Her consent or her desire? It doesn't matter.
Rajiv Rajah was just 21. Someone whose life was movies, MTV and music-not
books. He drove a big car, carried a mobile phone in one hand and a lady
friend in his arms. After passing out of school he joined Zee TV as a production
man, worked 14-16 hours on Zee programmes such as Insight, Special Report.
Today Rajiv is the most talked about 21 year old in New Delhi. Monica
Malik was 27. She loved flowers, cards, good clothes, perfumes and life
itself. She had a Maruti car, a mobile phone and enjoyed movies. The latest
film she saw was Godzilla. She graduated from the Delhi University with
English honours. She too had worked for Zee TV as a production woman, with
the evening English news bulletins and sports shows.
Today Monica is the most talked about 27-year-old in New Delhi.
Rajiv and Monica were found dead on August 4 inside Rajiv's car parked
in a garage.
Todate the mystery remains unsolved with new angles emerging every day
and has been in the front page of all the newspapers since August 5.
People in Delhi say that no other crime has been under so much of media
glare as the Rajiv-Monica case. The incident has raised a lot of speculation
regarding the motive of the crime, the involvement of a third party and
the failure of the police to examine all aspects of the crime before jumping
to conclusions.
The case has thrown up a major challenge to the Delhi Police who are
trying very hard to refurbish their image. Two young lives have been snatched
away. Not by the wind, and the parents of Rajiv and Monica know that their
children will never be back but they want to know how and why they went
away.
I spend my free time at Zee TV in Delhi, where the action is and was
able to name a face I saw once, after August 4. That was Monica.
Looking for gigolos
Radhika Chandramani runs a sex-related help line TARSHI. The helpline
has been in existence in the capital, New Delhi, for sometime and she has
received a number of calls relating to group and experimental sex. Most
from men. When questioned whether the wife is a willing participant the
general reply has been "her consent or her desire? It doesn't matter."
It was recently that Editor of Femina Sathya Saran said that most Indian
men are chauvinist and Shobha De wrote a book How to Survive Indian Men.
Chandramani says against this backdrop most Indian women are now actively
looking for gigolos and escorts because they feel it is rightfully theirs."
Namrita Gokhale who runs a column on human relations says that "Delhi
is one of the most hurtful cities, a cauldron of broken contracts. There
is no nurturing of values. This purchased closeness is actually a sign
of desperate loneliness, not an opening of two human beings" clinical
psychologists Sadhana Vohara adds. "The fact that India has the largest
number of prostitutes in the world shows how repressed we are".
STOP OVER: India celebrated 51 years of Independence on August 15. Rains,
balloons, flags, Vajpayee's backaches and nuclear power. It was declared
a dry day. That means no liquor was available. This poor Sri Lankan who
wanted to celebrate India's Independence with a beer was asked to have
an Indian Lassi at the Le Meridian. French style Indian smile.
She has a way with words
By Alya Henry
Recently I was invited to lunch with Alfreda de Silva. I heard she was
not well and wondered how I'd find the lady who insists on writing against
her doctor's wishes. Alfreda's reviews, reminiscences and poems often appear
in the Daily News or The Sunday Times. It's lesson for us who tire, get
winded, catch writer's cramp or mental blocks.
Prior to this, an American friend told me the news which later I read
about in Colombo papers that amongst Sri Lankan panoply of literary stars
Alfreda was singled out by winning a prestigious award, at a worldwide
poetry competition known as the Salute the Arts, sponsored by the Triton
College School of Art and Science, USA.
A word about Salute the Arts. This worldwide poetry competition merits
commendation. It aims at 'an international sharing of personal triumphs
and tragedies, which are part of the human experience'. The 1998 themes
were Innocence, Adversity, and Disillusionment. Alfreda's poem Moon Song
in the category of Innocence, intrigued, charmed, and won the hearts and
minds of the judges.
Alfreda has a way with words: her poems appeal to a variety of people.
In the past few decades Alfreda won many awards for poetry and literature.
Many times the awards offered her opportunities to travel abroad to the
USA and UK. She has five books of poetry published; three of them for children.
Her poetry is being taught in schools in Sri Lanka and the USA. She has
done poetry readings for radio, schools, and universities in Sri Lanka
and abroad. In 1994 she won the Zonta International Award for Creative
Writing. Alfreda is listed in the Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century
Poetry in English edited by Ian Hamilton.
Which reminds me, while travelling in Australia, not so long ago, driving
my car on a deserted highway between Canberra's far-flung suburbs, I heard
a haunting poem being read on the ABC. It was a surprise to me because
the poem First Blood, sounded strangely familiar. Back in Colombo I searched
my bookshelf and found it in a slim publication, a collection of poems
titled Unpredictable Blood. Needless to say, Alfreda's poetry is known,
and admired not only within, but also beyond the shores of Sri Lanka.
