Features

A fine read from a fine writer

Published

4 years ago

2022/02/27

by Manik de Silva

Vijaya Chandrasoma, a not infrequent contributor to these pages, has published a selected compilation of his articles, adding an autobiographical section on his own life which the reader will see has had its many ups and downs. A wry sense of humour and an ability for self-deprecation in the pages dealing with his personal life makes the book a delight to read; not only because of his writing talent and ability to tell a good story, no doubt inherited from his father, M. Chandrasoma, a highly reputed Civil Servant from a previous age; but also that he’s had a most interesting life both in Sri Lanka where he was born, schooled and grew up, an interlude in the UK and thereafter in the USA where he emigrated in his middle years and lived for 20 years before returning home alone to ride out the last lap of his self-proclaimed “dissolute life.”

I have known Vicky, as he is known to both friends and family, from my boyhood. We lived in the same Kollupitiya neighbourhood and our fathers both belonged to the once much coveted Ceylon Civil Service, which they both prematurely quit for somewhat similar reasons. We were also distantly related from my mother’s side and I remember her calling Vicky’s father Tissa aiya, while my siblings and I called Chandrasoma Tissa mama, though there was not much social interaction between our two families.

The biographical section of the book, of which only a very limited edition has been published, was very much an afterthought. What was first intended to be an anthology of some of the articles he wrote for the newspaper had been expanded to include other material.

The author says in his preface that during the period of intense boredom brought about by the pandemic lockdowns, he thought about compiling a selection of his newspaper articles “and then got the notion to include something about my life, leaving out, of course, many parts that are best left unsaid.”

The title of the book “All Show and No Substance – A Cautionary Tale” is an example of the writer’s previously mentioned penchant (talent?) for self-deprecation. Few writers of autobiographies relish showing themselves in an uncomplimentary light. But Chandrasoma is an exception who freely admits his culpability for a failed marriage, which produced three high-achieving children, and for much else that went wrong in his life.

Vicky says he wrote the book primarily for his two grandchildren, Annika and Rohan, “that they may learn something about the life and times of their grandfather and the world in which he lived.” It may even come as some sort of handy manual, he believes, providing guidance on coping with the ‘slings and arrows of outrageous fortune’ that will inevitably come their way in the future.

Vicky’s father published a book of letters to his grandchildren, a generation earlier. These were brilliant expositions of this country, its culture and its religion, perhaps mostly meant for those of his grandchildren growing up abroad, cut away from the motherland.

But to get away from the author to the book itself, apart from the ‘peep show’ section which will no doubt appeal to the curiosity for which Lankans are notorious, there are some very readable snippets from Vicky’s life, including a section on a spell at Christ Church, Oxford, where he was ‘rusticated’ (“which is slightly better than being sent down”) and did not graduate, much to the disappointment of his parents.

Of his failure to obtain a first degree in Britain, despite the assistance he received from Gamini Goonasena, the famous cricketer then handling educational affairs at the Ceylon High Commission in London, Chandrasoma says: “Perhaps I can claim a Sri Lankan, if not a world record of having secured places at three of the finest universities in the world, Oxford, Cambridge and St. Andrew’s, and ending my academic career without a first degree. My father said I would regret this failure for the rest of my life, and he was right. I do, to this day. More than anything, I regret I did not give my parents the pride of seeing their son graduating from the most prestigious university in the world.” Vicky admits the sadness he feels for denying his parents this pleasure becomes even more acute, knowing the prideful feeling that his own high-achieving children have blessed him with – “pride that no one can take away from me.”

Apart from his university adventures (or misadventures), is a most interesting section of life as a teenager in London which included a night in jail, really a police lockup. There’s also a page on the family’s voyage to London on board the Dutch liner, the Willem Rhys (first class, no less, Tissa Chandrasoma having been recruited to the number two slot in the Shell Company in Ceylon, after he quit the CCS over a disagreement with Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike). The ocean crossing included what Vicky calls the “most innocent and true love affair” in his life with a 14-year-old Dutch girl who spoke no English. As he writes, it “was a wonderful love affair which has remained unimpaired in my mind entirely because we didn’t get to know anything at all about each other.”

The anecdotal essays include very readable (also self-deprecating) accounts on his return to Ceylon, a job as an articled clerk in a firm of chartered accountants (“I was not the least bit interested in a career in accounting”) his father fixed up for him at a salary of Rs. 35 a month. Addictions to alcohol and gambling gained momentum in Colombo; “a pretty busy social life, lots parties, drinking, gambling and very little work.” He sat for no accounting exams, gave himself a good time and confesses to “flashy, irresponsible behaviour that leaves me utterly ashamed today.” He drove his father’s head-turner Sunbeam Rapier, ran up club bills as though he was a rich man and had to regularly plead with his mother to bail him out before he was ‘posted’ as a defaulter at the various clubs of which he was a member.

