Midweek Review

Reminiscences of weaving of a cinematic tapestry

Published

2 years ago

2023/12/20

Sahan Weerasooriya

The 60th anniversary of the release of Gamperaliya falls today.

by Punya Heendeniya

Over these six decades many accolades have been bestowed upon the shoulder of the creator, and the masterpiece itself, without the touch of the sword. The Gamperaliya family was made up of such substantial names as Martin Wickremasinghe, Lester James Peries, Sumithra Gunawardane, Reggie Siriwardane, Willie Blake, Pandit Amaradewa, Henry Jayasena, Gamini Fonseka, Tissa Abeysekara, Ariyawansa Weerakkody, David Dharmakeerthi, Shanthilekha, Trilicia Gunawardane and not to mention Punya Heendeniya.

It was the first quarter of the 1960s, when my film, Kurulubedda, had just been released and that was the time I realised my mail bag was getting heavier and heavier by day. Kurulubedda made a significant impression on the film buffs as it carried a story woven around true-to-life rural characters. D.R Nanayakkara gave an excellent portrayal of a rather villainous character named Kaithan Bass. The producer of the film was John Amaratunga. The script writer was PKD Senevirathna. Sumithra had some family connections to Amaratunga.

When Cine Lanka production company decided to produce Gamperaliya, a national newspaper conducted a competition to select a girl to play the central character of the story, Nanda. They managed to select a girl. But our director par excellence was not happy about the choice. Sumithra, who was a shareholder of the production company, came into action and contacted Amaratunga and, via him, they invited me to Dr. Peries’ ancestral house in Dehiwala. Willie Blake did a photo shoot of me and LJP introduced Nanda of Gamperaliya to the cine world. I signed the contract.

Those were the days when we did not have cell phones or landlines to most areas. The only way of communication was by post or telegrams. I received a telegram from LJP giving the auspicious date when we were to shoot the first scene. We were to go and get settled down in the sprawling mansion called Kappina Walawwa in Balapitiya. We were requested to bring our own bed linen. The cast and crew went and occupied the mansion, and it became as lively as a bee hive from that day onwards.

Martin Wickremasinghe’s celebrated novel was scripted to be filmed by Reggie Siriwardane. Tissa Abeysekara, the young novice then, oversaw the script. We rehearsed our dialogue with him.

We did not have any religious ceremony before starting work, unlike the other film directors of Indian origin who held prayer platters with burning incense, on the muhurat day, for blessings. The director started shooting in the order of the script.

Lester directing Punya

Sumithra, whose presence in the group made us feel comfortable with her nonchalant demeanour, came to me and said, “Punya, today we do not have a make-up artist, you better do your own make-up”. So, the very first private tuition scene we did was with my make-up, which gave the effect of no make-up!

This simple make-up trend was carried out through the film by Rohana Mudannayaka, who was the soft-spoken genius in that art form. The food supplier to the production family was Benedict, who was the production manager. Our mealtimes were the happiest after the day’s hard work and we rallied round the magnificent dinner table above which was an ancient type of a pankawa (fan) made up of fine linen. The table was laid out with delicacies like bala maalu, rata del curry and rathu haal bath. There we had a carefree chit-chat and discussed the day’s work. Dr Peries’s bonhomie kept the group at ease.

The shooting went on for a couple of months. It was a system where men may come, and men may go but I carried on bearing the brunt of the central character from beginning to the end. Yet, I had a few short breaks. During my short film career there were only two instances of film work that overlapped, and that was Sikuru Tharuwa and Gampraliya. After one such short break I was coming back with my father to the walawwa. We felt as if Jim Reeves had landed from nowhere and the mansion reverberated with sonorous vocals to guitar music. It was none other than Priyanga Pieris of Eranga and Priyanga duo of fame those days. He joined the workforce for a few days. Any other day, we had the songs from Chitrasena’s Karadiya, Hoyiya hoyya for our entertainment.

Working under the auspices of the cool and calm LJP was a delight. His sense of humour was decent and reputable. It was the scene where Nanda gets angry when she receives a cup of malted milk, a gift from Piyal and she throws it away.

