Coming home: H.C.P. Bell’s little Buddha statue
Having travelled the wide world, across seas and continents, enjoying pride of place wherever taken, a beautiful little seated Buddha carved in wood has finally come home after nearly 100 years. To be taken in procession from the Queen’s Hotel, the statue will be presented to the Sri Dalada Maligawa (the Temple of the Sacred [...]
Letters to the Editor
Hike in water charges: Easy move for you, but burden to the Citizen Pereras To Vasudeva Nanayakara It has been reported in the newspapers that after a few days of taking office, you propose to increase the water charges for those consuming over 15 units per month. This was a few days after the government [...]
Appreciations
An unforgettable matriarch of the family Muriel Weeraratna Muriel Weeraratna, my aunty, died on October 21 this year. As the eldest nephew among the living I would like to share these thoughts of a gracious lady. Aunty Muriel was the daughter of Don Elaris Weerasiri, only son of Don Theodoris Weerasiri, a leading jewellery and [...]
A bouquet of children’s short stories from Neluka
Professor Neluka Silva is a delightful academic oddity- a don who chooses to spend most of her off-hours gently coaxing creativity out of pre-teen writers, or honing the theatrical finesse of young actors through her workshops. Having given readers a taste of modern Sri Lankan living with the novel The Iron Fence; Our Neighbours and [...]
Understanding the pulse of the nation through art
The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA), an initiative dedicated to illuminating contemporary and modern art in Sri Lanka was launched on December 12, at the Colombo Innovation Tower. A privately funded not-for-profit organisation that can be freely accessed by the public, the MMCA founding committee hopes that the museum and its collections will [...]
MSL opens flagship store
Mother Sri Lanka (MSL), the independent, not-for-profit charity has opened its flagship store at Kotte to create a space to sell products made by beneficiaries of the movement’s ‘Empowering Entrepreneurs’ Programme. The store located at Parliament Drive, at 614 Sri Jayawardenepura Road, Ethul Kotte, Kotte, offers a wide range of authentic Sri Lankan products from [...]
Celebrating 140
Renowned law firm Julius & Creasy celebrated their 140th anniversary with staff on December 8 at the Galadari Hotel, Colombo. Pix by Indika Handuwala
Launching Sustainable Lifestyles series
Climates have always changed but, today, due to human behaviour, that change is so rapid and extreme, it is out of control. This rapid climate change has been precipitated by a lack of sustainability in our daily lifestyles. It’s time to review our lifestyles and get smarter if we are to arrive at a new [...]
A Christmas bake and fond memories of two grandmas
Priya Thewarapp-eruma inherited her love of delicious food from her grandmothers. By all accounts, Justine (her mother’s mother) and Margaret (her father’s mother) were house proud, and loved entertaining. Some of Priya’s earliest memories are of cooking in their kitchens. “They were on completely different spectrums as cooks,” says Priya, “One used to do things [...]
’Tis the season for hair-dos
The Ramani Fernando Sunsilk Hair and Beauty Academy graduation ceremony and hair show – Hair Art 2019 was held on Sunday, December 1, at the “Blue” Colombo Hilton with the students unleashing their creativity on the ramp.
Singapore’s Stylemart at One Galle Face
Singapore-based designer Kavita Thulasidas launched her high fashion store ‘Stylemart’ at One Galle Face last week with many regulars among Colombo’s fashion scene attending the launch. Stylemart is launched in partnership with her friend, fellow Singaporean currently living in Sri Lanka Anita Dorai. The two had earlier staged a successful fashion show ‘Threads of Time’ [...]
Glow of Christmas at Shangri-La
Colombo is in festive mode and lighting up their beautifully glowing Christmas tree complete with a resplendent peacock, the Shangri-La Colombo announced their Christmas celebrations had begun.
A nod to the past, also the present
On Friday last week, just as the architect Channa Daswatte sat down for an interview with the Sunday Times, a ceiling was sliding into place at the Bentota Beach Hotel. Ena de Silva’s stunning batik design had been a key element in the building Geoffrey Bawa worked on between 1967 and 1969, and its restoration [...]