Await a ‘litful’ 2016!
GLF back with a bang Festival Director Amrita Pieris steps up to the podium and with that the press conference announcing the Fairway Galle Literary Festival (FGLF) of 2016 is underway. Her speech is full of good news. Not only will FGLF be returning on January 13, 2016, after a hiatus that has lasted three [...]
In the beginning was an arch gone wrong
Determined to show the mason who was building his house that the entrance didn’t look quite right, Dinesh Katugampala invents a device to measure radius The Radius Meter was invented because Dinesh Katugampala wanted to prove his builder wrong. As good a reason as any, you may think – although by the time he finished [...]
Eleven years on the fire still burns
We meet Harpo Gooneratne at one of his older restaurants, The Bayleaf. It’s early in the day so there are no customers but there’s construction outside and the old colonial building which houses the restaurant is a flurry of activity. The 10-year-old restaurant is being infused with new life and it’s all hands on deck. [...]
An event befitting a fashion photographer
Internationally known fashion photographer – Nigel Barker signed copies of his latest publication Models of Influence, at the Envoy Mansion at an event hosted by leading menswear specialist Hameedias. The event saw a high-profile gathering of local fashion and media personalities. Fouzul Hameed, the Managing Director of Hameedia presented Nigel Barker with a tailor-made shirt [...]
Bringing DSC Prize for literature to Lanka
When the organisers of the Jaipur Literary Festival approached Surina Narula for funding, she had only one stipulation- that it be free so that even the street children she worked with could come if they wanted to. When the festival grew so big that DSC Ltd’s funding was no longer enough to fuel further growth, [...]
Letters to the Editor
MR’s supporters still beating the communal drum Few politicians in former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s clan thought that present President Maithripala Sirisena would come out of the presidential elections with a clear mandate. Or else everyone including the former president himself knew that they would lose, yet were in ‘denial’. Though his ‘Roads Economy’ was shown [...]
Appreciations
A vibrant personality with a zest for life Dudley Nihal Fernando The sudden demise of Dudley Nihal Fernando, eldest son of P.J. and Blondina Fernando of Bopitiya, Pamunugama, was difficult to come to terms with, for his family and friends, as he was a vibrant personality with a zest for life. A product of De [...]
A big splash for Nepal
In an extraordinary display of solidarity and support for a neighbouring country in need, 74 young Sri Lankan swimmers raised funds through the Swim for Nepal Challenge for relief efforts following the devastating April earthquake. The participants, both boys and girls hailing from many different schools in Colombo, pledged to swim a certain distance at the [...]
Night of recognition
The Wijeya Newspaper Group won a total of 10 awards at the annual Journalism Awards for Excellence 2014 held on Tuesday, July 28 at the Mount Lavinia Hotel. The Sunday Times was among the winners at the colourful function jointly organised by the Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka (TEGOSL) and the Sri Lanka Press Institute (SLPI). [...]
Floating Space pins you down with Forgetting November
In 2007, Ruhanie Perera and Jake Oorloff staged “In a Shadow” at St Andrew’s Scots Kirk. Aptly named, their theatre company “Floating Space” has since cemented itself in Colombo’s artistic circle. Known for their unconventional performances, original work and creative use of their surrounding environment, the troupe is back this month with a new project. [...]
The sounds of Musicmatters Festival once again!
It’s that time of year again, when for a couple of days on end, you get yourself steeped in the cutting edge of global experimental music. The Musicmatters Festival is the biggest annual event MusicmattersSri Lanka puts together. So far, this year they have walked through several small concerts, CD releases and most excitingly, the beginning [...]
Abhayagiri towers once again
Abhayagiri Sthupa towers once again in dignified splendour with the unveiling by President Maithripala Sirisena on the completion of its restoration.The ceremony was conducted on Esala Full Moon Poya Day amidst thousands of devotees who arrived in Anuradhapura to participate in this special event. The twenty-year restoration was undertaken by the Central Cultural Fund which [...]
A blast of Broadway rekindles memories
Most weekends it’s a smooth drive down Barnes Place. Last Saturday however vehicles were crammed outside the Musaeus College Auditorium and inside the clatter of high heels and excited hum of chatter added to the adrenaline. Backstage, the Workshop Players were warming up for “The Best of Broadway”. Presented in association with the Musaeus College [...]
Colomboscope reaches out to wider audience
Colomboscope returns this month with a programme that will cater to even the fussiest aesthete. Streamlined into two overall segments, the programme will cut across a gamut of topics and mediums from visual media to literature and the performing arts. The multidisciplinary festival was first introduced in March 2013 as ‘Identities’, a joint initiative by [...]