Fast forward through jobs, marriage, children and an aborted attempt to start a new life in Australia. On his return to Colombo, some jobs he did, include a training assignment in Birmingham and Calcutta, some dabbling in the hospitality industry acting as a sales agent in Colombo for an Australian who had leased resort in the Maldives, replete with many amusing yarns of forming a tour company here, having his third child (a girl, the first in two generations of the Chandrasoma family where the score till then score read 12 – zero in favour of sons), before he began working for the Mahaweli Authority. While he does not claim it, he seems to have earned the same respect and affection of Minister Gamini Dissanayake as his father did with Sir John Kotelawela nearly half a century earlier.

When he joined the Mahaweli, his first job was as Project Coordinator, Kotmale Project. His functions had little to do with the Project. They were mainly political, representing the minister in his electorate, liaising with the trade unions and plantation managers, enjoying perks like being assigned a bungalow built for the Swedish engineers working for Skanska which he used as a base during his tours of the hill country. With all its appurtenances and luxuries (clubhouse, squash court, restaurant and swimming pool) and salubrious location, it was a wonderful vacation spot for his family and friends.

When Gamini Dissanayake (GD) discovered his writing skills (typically Vicky downplays them as “better than average”), he was appointed Director, Mahaweli Center in Colombo. In addition to managing the Center, he acted in the capacity of Press Secretary, responsible for publicity and all English language communications, including script writing for both the Minister and the Authority. He was also responsible for the final edit of the ill-fated Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord.

Chandrasoma had married a Tamil Catholic from Kayts, “an island paradise in those days,” much to his mother’s horror. Vicky jokes that she committed suicide three times, until a few years after the marriage, when she grew to love her. He tells me that his father’s one comment was, “You realize that marriage is a helluva big step?”. Truer words have never been spoken. He writes affectionately and endearingly about both his mother-in-law and sister-in-law. Despite the later failed marriage, Vicky is able to generously describe his wife thus:

“As it happened, this soft, lovely lady with origins from Kayts, off the shores of Jaffna (an astrologer had once told his mother that he would marry a lady from across the seas) was one I couldn’t have found had I traversed the four corners of the world. A soft and chaste beauty blunted by the harsh, unforgivable reality of a failed marriage.”

I remember Vicky’s wife once accompanying him to the newsroom of the old Ceylon Observer where I then worked, obviously on Gamini Dissanayake-related business. She turned all heads.

Fast forward again, various permutations and combinations of the way politics was played when the Premadasa – Dissanayake – Athulathmudali rivalry for the top slot saw President Premadasa, who had won, moving GD from Mahaweli to Plantations and then taking the Plantation Ministry away from him. GD was thus reduced to a backbencher in 1990. In these circumstances, he decided to leave for Cambridge for post graduate studies in law.

Chandrasoma says, “I believe he was more concerned about the health of his body than the development of his mind. Before he left, he advised me, in the interest of my own continued good health and safety, to duck out of sight for a while. I applied for six months’ paid overseas leave from the Mahaweli Authority, a privilege available to Mahaweli executives. I then obtained a tourist visa to the United States and headed to Los Angeles with a couple of thousand dollars in my pocket.”

He writes of GD: “I could not have imagined a kinder and more compassionate boss, one who could get the best out of the people who worked for him, with encouragement and approval. Personally, he gave me the opportunity to redeem myself after a lifetime of wrong choices, and made me feel that I was making a significant contribution to the welfare and democracy of our country.”

Before I close, a word on Chandrasoma’s newspaper essays over the past few years that are a part of this book. Very conscious of what America has done for him and his family, and the fact that his children and grandchildren will continue to live and flourish there, he does not hide his abhorrence of Donald Trump, white supremacy, slavery, and the treatment of coloured people in the USA. These views have all been forthright, and the undeniably hard punches he has thrown are very much the result of deeply held convictions. While I have no doubt that like-minded readers (do we find any Trump aficionados in our country?) would have enjoyed his commentary, I believe that it will be the personal part of this volume that will draw the most interest.

The story continues to Los Angeles and Phoenix, Arizona, 1990 to 2009. It covers a lot of ground, all of it most interesting and eminently readable. But I will not take away the pleasure of reading it all from the many who will relish it. However, there has been a very limited print run and it probably will not be freely available in the bookshops.

Those interested may contact the author at vkchandrasoma@gmail.com.

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Features

‘There are no private universities in Sri Lanka’ – some considerations for higher education reform

Published

8 hours ago

2026/07/21

Thilina Walpola

Academics involved in education policy like to say that there is no such thing as a private university in Sri Lanka. The only ‘universities’ in the country are state universities; anything else offering degrees is a private higher education institution (HEI). This position is technically accurate. Yet, in the discourse and imagination of the public, private universities are very real – people teach in them, students register in them, families pay fees, and such degree holders enter job markets in Sri Lanka and outside.

