Remember the well-known folk stories like Thoppi Wellendek Dawasak and Eloven Aa Amuthek which kept not only children rolling with laughter but also adults unable to subdue a smile? Unfortunately, in this modern day and age, it is seldom that we come across those old folk tales which are truly Sri Lankan and unique.
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| Hiran |
To revive traditional folk stories which have had a great impact on our youth, Samanala Animations, the animation and entertainment unit of Web Creations (Pvt) Ltd. has come up with an innovative idea.
In keeping with modern technology, Samanala Animations will introduce these folk tales, with a slight twist here and there, on DVD to suit today’s young audience.
Titled Seeyage Katha, the DVD is a ‘story within a story’ as it uses the format of the typical age-old Lankan style of story telling where the Seeya narrates stories to the children. The prelude also takes a different twist with the Seeya unfolding the stories of Thoppi Wellendek Dawasak and Eloven Aa Amuthek to a group of children seated around him.
Explaining how the project got off the ground, the producer of the DVD, Hiran Wickremenayake who ventured on this novel idea with his wife, Manisha, said that while on the computer, they were looking for something new to do. “When we looked at the entertainment field we realized that since there are not many cartoons in this area, we could venture into that field.”
However, he always wanted to create something authentic and of exceptional quality, a product which is on par with what the foreign markets have.
There is humour and comedy in the stories on this DVD.
At the same time the portrayal of characters is realistic, says Manisha, adding that although the stories have been adapted slightly to suit the 21st century, the basic story line is the same and the drawings are a reflection of the 1960’s.
The director of the DVD, Shantha Wijewardene who has also done the second story script said that today a majority of Sri Lankan students are not familiar with folk stories as they are often exposed only to foreign cartoons and DVDs. “This DVD will familiarize our present generation, especially the children living abroad, on such folk tales,” he said.
The animations for the DVD are created in two-dimensional form while the sound track is in Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 surround sound.
The characters have been dubbed by popular Sri Lankan actors and actresses while the music has been composed by some of the pioneers in the field. Subtitled in English, the DVD runs for about 130 minutes.
Seeyage Katha is available at Odel, Barfeoot Gallery Bookshop, M-Entertainment outlets, Keells supermarkets, Sarasavi bookshop Nugegoda and M. D. Gunasena (Colombo and Kandy branches). |
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