For this scene, I had to use a hard-to-find antique cup and saucer. For the rehearsal we used an empty condensed milk tin over the saucer. I inadvertently tried to throw both the tin and the saucer away, after which the director quipped: “Punya, you were trying to throw away both Peeris and Belek. referring to himself and Wille Blake.

As an obedient member of the family, Nanda has no freedom to express her feelings towards Piyal. She is restricted by family values and pulled back by the reins of so-called prestigious social systems that were rife during that era. She has to tell Piyal, when asked whether she loved him, mang danne nehe (I do not know), Amma kemathi nam mama kemathiyi (if Mother agrees, I, too, will).

One fine evening after a game of Panchi, Saadha, the family retainer, sweeps the garden and burns a heap of leaves. Nanda, leaning against a pillar of the west-facing the veranda, appears to be in a placid mood, perhaps dreaming of her tuition master. To create her unexpressed cheerful mood the director and Wilie Blake planned a skilful shot of the rays of the setting sun to seep through the smoke, creating an ethereal effect. The family retainer is as strict and caring as the parents are, and advises Nanda, saying: Punchi Nona geta yanna, beepu minissu ethi (please go inside, there may be drunkards)

Mixing of senior and junior artistes

It was the day that we were shooting the Sinhala Avurudu scene with Panchi playing, etc. All the major characters were present. Piyal, Nanda, Anula and the rest. The girl selected by the newspaper competition was there too. Her name was Jayanthi Manikkavadu. Young Thissa was played by Chandana Jayawardena (popularly known as Dr. Chandi Jayawardena in the hospitality industry circles)and the grown up Tissa was Wickrema Bogoda. Anula Karunathilaka played Laisa, whose love interest was grown-up Tissa. Anula K was waiting for the arrival of Wickerama Bogoda. Instead, young Chandana arrived. I realised the mistake and talked to the Director about the mix-up. Only then did they realise the grave disparity, and thanked me immensely for pointing it out. He was the down-to-earth Director par excellence.

On another occasion, we were to shoot the scene where Nanda gets the fatal letter from Karolis to say that Jinadasa had died. Dr. Peries talked to me and asked, “Punya, how would you react to a situation like this, getting such sad news?” I said, “I will go straight to my room and to my bed”. He arranged the scene accordingly. Such was his cooperation with artistes.

The two Weddings

: Lester and Punya

Nanda’s first wedding is carried out in a traditional way according to the wishes of the Kaisaruwatte family. Muhandiram is clad in his ceremonial regalia with all the decorations, Nanda as the bride in French Lame redda and kabakurutta (blouse) with all the family jewellery. Jinadasa is in a tweed redi-coat and looks dashingly handsome. Gamini Fonseka gave a memorable performance. But according to the family tale Nanda is not in a good mood with this arranged marriage.

The Poruwa ceremony was conducted by a real Magul Kapuva. As we proceeded with the delicate rituals of the wedding, one by one, from various camera angles, long shots, mid-shots and close ups, the Kapuva had to sanctify the couple’s tied fingers many times by pouring the sacred water over them. I heard him murmur: Magul valatath giya, mehema magulakata nam kavdaavath gihin nehe (I have been to so many weddings, never have been to a wedding like this).

Nanda’s second wedding

Time had flown. Now, the down-trodden Mahagedara (ancestral home) family, not having any news about Jinadasa, believes Karolis’s letter in which he says that had died in miserable conditions in the Badulla Hospital.

The nouveau riche Piyal, having amassed wealth in the city, starts visiting the Mahagedara. He would have been the happiest to hear about Jinadasa’s demise. True to the words of the first private tuition lesson, he is of the belief that if someone has money, they could even marry a princess. On these visits he tries to win over Nanda’s heart with words wrapped in fancy plumage. But she is of the belief that she is still married to Jinadasa, and evades his persuasive approaches.

On one such occasion Piyal, dressed in showy full-suit, calms his jittery nerves to make the indecent proposal to Nanda to come and live with him, later to get married when Jinadasa’s demise was confirmed.

Nanda, being a woman of substance, who observes pathivatha (fidelity), flatly rejects his offer with a burning glance, as if to say, “Who do you think I am?”. But Piyal maintains a stern determination in his Sisyphean task of winning her over.

