Paths of Prophecy

The Legacy
(Translated into Sinhala as ‘Raja Urumaya’)

The story begins with the creation of a legacy by King Dutugamunu in the year 140 BC. The main story deals with the discovery of its existence in current times.

To solve the ancient riddle, the protagonist has to unravel the threads while dodging terrorists and evading power hungry politicians. The story is set in contemporary Sri Lanka with its diverse history, exotic location and political intrigues of the present era.

The Deception
(Translated into Sinhala as ‘Mayava’)

The plot deals with a subject of little known details of Sri Lankan history. It revolves around the authenticity, attempted seizure and location of the sacred Tooth Relic. From the investigative expedition ventured upon by a part time financier and his enthusiastic travel agent colleague, to the cunning and skillful strategies of a rebel army, to the involvement of a business tycoon and his henchman, the story progresses towards an ending with a surprising philosophical twist to it.

The Vengeance
(Translated into Sinhala as ‘Viyaruva’)

This fast paced thriller mixes current political scenarios with ancient folklore and mysteries. A Sri Lankan writer and historian; her estranged husband - an officer of British counter intelligence and a ruthless mastermind bent on mass destruction as a final act of vengeance, are the main characters of this intriguing tale.

The Prophecy

Ananda Liyanage’s latest novel is now available in the leading bookshops, of which the Sinhala translation ‘Pera Dekma’ will come in print towards the middle of 2013. The book, like all his previous ones, is translated by Anula de Silva.

Sachitra MAHENDRA

Fabricating tales beyond shores remains to be an unfamiliar prospect for the Sri Lankan author. It does not mean handsome pay, as it is for the writers beyond Sri Lanka’s shores. Ananda Liyanage’s fourth novel ‘The Prophecy’ unbolts the door to such a path – to fabricate beyond shores.

With plenty of drama, Liyanage guards an ancient prophecy in a remote monastery in North India by a Jewish archaeologist. It warns the Israeli institute for Intelligence and Special Operations (Mossad) of an impending act of aggression.

So evolves the story with its arms in Germany, Russia, Mexico, United States, Austria, India, Israle, China, United Kingdom, Libya, Turkey, Iraq, Egypt, Qatar, Pakistan and India in addition to Sri Lanka. It begins at the fall of the Berlin Wall when the head of the Soviet Committee for State Security initiates a plan to preserve the delicate balance of power in the world against all future aggressors.

“I have plenty of time to do research, investigate and toy with imagination,” remarks Ananda Liyanage speaking to ‘Encounter of the Week’.

Liyanage has a two-fold audience as his novels are available in both English and Sinhala.

Q: Unlike your previous novels, ‘The Prophecy’ essentially deals with the ‘balance of power’ concept. Do you think it exists in the today’s world?

A: Balance of power is essential for the world to survive. For instance the agreements signed among the countries following the World War II had been to ensure balance of power. No country was to be given unlimited power.

When the balance of power is no more that means the world is dragged towards a catastrophe. Unfortunately that is happening today.

For instance USA is making decision in the name of so called justice. They took a decision on Iraq and Libya. And now they are working on Syria.

Q: Sri Lankan writers rarely – or do not – deal with multi-regional storylines. How have you opted to cope with the challenge of perhaps being the only local scribe of this kind?

A: Our writers need to write quick and easy. They need quick money. Yes, this is a challenge. The difference is I really enjoy it. I enjoy telling the story with all the background details. The readers, you know, must feel the worth of buying a book. They must not feel cheated.

Of course, here in Sri Lanka you can hardly be a professional writer and make a good living. My objective has more to it than making a living. Like I told you before, I am enjoying the writing. The difference is I have other work to earn my bread and butter, and I have time for writing.

I use that time to research, investigate and play with imagination. So that is how you travel beyond to many other regions where background details really matter.

Q: Is it unholy for an author to write quick and easy? They too have to make a living, don’t they?

A: I think we must look at this from the reader’s perspective. They must feel content after reading the fiction they had bought. They must feel themselves valuable. There must be something that develops in them.

If someone writes for the sake of writing, then I don’t think it is a genuine job. They have to decide what they do. We cannot pass judgments whether it is unholy or not.

Q: You have disapproved of the film rights for ‘The Legacy’. All the same, we witnessed a chain of movies based on historical events in the recent times.

A: I would have liked to see ‘The Legacy’ on the big screen.

But I firmly believe that any film must be faithful to the novel or the original work it is based on. I do not think it is possible.

Q: Do you claim our filmmakers are incapable of such an assignment?

A: Not really. I am coming to that point. The first obstacle is the language. Let us take Carolyne of ‘The Legacy’ for example. What is her language? English? Sinhala? If it is Sinhala, then which Sinhala it is? We have no access to the kind of Sinhala they spoke in their period.

This goes same with the costumes. Writing a book is relatively easier than shifting it to a motion picture. You have to think of so many things, and chances are more you end up with a mess.

Cost factor is there too.

Out of all movies, I think the BBC has given a genuine attempt to be faithful to the originals when they made movies. They stick to the novel.

Q: Your previous novels ‘The Legacy’, ‘The Deception’ and ‘The Vengeance’ have a similarity – they are of essentially Sri Lankan storylines. Why have you detoured in ‘The Prophecy’? Do you think you would get a wider readership?

A: Too early to comment. But to be more precise, ‘The Legacy’ has the most number of reviews, I think, because it deals with a clear-cut Sri Lankan story element. I wrote ‘The Prophecy’ to deal with the current trends in the world. But after some time, may be in a year or two, I will be getting back to the square one – developing a character in ‘The Legacy’ into a novel, probably my next one.