White and gold among long sleeves
For Hollywood’s A-list, Oscars night is the biggest fashion moment of the year. And Tinseltown’s top actresses did not disappoint on Sunday, with white, gold, red and plenty of long sleeves among the key trends. Here are some highlights from the Academy Awards red carpet: Visions in white White, cream and champagne quickly emerged as [...]
Denims, sarees at Kingsbury’s Sparkle
Kanchana and Mala Fernando turned many heads at the Kingsbury’s Sparkle High Tea on February 22 when they presented some stunning designs drawn from their label ‘Denim & Six Yards’. The Kingsbury High Tea’s monthly fashion show is much looked forward to as is their lavish high tea buffet. Photography by Prishan Pandithage Studios.thekingsburyhotel.com.
‘Who are we?’
A joke oft chuckled over about lineage is that no one really knows who one’s father is – the only fact without dispute is who one’s mother is. Jokes apart, this is the very pathway that a pioneering team of researchers from the Institute of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (IBMBB) of the University of [...]
A tale of the Kandyan royal architect and court intrigue
“Early in the morning, the spacious courts of the palace began to fill with headmen called mohottalas, corales, vidanes, generally speaking, men advanced in years of good and intelligent appearance with long black or grey beards. Many of them had never seen a European face, none or few of our military; their astonishment was great…it [...]
From a transit compound for animals to the birth of our zoo
One of the most popular places in Sri Lanka with local as well as foreign tourists is the National Zoological Gardens at Dehiwala, known more simply as Colombo Zoo. The fact that the Zoo exists is due to the curiosity of Europeans in the 19th century about the animals of tropical lands that they read [...]
Thirikkal races: Don’t perpetuate cruelty to animals in the name of tradition
The Sinhala-Hindu New Year celebration is a joyous occasion for many, observing traditions and engaging in festivities. Yet amidst all this celebration is a cruel sport – thirikkal races. This is the setting: thirikkals, single seat carts, are lined up in rows; the bulls are tightly tethered, their bodies almost touch the trees or lamp [...]
The knight with the pearl earring
‘Red for her funeral dress? No.’ ‘It’s too bright!’ ‘Isn’t it inappropriate?’ ‘But, she was very clear in her instructions. She wanted to go in the red dress.’ ‘We must respect her wishes, but it’s definitely not ordinary.’ Well, neither was Deloraine Brohier. Nothing about her life stood out as ordinary. All too often ‘women’ [...]
Time warp with Deloraine Brohier at the Old Dutch Hospital
In its early years, Bonsoir began by focussing entirely on France – on French people, French events and all things French. However, with the European Union coming into effective play, our boundaries expanded and gave us greater flexibility to open out into Europe. The Old Dutch Hospital in the Fort had often intrigued and fascinated [...]
CFW 2017: Going beyond fashion
For the past 14 years, for a week in February or March, Colombo has been enjoying a taste of high fashion courtesy of the Colombo Fashion Week (CFW). In those 14 years, Sri Lankan designers have found their place in Colombo’s fashion scene. This year HSBC Colombo Fashion Week ventures to branch out from fashion [...]
Check out Country Roads headliners at a special preview concert
Country music and folk fans will be presented with a unique opportunity to check out 2017 Country Roads concert headliners as Keith Potger and Astrid Brook perform at a very special preview of the concert on the evening of Saturday, March 18, at the Terrace of the historic Mount Lavinia Hotel. This year’s Country Roads [...]
Familiar to new: From emotive bursts to some laboured parts
The Krasna Chamber Ensemble presented Mozart’s popular Symphony no. 40 in G minor and lesser known works at the Lionel Wendt Theatre on Saturday, February 25. The programme, an interesting combination of familiar and new works for Sri Lanka’s stage for western classical music included Sri Lanka’s first live performance of Joaquin Rodrigo’s Concierto de [...]
Cader’s ‘mind-relaxers’ on view
From New York to Delhi, Singapore to London, Australia to the UK, Muhanned Cader’s works have graced art galleries the world over. Back, once again in his motherland, Cader is presenting his latest collection ‘GLUEANDSTICK’. An eclectic collection of over 80 abstract pieces that form 5 distinct sets, the GLUEANDSTICK exhibition features pieces from Cader’s [...]
Exponent of Vazhuvoor style Bharatha natyam to perform here
The Indian Cultural Centre will present a Bharatha natyam recital by Neha Khaitan onMarch 10, at 6 p.m. at its auditorium at the Indian Cultural Centre, 16/2 Gregory’s Road, Colombo 7. Neha has been trained under Guru Smt. Hemamalini Vijay Raghavan Arni, the prime disciple of Padmabhushan T. Balasaraswati and Padmasri Vazhuvoor Ramaiah Pillais in [...]
Works of promise that need to evolve
Volume 22 – 2016 of Channels – the Journal of the English Writers Cooperative of Sri Lanka (EWC) showcases Sri Lankan creative writing as well as the winning entries for the EWC’s annual short story and poetry competition. This issue of Channels is edited by Premini Amerasinghe and features 26 short fiction and poetry contributions [...]
Both unique and universal, these stories exude nostalgia
In Cherry Blossoms, Sriyani Hulugalle captures the story of unique life events. Sri Lankans who grew up in the tumultuous decades from the 70s through the new millennium will be able to relate to most of the broad themes. What initially feels as a collection of random stories becomes interwoven by the broadly relatable themes [...]
Alice in Wonderland: A children’s tale or discourse on mathematics?
While you must be familiar with the tale of Alice who fell through the rabbit hole from the classic 1951 Disney movie, it is less likely that you have read the original versions of the story: Lewis Carroll’s 1865 and 1871 children’s books, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Carroll’s stories, both [...]
The legacy of St. Valentine
If February 14 — these days more popularly known as Valentine’s Day– passed anyone by with nary a peep or more likely a thud on the head with something red or pink in colour and in all likelihood in the shape of hearts, chocolates or flowers, one might say they were living under a pink [...]
Appreciations
Stanley Jayaweera A cultured man in the best sense of the word Stanley Jayaweera, who died on February 4, belonged to that rare and memorable generation of Sri Lankans, who carved a name for his country and society, wherever he spoke and worked. He was born in 1927. As these rare travellers leave us one [...]
Letters
Free Education Vs. Private If people want to spend on education why agitate against it? These days many rallies, demonstrations and protests are being carried out by Doctors of the G.M.O.A. and university students saying that ‘free education is being sold.’ I would like to ask one simple question from them. “Is there a single [...]