As time goes by, Piyal frequents his visits to see her. Matara Hamine, Anula and Thissa discuss their impending marriage. Piyal organises a trip to offer Naamal at Paragoda temple and the family and friends join in on a bullock cart trip, a happy occasion where all the expenses of the trip are borne by affluent Piyal. On their break to replenish themselves with tea and kurumba, Nanda strays out to the distance from the crowd, yet under the scrutiny of Piyal, where she imagines, she sees someone like Jinadasa walking down from the chena fire. Was it a hallucination? But that man looked very like Jinadasa.

This encounter manages to unload the ballast of Piyal’s advances for the moment and sends her mind adrift. This scene was created by our creative genius LJP which was praised and admired by Martin Wickremsinge as one of the most meaningful scenes.

Nanda’s second wedding is a grand occasion in keeping with Piyal’s opulence. The band plays “He is a jolly good fellow” and all are happy. Nanda does not have the long face she had at the marriage with Jinadasa. She is joking with Piyal’s friends.

The day we shot this wedding scene, Martin Wickremasinghe turned up with his wife. LJP had a fine idea, and asked me to go to him and request him to appear as the Registrar of Marriages. For such things LJP and Sumithra always approached me. So, I went and said, “Sir, why don’t you appear as the Registrar and we all will be happy to have you”. He gave a loud laugh and said “No, no, no, I do not know acting”. That was the end of it.

Later, I regretted that I had not requested LJP to play the role of the Registrar. If he had agreed, it would have been a cameo reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock.

Gamperaliya family

We went on shooting for a fairly long time. Sometimes we acted as the make-up artist or background prop artist. I remember the day we shot the scene where Nanda confesses to Matara Hamine that Piyal’s love letters were Almaariya assata visikaraa, (thrown inside the almirah) and then burns the love letters in front of the mother. That day our Art Director, the famous mural artist Ariyawansa Weerakkody, was not present. The doors of the almirah looked bland to me without any marquetry. I took a piece of paper and a pair of scissors and cut some floral patterns and fixed them into the doors of the almirah. It gave the effect of ivory marquetry, which the Director approved of.

While working, I had the habit of drinking a cup of malted milk for sustenance. Dear Shanthi Lekha played a real mother to me, that day and brought me my cup. (Not what Piyal sent!). The unfortunate lady had had a fall on the way. She came to me and said Gemba polove gehuva vaage maava vetuna, eth mama malted milk aka bera gattha.” (I fell like a frog being smashed on the floor, but I did not spill the milk.) Such was our camaraderie!

I thought of reminiscing about these few minute details of behind-the-scenes as we celebrate the diamond anniversary of the release of Gamperaliya, a film so close to my heart. I can’t use the word “celebrate”, because I am alone, and all the other major decorative pillars of this mighty edifice are no more. At this moment, I remember with affection the author and all the members of the cast and crew who gave their impressive cooperation to complete this chef-d oeuvre which brought international fame to our country.

My deep reverence goes to Dr Lester James Peries for giving me the chance to be Nanda.

My affectionate regards to dear Sumithra, for being a sister to me throughout my short career.

My sadness about Henry Jayasena, for not winning the best actor award for playing Piyal’s character.

My homage to my father for giving me protection.

Who knows whether this octogenarian dame will be around to talk about the weaving of this cultural tapestry? Hence, I have penned these few anecdotes hopefully for the delight of the readers and fans.

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Midweek Review

Year ends with the NPP govt. on the back foot

Published

2 days ago

2025/12/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

President Dissanayake addresses Parliament as PM Dr. Harini Amarasuriya looks on. Dissanayake is the leader of both the JVP and NPP

The failure on the part of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) government to fulfil a plethora of promises given in the run up to the last presidential election, in September, 2024, and a series of incidents, including cases of corruption, and embarrassing failure to act on a specific weather alert, ahead of Cyclone Ditwah, had undermined the administration beyond measure.

Ditwah dealt a knockout blow to the arrogant and cocky NPP. If the ruling party consented to the Opposition proposal for a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to probe the events leading to the November 27 cyclone, the disclosure would be catastrophic, even for the all-powerful Executive President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, as responsible government bodies, like the Disaster Management Centre that horribly failed in its duty, and the Met Department that alerted about the developing storm, but the government did not heed its timely warnings, directly come under his purview.

