The songs Katu Akule mal ahare and Mal pipei deneth
arei can
hardly be cast out of memory by anyone who has enjoyed the teledrama Amba Yahaluwo based on TB Illangarathne’s novel by the same
name. All the songs in the drama including these two and much appreciated Sudu ath patawek, Ra wada muraya, Sina thotak, Mehev rate, Viyo wu pasuwayi, Ek pethi malak and Siyothune uthurin were written by Bandula Nanayakkarawasam,
veteran lyricist and journalist who used to believe that radio artistes came
into the wooden cabinet through the radio at his home to play songs for him
when he was too young even to understand the meanings behind the songs.
“I was just five years old when my uncle’s radio was brought
home after his funeral. I did not understand any of the dramas, songs or
programs. It became a habit to listen to this radio which was inside a huge
cabinet. I was crazy about it but was too young to understand the process. I
thought the cabinet was a house which people who announce came to every day to
present programs. I sit closer to the radio, listening to this amazing machine
all day long. On a day of heavy rain, thunder and lightning, my eldest sister asked
me to switch the radio off, but I didn’t care. Then she scolded me. “Are you
mad? We’ll all die if lightning strikes the radio.”
Then I replied. “That’s all right. I’ll finally get to see
Jothipala and Karu ayya.” I knew I said something wrong when my sister ran to
the others laughing. Then Sudu akka, my second elder sister came to me and
explained to me how the radio works. She told me that the artistes are in Colombo at the Radio
Ceylon,” Bandula Nanayakkarawasam, veteran lyricist recalled his first
memorable experience about the radio.
“That’s when I fell in love with the song. I couldn’t believe
myself that I remembered each and every word of the songs I heard. I wasn’t a
very bright student in the classroom but I just had to listen once to remember
all words of a song,” he added. Nanayakkarawasam is from Devundara, Matara District.
Today he is a celebrated old boy of Richmond
College, Galle. Reminiscing, he said that he realized
that song is an amazing form of art when he was in grade five, back in 1960s.
“I remember I was confused when I listened to the song, Sakura mal pipila
by Nanda Malini. I couldn’t understand why she was singing about walking fish
or Sakura blooming in her garden. I asked Sudu akka, she explained. But I was
still confused. I thought the lyricist was crazy to write such abstract things.”
Few years later, that lyricist, Prof Sunil Ariyaratne became his role model,
friend and unofficial teacher. “Nine years from then, when I published my first
poetry collection, Kadadasi Godaka Geethya
he was the one to write the epilogue. It was destined to happen,” he said.
Nanayakkarawasam, amazed by Sinhala, Hindi and English songs,
as a child, decided that he wanted to become a poet in the future. “I started
following my role model. I tried to dress like him, wear bothal adi
spectacles like him although I had no eye problem. But I was happy when Prof
Ariyaratne said that I never copied his work like I copied his attire at the
keynote address of my one and only show Sina Thotak. He also
mentioned, WS Silva, teacher of Richmond
College, who helped him
to improve his poetry and writing skills. “He is like a walking encyclopedia. I
still learn things from him,” he said. “It was Bandara sir who made me realize
that there are both good and bad in songs and I also learnt how interesting
Russian literature was. He always encouraged us to read the English book,
discouraging us from reading the Sinhala translation,” he added. WS Bandara
will be giving the key note speech at the Sekara Mahima ceremony.
Noticing the aspiring work of young Bandula, tabla master SW Randuwa took him to the Sri Lanka Broadcasting
Corporation in 1979 with the songs he wrote. “There were two veterans to go
through the songs and grant approval. There was a song, questioning the God of
Katharagama about the murder of Kataragama beauty queen Premawathi Manamperi. One
person was infuriated, over me questioning god. He yelled at me. ‘Do you think
you can become another Sunil Ariyarathne?’, he recalled this as an incident in
which his motivation to become an established lyricist became stronger. This
wishful young boy spoke back to this man, thanking him for comparing his talent,
at his school-going age, with a well-established lyricist. “I saw the SLBC
through tear-filled eyes that day. But later, people who were there like
Premakeerthi de Alwis, Palitha Perera, Kusum Pieries, Daya de Alwis or
Parakrama Perera, Saman Athawudahetti, Piyadasa Ratnasinghe and Sudarman de
Silva helped me see SLBC as a paradise,” he said expressing his gratitude. He
also pointed out how important it is to mention the name of the artiste, as
SLBC used to do, in recognizing young talent.