For decades, activists concerned for public higher education have ignored or resisted looking at private HEIs, as if such scrutiny would taint them. Others have worked in both types of institutions, carrying practices from each to the other. The apex body governing state universities, the UGC, has, meanwhile, ignored the concept of conflict of interest and appointed individuals in private higher education in committees and leadership positions. It is unsurprising then that some of the ideologies informing private higher education appear in reform agendas in the state sector.

This is a good time then to consider the varying types of private HEIs around us, and to take a look at some of the issues within them in the hope that higher education reform agendas will include private, as well as state higher education.

What is a ‘private university’?

First, some clarifications. In the public imaginary, a ‘private university’ is typically an institution that provides a foreign or local degree for which the student makes a payment. But this broad classification encompasses a host of diverse institutions and types of degrees which I detail below.

The Non-State Higher Education Division (NSHE) of the Ministry of Education has recognised 295 degrees by 32 institutions. Most of these are private companies and include a handful of established, well-known private HEIs that are ‘university like’. The degrees are local degrees conferred by the institutions accredited by the NSHE Division. While private HEIs conferring local degrees must be accredited by the NSHE Division, there appears to be no legal consequence for not doing so. In addition, there are several permutations of the private degree that miss the net of this Division and the Standing Committee on Accreditation and Quality Assurance (SCAQA) that assists this Division.

For one, degrees conferred by foreign universities offered, via these same private HEIs, are not vetted by the NSHE Division. Secondly, there is a growing plethora of private HEIs which have either no physical presence locally or only a dubious presence. The University Grants Commission has notified the public, through their website, that foreign universities listed in the Commonwealth Universities Yearbook and the World Higher Education Database are recognised, but refrained from giving any other details – which degrees? Offered by what modes? These details are not known. Some of the foreign universities in the lists may be legitimate entities in their own land but the degrees conferred locally, in their name, may not adhere to curriculum or teaching specifications of the NSHE Division or the UGC.

Another troubling phenomenon is the ‘top up degree’, which appears to work on the same principle as that of a pre-paid mobile connection: if I have a Diploma or an HND of a sort, I am eligible to complete a course of study which provides me with a degree, usually from a foreign university. The idea that someone who does not initially qualify for a degree programme should be able to work their way towards one is a progressive notion. This is the concept that open and distance learning (ODL) was based on initially, but which is now sadly exploited. ODL models are expected to provide opportunity for learning for those who may be excluded from traditional learning institutions. In Sri Lanka, however, we have seen ODL become a marketplace offering easy to obtain, for-fee qualifications by institutions with little commitment to superior teaching and learning.

Finally, a perusal of the many types of private HEIs and their varied degrees bring to mind another question – how should the private degrees, provided by state institutions (that are not educational institutions), be regulated? Who should do so?

All of these create a host of problems for the public – for hopeful students and parents and trusting employers. For the higher education sector, recruitment of academic staff, too, has become difficult due to this plethora of ambiguous higher education qualifications, as I discussed in a previous Kuppi article (‘Recruiting academics to state universities’).

Some issues in private HEIs – a bellwether for change in state universities

In this second part of this article, I will discuss some aspects of work in private HEIs – albeit the more established institutions – given that such issues may appear in reform agendas in future.

Across state universities, all permanent staff of a specific category are paid according to the same criteria. The picture is not so clear when it comes to private HEIs since they are different entities legally, typically companies. Private HEIs have salary scales and financial incentives that are different to each other. The more established private HEIs reportedly have attractive renumeration packages, possibly a reason for academics of state universities migrating eagerly to such institutions during sabbatical years and on retirement. This may not of course be the case with other less established, or improperly registered HEIs of which we know little. Academic staff of these more accepted private HEIs seem to value the high financial remuneration they receive (in comparison to state universities) as something that makes their work rewarding.

Attractive remuneration is important to sustain the good life and is at times seen as the institution’s way of encouraging good work. Yet, this has implications for the future of the institution: to continue to deliver on promised financial packages, institutions must continue to have large profit margins. One strategy has been to enroll multiple cohorts of students per year, even up to three or four intakes per year. This can result in exploitative work conditions, since staff must cater to all these cohorts in that same year. If there is inadequate staff, employees are further burdened. On the other hand, if there is a sudden drop in enrolments (degrees can go out of fashion) unexpected layoffs occur. Similar to other sectors that employ short-term contract staff – including state universities – in private HEIs, too, individual teachers, who are on short term contracts that need regular renewal, can feel pressured to work under difficult or exploitative conditions.