The NPP is on the back foot and struggling to cope up with the rapidly developing situation. In spite of having both executive presidency and an overwhelming 2/3 majority in Parliament, the government seems to be weak and in total disarray.

The regular appearance of President Dissanayake in Parliament, who usually respond deftly to criticism, thereby defending his parliamentary group, obviously failed to make an impression. Overall, the top NPP leadership appeared to have caused irreparable damage to the NPP and taken the shine out of two glorious electoral victories at the last presidential and parliamentary polls held in September and November 2024 respectively.

The NPP has deteriorated, both in and out of Parliament. The performance of the 159-member NPP parliamentary group, led by Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, doesn’t reflect the actual situation on the ground or the developing political environment.

Having repeatedly boasted of its commitment to bring about good governance and accountability, the current dispensation proved in style that it is definitely not different from the previous lots or even worse. (The recent arrest of a policeman who claimed of being assaulted by a gang, led by an NPP MP, emphasised that so-called system change is nothing but a farce) In the run-up to the November, 2024, parliamentary polls, President Dissanayake, who is the leader of both the JVP and NPP, declared that the House should be filled with only NPPers as other political parties were corrupt. Dissanayake cited the Parliament defeating the no-confidence motions filed against Ravi Karunanayake (2016/over Treasury Bond scams) and Keheliya Rambukwella (2023/against health sector corruption) to promote his argument. However, recently the ongoing controversy over patient deaths, allegedly blamed on the administration of Ondansetron injections, exposed the government.

Mounting concerns over drug safety and regulatory oversight triggered strong calls from medical professionals, and trade unions, for the resignation of senior officials at the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) and the State Pharmaceutical Corporation (SPC).

Medical and civil rights groups declared that the incident exposed deep systemic failures in Sri Lanka’s drug regulatory framework, with critics warning that the collapse of quality assurance mechanisms is placing patients’ lives at grave risk.

The Medical and Civil Rights Professional Association of Doctors (MCRPA), and allied trade unions, accused health authorities of gross negligence and demanded the immediate resignation of senior NMRA and SPC officials.

MCRPA President Dr. Chamal Sanjeewa is on record as having said that the Health Ministry, NMRA and SPC had collectively failed to ensure patient safety, citing, what he described as, a failed drug regulatory system.

The controversy has taken an unexpected turn with some alleging that the NPP government, on behalf of Sri Lanka and India, in April this year, entered into an agreement whereby the former agreed to lower quality/standards of medicine imports.

Trouble begins with Ranwala’s resignation

The NPP suffered a humiliating setback when its National List MP Asoka Ranwala had to resign from the post of Speaker on 13 December, 2024, following intense controversy over his educational qualification. The petroleum sector trade union leader served as the Speaker for a period of three weeks and his resignation shook the party. Ranwala, first time entrant to Parliament was one of the 18 NPP National List appointees out of a total of 29. The Parliament consists of 196 elected and 29 appointed members. Since the introduction of the National List, in 1989, there had never been an occasion where one party secured 18 slots.

The JVP/NPP made an initial bid to defend Ranwala but quickly gave it up and got him to resign amidst media furor. Ranwala dominated the social media as political rivals exploited the controversy over his claimed doctorate from the Waseda University of Japan, which he has failed to prove to this day. But, the JVP/NPP had to suffer a second time as a result of Ranwala’s antics when he caused injuries to three persons, including a child, on 11 December, in the Sapugaskanda police area.

The NPP made a pathetic, UNP and SLFP style effort to save the parliamentarian by blaming the Sapugaskanda police for not promptly subjecting him for a drunk driving test. The declaration made by the Government Analyst Department that the parliamentarian hadn’t been drunk at the time of the accident, several days after the accident, does not make any difference. Having experienced the wrongdoing of successive previous governments, the public, regardless of what various interested parties propagated on social media, realise that the government is making a disgraceful bid to cover-up.

No less a person than President Dissanayake is on record as having said that their members do not consume liquor. Let us wait for the outcome of the internal investigation into the lapses on the part of the Sapugaskanda police with regard to the accident that happened near Denimulla Junction, in Sapugaskanda.