He believes that providing insensitive art work to people is
an evil. Making people perceive such insensitive artisans have demolished their
thinking capacity and intelligence. “That’s why no one can bring a positive
change to this country. I strongly believe that this is the main reason behind
many issues in the country,” he iterated. “If politicians had a better taste
this country would not be like this. If the teachers, media, artistes had
better taste and sensitivity, it is no difficult task to solve all problems and
make this country a better place,” he added. “It’s a shame that people who
should be taking the responsibility are pointed in the wrong direction.” He
also believes that still there are people with good taste. He added that still
there is a demand for decent works of art. He said that the comments and appreciations
he received for his recently celebrated radio program Raa Ira Pana
is an example that people still have the taste for that demand.
Over 100 programs of Raa Ira Paana,
broadcast from 2011 to 2013 were admired by many song lovers throughout that
period. It was awarded the best musical program award at the State music award
ceremony in 2013. Even though Nanayakkarawasam put a stop to the program over
an unfortunate dispute, the program is badly missed by its admirers. If one is
to search the web for the program, there are many blogs, online groups and
Facebook discussions to prove how the program is missed terribly. He said the
program Raa Ira Paana was simply an attempt to help
others see the beauty he saw in the
songs. “I’m not sure whether I can call it ecstasy. I know I can’t show
what I feel and what I get from the songs. But at least I had to give it a
try,” he said. “I knew, I could link certain incidents with songs and give it
out to the audience. Lucian Bulathsinghala’s Sandella, HM Gunasekara’s Irida Sangrahaya,
Tissa Abeysekara’s Geeyaka Rasa and Mahinda Ranaweera’s Kshithijaya, EW Adikaram’s Vidya Dharshana,
Nandadasa Kodagoda’s Batahira waidya sakachchawa
and Sugathapala de Silva’s dramas inspired me to create a show like this,” he
said. “It was Premakeerthi de Alwis who made world literature a common people’s
thing in Sri Lanka.
These experiences attached to me are behind Raa Ira Paana, that I
believe it became a sugar coating for some songs with deep meanings,” he added.
He also mentioned the support of Kapila Poogalaarachchi, Nilendra Deshapriya,
Dayal Fernando in making of the program.
Sekara
Mahima is organized
as a result of this program. Even though Raa Ira Pana was presented at an off peak
time, the fan base grew day by day that it became a peak time. Among these
fans, there was one extraordinary person, as Nanayakkarawasam described, who
was a retired Chemistry teacher at St.
Joseph’s College. He had started listening to the
program by seeing a newspaper advertisement and had followed it until the final
program. Enthused by Mahagama Sekara’s
works which were presented in the program, this fan, 64 year old, Ananda
Wickramarachchi decided to gift his collection which are articles which ran for
a period of 55 years and paper cuttings of Mahagama Sekara to
Nananyakkarawasam. According to Nanayakkarawasam, this event was organized to
appreciate his dedication towards making such a valuable collection, a gift,
hoping that it will be in better hands. “Mr. Wickramarachchi wanted to come and
gift it to me in Devundara. I felt that he should not be sweating to come that
far to gift this treasured collection,” he said.
Sekara Mahima collection by Wickramarachchi will be accepted by
Ravinda and Nirupama Mahagama Sekara, son and daughter of Mahagama Sekara on
Sekara’s 85th birth anniversary. “I would try to get at least one
person from one district although the light house gallery cannot accommodate a
large crowd. I believe this is an event which each district should witness,” he
said. A website www.rairapaana.com will also be launched
at the event. “This is not forgetting the fan base of Ra Ira Pana since it would be only the invitees who can join in on
April 7. This might become another step towards something big,” he said
hopefully. The program Ra Ira Paana and
Sekara Mahima will be held in the Light House Gallery on April 7 at 5.45 pm.
Nanayakkarawasam’s master, WS Bandara, Prof Sunil Ariyaratne, Dr. Rohana
Weerasinghe, Buddhadasa Galappaththi and Prof Carlo Fonseka will also attend
the event.
Notable songs of
Nanayakkarawasam
Virirunu Mal Pethi
Gangule Bindena Heen
Pana thiya
Mal Pipeyi
Viyo vu pasuwayi
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