Sithuwili' and 'Adaraya saha Viwahaya' revolves around the
subjects of anxiety and inculcating patience in one's self, nurturing
positive attitudes and 'love and marriage'. These books and other books
written by Sathis could be purchased at concessionary rates.
Prof. Kusuma Karunarathne, Prof Dharshana Rathnayake and Somaweera
Senanayake, the trio who will introduce the three books to the audience
in chronology will add much value to the event with their speeches. The
audience will also be treated with some soothing songs sung by veteran
singers. A souvenir will be distributed free of charge.
Felicitation
Suwanda Padma award will felicitate three well-known personalities:
Attorney at Law Harishchandra Wijethunga, Dr Victor Ratnayake and Sudath
Rohana in appreciation of their contribution to the Nation for many
decades will be another significance of the occasion.
These awards will be given by Prof. J B Dissanayake, former Media and
Communication Ministry Secretary W B Ganegala and Dr D B Nihalsinghe
respectively. Citations for the awards will be read by International
Education Counseling Institute CEO Keerthi Jayasuriya and veteran
artistes Sunil Edirisinghe and Shriyani Amarasena.
Sathis as he is known in the circles is a visionary personality. He
had commenced his writing career in 2004. Sathis had written booklets at
the inception to support his presentations of 'positive attitudes and
productivity' to the garment sector. Karu Heenatigala had helped him at
this juncture.
The unprecedented popularity gained by these booklets authored by him
had motivated Sathis to write more and more towards the well-being of
the society with in-depth content.
Functioning as an actor and a director of films, stage dramas and
tele-dramas for many decades, Sathis had contributed immensely to the
aesthetics of this country. Acting is his passion. Stage dramas of
'Hotabari Yuddae' fame, films such as 'Maathara Aachchi' and teledramas
like 'Tikiri Nilame' highlight his directorial prowess. Winning a
special award for the 90 minute appearance as a Buddhist monk in the
film 'Koti Waligaya' is sheer proof for his acting versatility.
Sathis had had a stint at Irrigation and Water Management Ministry
while functioning as an artiste. While working there, he did the award
winning tele-drama 'Diyawadana Maluwa'. The story revolved around a
reservoir and agriculture.
The association he had built with the then Irrigation Minister Chamal
Rajapaksa in the process, had led Sathis to contribute towards 'Nil
Diyawara Kethyayata' project initiated by the then Minister.
This initiative had given birth to Sathis's brainchild 'Water and
Human Being' (Jalaya saha Minisa) exhibition, which was held throughout
the country eventually by the Mihindu Cultural Foundation.
"On my request, CEO of Shevron Lubricants Lanka PLC, Kishu Gomez took
a collective decision with his Directors within 15 minutes to sponsor
the exhibition for two years at a stretch. It was held in 25 locations
throughout the country including Jaffna peninsula in both Sinhala and
Tamil", says Sathis.
Since then, the foundation has embarked to become a force to reckon
with. The story of the 'Water and Human Being' exhibition is being
compiled as a four-colour book and distributed amongst school libraries
at present.
"Today's event to celebrate the third anniversary of the foundation
will be an absolute treat for parents and children alike. They will go
home with pleasant and cherished memories. Our next project will be of
food", says Sathis with a satisfying smile.
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