In the short time I have got to know Alfreda and her poetry I've come
to admire her personal stoicism, and her range of skills. On the one hand
she can tirelessly ad lib at a breakfast talk-show, on the other hand she
can give an erudite talk on The Place of Poetry in the Teaching of English
(British Council, for SLATE-Sri Lankan Association of Teachers of English)
During our discussion, Alfreda brought out poetic samples from her vast
memory bank, and illustrated talking-points with a stanza here, a poem
there: she could recall jingles or nursery rhymes at the drop of a hat.
The poets she favoured were not only de La Mare, A..A. Milne, R.L. Stevenson,
or Shakespeare, but also more contemporary ones like E. Dickinson.
As a teacher, Alfreda developed a method of presentation based on her
thorough education in English and a supreme love for poetry. She is devoted
to her craft, and believes in the importance of poetry in language teaching,
she advocates its incorporation into various areas of the school curriculum.
Alfreda's passion for literature and poetry evolved into a lifelong
philosophy of life and education: she is generous with her time and experience,
and is kind to aspiring young artists, encouraging the flames of creativity
originality and imagination in writers, poets and dramatists.
 Tissa
creates his Maya for TV
Quality is the hallmark of Tissa Abeysekera's creations, whether it
be a film, a teledrama, a book or anything in the field of arts. Thus his
latest creation, Maya will be eagerly followed by televiewers who are assured
of first class entertainment every Saturday evening on Rupavahini.
Glimpses of the teledrama seen in the introductory programme telecast
last week would have convinced everyone that Tissa understands the medium
well. And in Maya he tackles a complex subject - rebirth.
Tissa has written the script based on the English novel by Manel Abhayaratna,
which she describes as an attempt "to explain imaginatively the human
meaning of reincarnation - the tensions, the confusions, the self searching
it generates." He had earlier done a film script on Maya (directed
by Sumitra Pieris and screened 14 years ago), but for the teledrama he
has revised it. Viewers will notice the changes as the story progresses.
Once again Tissa has succeeded in getting the best out of his team.
Acting is at a high level with talented players like Asoka Peiris (a university
professor), Vasanthi Chaturani (a simple and ill fated woman from the Kotmale
valley), Daya Alwis (husband), Roger Seneviratne (a clerk with an overpowering
desire for social climbing), Radha de Mel (the professor's unhappy wife),
and Maureen Charuni (traditional Kandyan girl married to the clerk) turning
out polished perfomances.
Photography by K. A. Dharmasena is also at a high level. Daya Punchihewa
has edited the teledrama. Rohana Weerasinghe has once again succeeded in
composing a music score to suit the mood of the story.
Tissa continues his habit of picking up an old favourite or two bringing
back nostalgic memories to many, particularly to those in Tissa's vintage.
It was 'Nil Ahas Kuse' in 'Mahagedera', and 'Podi Kurullane' on 'Pitagamkaroya'.
For Maya he has picked up 'Gumu Nade Dena Bambarage Dosina' and C. T. Fernando's
ever-popular 'Pinsiduwanne'.
All in all, Maya is bound to be a lively and entertaining teledrama.
Singer presentation
Continuing their commit- ment to the promotion of quality entertainment,
Singer has stepped in to finance and sponsor Maya. Obviously they were
happy with what Tissa did earlier - Vanasarana based on R L Spittel's Savage
Sanctuary which was also financed by Singer Agro Division.
"We have worked for a long time with Tissa. We have always allowed
him to work independent of any interference from the sponsors so that his
creativity as a gifted artiste will not be stifled," says Singer Chairman
Hemaka Amarasuriya.
This first teledrama to be financed by Singer was Gehenu Lamai directed
by Sumithra Pieris. The company had been in the forefront of sponsorship
of teledrama from the inception of television in Sri Lanka. Among these
were Palingu Menike, 'Ella Langa Walauwa', 'Irata Handana Mal', 'Mihikatage
Daruwo' and Martin Wickremesinghe's short stories.
On the FICC Jury
Serving on the jury at the 51st Locarno International Film Festival
held last week was Sri Lankan film journalist and film society activist,
Ranjanee Ratnavibhushana. She was nominated by the International Federation
of Film Societies to serve as a juror along with four others - Regina Naumann
(Germany), Martha Otte (Norway), Bridget McMahon (Ireland) and Christian
Lelarge (Switzerland).
Ranjanee, an executive committee member of the Asian Film Center and
Vice-President of the Sri Lanka Federation of Film Societies, edits Film
Annual Sri Lanka and is co-editor of 'Cinesith' film quarterly.
Sarachchandra festival
Coinciding with the sec- ond death anniversary of Professor Sarachchandra,
his dramas are being presented at the Elphinstone Theatre these days. The
festival is sponsored by Sri Lanka Telecom and entrance is free.
Plays to be staged in the next few days are Mahasara (Monday 24) Rattaran
& Elova Gihin Melova Ava (25), Ekata Mata Hina Hina & Wellavahum
(26), and Sinhabahu (27).
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