Away from narratives, open to interpretation
Kosala Gunasinghe or Kos Cos as he is known in art circles was wrapping up his latest exhibition in PubArt Gallery, in Hong Kong’s trendy CBD, Central, when we met. His third annual exhibition at the gallery, his latest body of work, Transfigurations, was on display for three weeks ending July 24. If a portrait [...]
A book that awakes one’s curiosity to learn about a great savant
The trio led by D.C. Ranatunga, a University colleague and longstanding friend of mine, has six coffee table books to their credit. This is their seventh and it is nothing but right for us to expect a very high quality production. A coffee table book on the Most Venerable Madihe Pannasiha Mahanayaka Thera was a [...]
Medico-legal mystery made accessible to all
A murder case that shocked Sri Lanka in the late 1970s was the double murder at the Vicarage of St. Paul’s Church in Punchi Borella. It attracted the attention of Sri Lankans not because the main accused in the case was a well-known religious personality whose services – not only in matters relating to merciful [...]
‘Earth 2.0’ – or: How we are not alone (er, well, maybe!)
It was inevitable that this would happen. Sooner or later, we’d discover that we weren’t alone in the universe. This week, with the announcement that the Kepler Space Telescope had discovered a remarkably Earth-like planet with a high probability of life, Earth’s unique place in the cosmography of our own mind moved a little farther [...]
Rotary donates shoes to school
The Rotary Club of Nugegoda recently distributed 90 pairs of shoes to children attending the Palagama Sri ParakumVidyalaya in Polgasowita.This donation was made at a ceremony attended by the children, their parents/guardians as well as school staff. This donation was made possible thanks to a well-known magnanimous shoe manufacturer who supplied the shoes. All 200 [...]
Alpha Christianity course at Cathedral
Alpha is a 10-week course designed for people who are curious and want to find out more about Christianity. It’s a great learning ground for new Christians as well as those who are older in faith who want to brush up their knowledge about basics. Anyone is welcome! It’s truly a relaxing, thought-provoking, friendly and [...]
“Walk from the Heart”: 1500 Gateway College students raise funds to combat children’s heart disease
Almost 1500 students from Gateway College, Rajagiriya, participated in a walk titled “Walk from the Heart” to raise funds to combat children’s heart disease in Sri Lanka on the morning of Saturday, July 25. They wove their way from Lady Ridgeway Hospital to the school premises in Rajagiriya, walking smartly behind the school band and [...]
AAUP coordinates “Start Your Business” at Peradeniya
A five-day programme/workshop entitled “Start Your Business” was held in early July, at the University of Peradeniya. Eighteen final year undergraduates from the Faculties of Agriculture and Arts participated in the programme which was conducted by ILO qualified trainers from the Department of Rural Industries and Enterprise Development of the Central Province. Chief facilitator Ms. [...]
Channa, Bhatiya and Santush take Sydney by storm
July 18: The day marked the tenth death anniversary of the much-loved pioneer of modern dancing, Chitrasena. It was a sheer coincidence that one of his bright pupils, Channa Wijewardena was performing that evening in Sydney. The Channa-Upuli troupe gave the predominantly Sri Lankan audience an evening to remember. Since I last saw the troupe [...]
Friends of the Accident Service
The Friends of the Accident Service, National Hospital Sri Lanka elected their Office-Bearers at the annual general meeting for 2015/2016 Patron- Dr. Anil Jasinghe President- Dr. Kapila Wickremanayake Secretary – Lion Al Haj Deshabandu M.I.M. Razeek Treasurer- Lion Al Haj Ashroff Hussain Vice President- Lion Rajah Sinnathuray Vice President- Daya Bollegala Vice President- Al Haj [...]
All Ceylon Women’s Buddhist Congress
Office Bearers The following were elected to the All Ceylon Women’s Buddhist Congress 2015-2016 Executive Committee: President: Miss Ramani Rajapaksa Deputy President: Mrs. Rani Chandraratne Vice Presidents: Mrs. Doreen de Silva, Mrs.Rani Bandara Jayaweera, Mrs. Indra de Silva, Mrs.Padmini Witharana Hony. Secretary: Mrs.Shantha Abeysekera Asst. Secretaries: Mrs. Indrani Senanayake, Mrs. Kanthi Abeynayake Treasurer: Mrs. Niluka [...]