TV Times

TV Times

Sex films galore as filmgoers grumble
The tastes of local filmgoers appear to be taking a dangerous turn with most of the country's cinema halls dishing out films with 'Adults Only' tags.

Although English and Sinhala 'adults only' films were nothing common, in a disturbing move the audience is now served with a whole heap of sex films in Tamil and Hindi.

Genuine filmgoers charge that they are now deprived of watching good films with their families as most theatres have opted for the lucrative sex films.

In Colombo alone, theatres that at one time earned a reputation for screening wholesome family movies now seem to be giving in to low tastes by exhibiting these sex only films. The posters on city walls and the larger than life size cut-outs at the halls reveal the shocking story how things have changed with the free hand film distributors and importers got within a short period.

Concerned people ask how these films pass through the eyes of the local censor board, but some reliable sources charge that most films are shown to the censors minus the offending parts and once it passes through the censor board, those offending parts are tagged on to the film before they are screened.

The seriousness of this allegation should be a topic for debate if it is found to be true, but most filmgoers say this is not unusual given the alleged corrupt practices generally prevailing in every sphere in the country.

One cannot help but laugh at the cheap tactics adopted by those film promoters in trying to highlight the 'Adults Only' tag on their posters.

Some critics say, this is also similar to what happened with porn magazines, which were at one stage seized by the authorities, but now available in the open market.

If the relevant authorities do not act fast to curb this unhealthy trend in the interest of the country and its future generation, before long the ordinary man will have no films to watch with his family.

Patiently await 'Doctor's Paradise'
By Ramesh Uvais
'Doctor's Paradise' (Wedaduru Paradeesaya) is the newest Sinhala film that is now undergoing final touches and would be ready to hit the silver screen before long.

Mahendra Perera, Deepal Silva and Ananda Wickramage in a scene from the film

The film appears to be significant for many reasons, but the high point is that there are about a dozen who are making their film debuts with 'Doctor's Paradise'.

The film's producer Nihal Piyasiri, Director Samanpriya Marasinghe and Music director Tharupathi Munasinghe are among that debutant list.

Talking about his debut directorial venture, the film's director Samanpriya Marasinghe- who is no stranger in the showbiz arena - says the film is a novel attempt in making a 'serious' comedy film.

"Do you think there is still a market for comedy films in Sri Lanka?"

Sanoja, Deepal and Veena in a scene from 'Doctor's Paradise'

"Of course, there is a good market for comedy films here. Our people possess a fine sense of humour, but its unfair to make cheap comedy films and later blame the public for not accepting them," stresses director Samanpriya, who has been in the showbiz for more than 23 years. The one time powerful figure behind Nihal Silva's Sergeant Nallathambi, Samanpriya was also involved in the small screen and cassette production too. Going through his track record, he appears to be man who never likes to limit himself to one facet in the entertainment spectrum.

The film's producer T.P.H. Nihal Piyasiri is also making the big leap into the celluloid world for the first time with 'Doctor's Paradise'.

Justifying his decision to invest in this venture, producer Nihal Piyasiri says that firstly he had trust in the director and secondly he felt the atmosphere in the country was gradually turning out to be peaceful.

"What's the big point in making films if the people have no peace to enjoy them. While hoping that lasting peace would dawn in the country, I wish to dedicate this film to all peace loving people in Sri Lanka. In fact, we held the Muhurath ceremony of the film on Thaipongal day and started shooting on Mahasivarathri day. The final touches of the film were done during the Sinhala New year and Vesak season. Significantly, we shot the whole film just under 20 days during the holy Islamic month, Muharram. So, I believe this interestingly structured film would cater to all Sri Lankans, irrespective of race, religion and language barriers," Nihal Piyasiri says.

Voicing his views further he commended not only his director Samanpriya's creative talent but also his ability to bring down production costs to a great extent.

While Samanpriya is going on in full swing with post-production work, we watch some rushes of a song sequence stretching into about 30 minutes but which has to be tightly edited to about just 3 minutes - by Samanpriya himself.

The basic story line, we are told revolves around a hospital, a doctor and a nurse. The nurse, Asha Monarawila (Veena Jayakody) who had disappeared 19 years ago, suddenly emerges at the hospital and tells doctor Karaliyedda (Deepal Silva) to rescue his son from police custody. But the doctor is not aware of such a son. Then she explains and says the son who was on his way to see his father, was nabbed by police over an accident. But Dr. Karaliyedda has to attend a crucial seminar where he is scheduled to deliver a key talk. Caught in this muddle, Dr. Karaliyedda entrusts the job to one his colleagues, Dr. Panabokke (Mahendra Perera) to act as the father. So, the drama unfolds in a blend of love, fun and laughter. And the climax, after several hilarious reels, ends in the proverbial 'nail biting finish'.

Producer Nihal Piyasiri and director Samanpriya Marasinghe have taken several cinematic liberties to bring out the best in the star cast comprising Deepal Silva (of Me Rate Minissu fame), who makes his film debut as a hero, Veena Jayakody, who makes a comeback as a lead girl, Mahendra Perera, Sanoja Bibile, Ananda Wickramage, Ravindra Yasas, Neil Alles and Kanthi Fonseka who are ably supported by Sarath Kothalawela, Roshan Ravindra and Anoma Doloswela and other artistes.

Among the other debutants making a mark in films is Music director Tharupathi Munasinghe, Script writer S. Karunaratne, Camera director Pushpakumara Bandara Rajaguru and Dance directress Himali Siriwardene. A major appeal of the film also lies in the playback voices of Kithsiri Jayasekara, Shanika Wanigasekara, Deepal Silva and Uresha Ravihari, who tunefully help to carry the story forward.

The Sinhala film industry currently appears to be passing a bad patch, due to what most critics see as a credibility crisis. Week after week moviegoers are misled by huge promotional campaigns of new releases - most of which ultimately turn out to be trash. This trend has also resulted in potential film producers seriously re-thinking before dumping big money into the industry.

Amidst such a scenario, the willingness of producer Nihal Piyasiri (Amila Films) to trust his debutant director must be certainly commended. Hoping that his film would bring cheer to the local film industry, Piyasiri says he believes 'Doctor's Paradise' might pave the way to a 'Producer's Paradise' in the Sinhala cinema.

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