JVP/NPP bigwigs obviously hadn’t learnt from the Weligama W 15 hotel attack in December, 2023, that ruined President Ranil Wickremeinghe’s administration. That incident exposed the direct nexus between the government and the police in carrying out Mafia-style operations. Although the two incidents cannot be compared as the circumstances differ, there is a similarity. Initially, police headquarters represented the interests of the wrongdoers, while President Wickremesinghe bent over backwards to retain the man who dispatched the CCD (Colombo Crime Division) team to Weligama, as the IGP. The UNP leader went to the extent of speaking to Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya, PC, and Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to push his agenda. There is no dispute the then Public Security Minister Tiran Alles wanted Deshabandu Tennakoon as IGP, regardless of a spate of accusations against him, in addition to him being faulted by the Supreme Court in a high-profile fundamental rights application.

The JVP/NPP must have realised that though the Opposition remained disorganised and ineffective, thanks to the media, particularly social media, a case of transgression, if not addressed swiftly and properly, can develop into a crisis. Action taken by the government to protect Ranwala is a case in point. Government leaders must have heaved a sigh of relief as Ranwala is no longer the Speaker when he drove a jeep recklessly and collided with a motorcycle and a car.

Major cases, key developments

Instead of addressing public concerns, the government sought to suppress the truth by manipulating and exploiting developments

* The release of 323 containers from the Colombo Port, in January 2025, is a case in point. The issue at hand is whether the powers that be took advantage of the port congestion to clear ‘red-flagged’ containers.

Although the Customs repeatedly declared that they did nothing wrong and such releases were resorted even during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s presidency (July 2022 to September 2024), the public won’t buy that. Container issue remains a mystery. That controversy eroded public confidence in the NPP that vowed 100 percent transparency in all its dealings. But the way the current dispensation handled the Port congestion proved that transparency must be the last thing in the minds of the JVPers/NPPers holding office.

* The JVP/NPP’s much touted all-out anti-corruption stand suffered a debilitating blow over their failure to finalise the appointment of a new Auditor General. In spite of the Opposition, the civil society, and the media, vigorously taking up this issue, the government continued to hold up the appointment by irresponsibly pushing for an appointment acceptable to President Dissanayake. The JVP/NPP is certainly pursuing a strategy contrary to what it preached while in the Opposition and found fault with successive governments for trying to manipulate the AG. It would be pertinent to mention that President Dissanayake should accept the responsibility for the inordinate delay in proposing a suitable person to that position. The government failed to get the approval of the Constitutional Council more than once to install a favourite of theirs in it, thanks to the forthright position taken by its civil society representatives.

The government should be ashamed of its disgraceful effort to bring the Office of the Auditor General under its thumb:

* The JVP/NPP government’s hotly disputed decision to procure 1,775 brand-new double cab pickup trucks, at a staggering cost exceeding Rs. 12,500 mn, under controversial circumstances, exposed the duplicity of that party that painted all other political parties black. Would the government rethink the double cab deal, especially in the wake of economic ruination caused by Cyclone Ditwah? The top leadership seems to be determined to proceed with their original plans, regardless of immeasurable losses caused by Cyclone Ditwah. Post-cyclone efforts still remain at a nascent stage with the government putting on a brave face. The top leadership has turned a blind eye to the overwhelming challenge in getting the country back on track especially against the backdrop of its agreement with the IMF.

Post-Cyclone Ditwah recovery process is going to be slow and extremely painful. Unfortunately, both the government and the Opposition are hell-bent on exploiting the miserable conditions experienced by its hapless victims. The government is yet to acknowledge that it could have faced the crisis much better if it acted on the warning issued by Met Department Chief Athula Karunanayake on 12 November, two weeks before the cyclone struck.

Foreign policy dilemma

Sri Lanka moved further closer to India and the US this year as President Dissanayake entered into several new agreements with them. In spite of criticism, seven Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), including one on defence, remains confidential. What are they hiding?

Within weeks after signing of the seven MoUs, India bought the controlling interests in the Colombo Dockyard Limited for USD 52 mn.