At the same time, even in the more established private HEIs, work norms differ from those of state universities in that they include promotional work that keeps the institution’s name in the eye of the public. The Marketing (or similarly named) unit comes up in conversations as one of the most important departments. It appears to weigh in on decision-making related to the number of staff, the amount of re-sits per exams, and other pedagogically important matters. This is a worrying example of how financial rationales interfere with pedagogically or academically sound processes, resulting in problematic results in the classroom. On the plus side, junior colleagues, who had experience in both state and private HEIs, also felt that they faced less harassment in private HEIs – primarily due to the private HEIs ability to take swift action in reported cases of harassment. This is a real indictment on state institutions and their reluctance to address chronic issues of harassment in our universities.

Yet, while we hear much about problems in state universities, we hardly hear of problems that staff in private HEIs face. One rationale for a lack of public expressions by staff is that expressions of discontent might lead to trouble given the importance of reputation for private HEIs. The worry about reputational damage is a growing concern in state universities, too, as evidenced by social media policies and internal conversations on reputational damage, consequent to negative publicity. Institutional worries of reputational damage are harmful in the long run since these impact not only freedom of expression by student and staff, but also research that is possible in and about the education sector.

Some thoughts at the end…

A close look at the private higher education sector is important given its strong presence in the country. Impending reform needs to regulate this diverse array of higher education offerings in the private sector, as well as the state institutions that offer privately-funded options of higher education (a topic for a separate Kuppi on its own). It is time we carefully considered how to build a whole system of higher education out of this broken mess.

Kaushalya Perera is a senior lecturer at the University of Colombo.

Kuppi is a politics and pedagogy happening on the margins of the lecture hall that parodies, subverts, and simultaneously reaffirms social hierarchies.

Features

Ready for solo spotlight

Published

8 hours ago

2026/07/21

Thilina Walpola

Nish Peiris: Excited about future plans

Singer Nish Peiris is set to take the next big step in her music journey.

The talented vocalist, who has been seen and heard in the scene here for a short while, and was also featured with the now-defunct band, Inner Vision, has announced that she will be fully committing to her solo career, after completing her degree this year.

“I’m finishing my degree this year, and after that I’ll be fully committing to my solo music career,” Nish told The Island.

“I’ve already got a few tours lined up for next year, so I’m really excited for what’s ahead.”

Fans, no doubt, will remember Nish for her smooth voice and stage presence, and the good news is that she is now ready to chart her own path and bring new music to audiences at home and abroad.

With tours already planned for 2027, the year 2026 promises to be an exciting year for the young artiste as she steps into the spotlight on her own.

We wish Nish every success in this new chapter!

Features

Exclusive musical evening for Sri Lankans in Toronto

Published

8 hours ago

2026/07/21

Thilina Walpola

Toronto Ceymphony Live Band, with Sri Lankans doing the needful

While Sri Lankan music lovers, in Dubai, are eagerly looking forward to being a part of the action on Saturday, 25th July, with Rajiv Sebastian in the limelight, Sri Lankans, in Toronto, Canada, are equally excited and are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Sri Lanka’s famous singer/entertainer Sohan Weerasinghe.

Having done the needful with The X-Periments, the legendary performer has now embarked on an exciting new chapter – a solo career – and Toronto, Canada, will see him do the needful, on Friday, 31st July, 2026, from 8.00 pm to 12.00 am, at the Angus Glen Golf Club.

Sohan Weerasinghe: In Canada, and ready to do the needful on 31st July

Reports indicate that it’s a ‘sold out’ event – naturally with Sohan in the spotlight.

Gamini Hemalal: Creating all the excitement for Sri Lankans in Toronto

Having built his reputation through years of unforgettable performances, and hits that became part of our musical fabric, Sohan is ready to bring his own vision, sound, and stories directly to the audience, in Toronto, Canada, backed by the phenomenal Toronto Ceymphony Live Band.

Says Gamini Hemalal, who has been instrumental in reviving the Sri Lankan entertainment scene, in that part of the world:

“The countdown begins for the most exclusive musical event of the summer! Join us for a premium night of incredible music, elite hospitality, and a lavish buffet as the legendary Sohan Weerasinghe takes the stage live in Toronto!

“This is a high-end event, designed for those who appreciate exceptional entertainment and great food.”

Gamini, who is also a member of the Toronto Ceymphony Live Band, mentioned that it’s going to be an intimate musical evening with the celebrated Sohan Weerasinghe.

From packed auditoriums to intimate shows, Sohan continues to prove why he remains one of Sri Lanka’s most beloved entertainers.

For decades, Sohan Weerasinghe has been a household name in Sri Lankan entertainment.

Known for his captivating smooth voice and charismatic stage presence, Canada will experience it all on Friday, 31st July.

Next on the list of events, Gamini Hemal is working on, is Halloween night and he says “what we plan to do will be very interesting and unique … with a surprise guest star, as well!”