Although some Opposition members, representing the SJB, raised the issue, their leader Sajith Premadasa, during a subsequent visit to New Delhi, indicated he wouldn’t, under any circumstances, raise such a contentious issue.

Premadasa went a step further. The SJB leader assured his unwavering commitment to the full implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution that was forced on Sri Lanka during President JRJ’s administration, under the highly questionable Indo-Lanka Accord of July, 1987, after the infamous parippu drop by Indian military aircraft over Jaffna, their version of the old gunboat diplomacy practiced by the West.

Both India and the US consolidated their position here further in the post-Aragalaya period. Those who felt that the JVP would be in a collision course with them must have been quite surprised by the turn of events and the way post-Aragalaya Sri Lanka leaned towards the US-India combine with not a hum from our carboard revolutionaries now installed in power. They certainly know which side of the bread is buttered. Sri Lanka’s economic deterioration, and the 2023 agreement with the IMF, had tied up the country with the US-led bloc.

In spite of India still procuring large quantities of Russian crude oil and its refusal to condemn Russia over the conflict in Ukraine, New Delhi has obviously reached consensus with the US on a long-term partnership to meet the formidable Chinese challenge. Both countries feel each other’s support is incalculably vital and indispensable.

Sri Lanka, India, and Japan, in May 2019, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) to jointly develop the East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Colombo Port. That was during the tail end of the Yahapalana administration. The Gotabaya Rajapaksa administration wanted to take that project forward. But trade unions, spearheaded by the JVP/NPP combine, thwarted a tripartite agreement on the basis that they opposed privatisation of the Colombo Port at any level.

But, the Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) project, that was launched in November, 2022, during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s presidency, became fully operational in April this year. The JVP revolutionary tiger has completely changed its stripes regarding foreign investments and privatisation. If the JVP remained committed to its previous strategies, India taking over CDL or CWIT would have been unrealistic.

The failure on the part of the government to reveal its stand on visits by foreign research vessels to ports here underscored the intensity of US and Indian pressure. Hope our readers remember how US and India compelled the then President Wickremesinghe to announce a one-year moratorium on such visits. In line with that decision Sri Lanka declared research vessels wouldn’t be allowed here during 2024. The NPP that succeeded Wickremesinghe’s administration in September, 2024, is yet to take a decision on foreign research vessels. What a pity?

The NPP ends the year on the back foot, struggling to cope up with daunting challenges, both domestic and external. The recent revelation of direct Indian intervention in the 2022 regime change project here along with the US underscored the gravity of the situation and developing challenges. Post-cyclone period will facilitate further Indian and US interventions for obvious reasons.

****

Perhaps one of the most debated events in 2025 was the opening of ‘City of Dreams Sri Lanka’ that included, what the investors called, a world-class casino. In spite of mega Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan’s unexpected decision to pull out of the grand opening on 02 August, the investors went ahead with the restricted event. The Chief Guest was President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who is also the Finance Minister, in addition to being the Defence Minister. Among the other notable invitees were Dissanayake’s predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe, whose administration gave critical support to the high-profile project, worth over USD 1.2 bn. John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH) and Melco Resorts & Entertainment (Melco) invested in the project that also consist of the luxurious Nüwa hotel and a premium shopping mall. Who would have thought President Dissanayake’s participation, even remotely, possible, against the backdrop of his strong past public opposition to gambling of any kind?

Don’t forget ‘City of Dreams’ received a license to operate for a period of 20 years. Definitely an unprecedented situation. Although that license had been issued by the Wickremesinghe administration, the NPP, or any other political party represented in Parliament, didn’t speak publicly about that matter. Interesting, isn’t it, coming from people, still referred by influential sections of the Western media, as avowed Marxists?

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Midweek Review

The Aesthetics and the Visual Politics of an Artisanal Community

Published

2 days ago

2025/12/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Through the Eyes of the Patua:

Organised by the Colombo Institute for Human Sciences in collaboration with Millennium Art Contemporary, an interesting and unique exhibition got underway in the latter’s gallery in Millennium City, Oruwala on 21 December 2025. The exhibition is titled, ‘Through the Eyes of the Patua: Ramayana Paintings of an Artisanal Community’ and was organized in parallel with the conference that was held on 20 December 2025 under the theme, ‘Move Your Shadow: Rediscovering Ravana, Forms of Resistance and Alternative Universes in the Tellings of the Ramayana.’ The scrolls on display at the gallery are part of the over 100 scrolls in the collection of Colombo Institute’s ‘Roma Chatterji Patua Scroll Collection.’ Prof Chatterji, who taught Sociology at University of Delhi and at present teaches at Shiv Nadar University donated the scrolls to the Colombo Institute in 2024.

The paintings on display are what might be called narrative scrolls that are often over ten feet long. Each scroll narrates a story, with separate panels pictorially depicting one component of a story. The Patuas or the Chitrakars, as they are also known, are traditionally bards. A bard will sing the story that is depicted by each scroll which is simultaneously unfurled. For Sri Lankan viewers for whom the paintings and their contexts of production and use would be unusual and unfamiliar, the best way to understand them is to consider them as a comic strip. In the case of the ongoing exhibition, since the bards or the live songs are not a part of it, the word and voice elements are missing. However, the curators have endeavoured to address this gap by displaying a series of video presentations of the songs, how they are performed and the history of the Patuas as part of the exhibition itself.

The unfamiliarity of the art on display and their histories, necessitates broader explanation. The Patua hail from Medinipur District of West Bengal in India. Essentially, this community of artisans are traditional painters and singers who compose stories based on sacred texts such as the Ramayana or Mahabharata as well as secular events that can vary from the bombing of the Twin Towers in New York in 2001 to the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004. Even though painted storytelling is done by a number of traditional artisan groups in India, the Patua is the only community where performers and artists belong to the same group. Hence, Professor Chatterji, in her curatorial note for the exhibition calls them “the original multi-media performers in Bengal.”

‘The story of the Patuas’ also is an account of what happens to such artisanal communities in contemporary times in South Asia more broadly even though this specific story is from India. There was a time before the 21st century when such communities were living and working across a large part of eastern India – each group with a claim to their recognizably unique style of painting. However, at the present time, this community and their vocation is limited to areas such as Medinipur, Birbhum, Purulia in West Bengal and Dumka in Jharkhand.

A pertinent question is how the scroll painters from Medinipur have survived the vagaries of time when others have not. Professor Chatterji provides an important clue when she notes that these painters, “unlike their counterparts elsewhere, are also extremely responsive to political events.” As such, “apart from a rich repertoire of stories based on myth and folklore, including the Ramayana and other epics, they have, over many years, also composed on themes that range from events of local or national significance such as boat accidents and communal violence to global events such as the tsunami and the attack on the World Trade Centre.”

There is another interesting aspect that becomes evident when one looks into the socio-cultural background of this community. As Professor Chatterji writes, “one significant feature that gives a distinct flavour to their stories is the fact that a majority of Chitrakars consider themselves to be Muslims but perform stories based largely on Hindu myths.” In this sense, their story complicates the tension-ridden dichotomies between ethno-cultural and religious groups typical of relations between groups in India as well as more broadly in South Asia, including in Sri Lanka. Prof Chatterji suggests this positionality allows the Patua to have “a truly secular voice so vital in the world that we live in today.”

As a result, she notes, contemporary Patuas “have propagated the message of communal harmony in their compositions in the context of the recent riots in India and the Gulf War. Their commentaries couched in the language of myth are profoundly symbolic and draw on a rich oral tradition of storytelling.” What is even more important is their “engagement with contemporary issues also inflects their aesthetics” because many of these painters also “experiment with novel painterly values inspired by recent interaction with new media such as comic books and with folk art forms from other parts of the country.”

From this varied repertoire of the Patuas’ painterly tradition, this exhibition focusses on scrolls portraying different aspects of the Ramayana. In North Indian and the more dominant renditions of the Ramayana, the focus is on Rama while in many alternate renditions this shifts to Ravana as typified by versions popular among the Sinhalas and Tamils in Sri Lanka as well as in some areas in several Indian states. Compared to this, the Patua renditions in the exhibition mostly illustrate the abduction of Sita with a pronounced focus on Sita and not on Ravana, the conventional antagonist or on Rama, the conventional protagonist. As a result, these two traditional male colossuses are distant. Moreover, with the focus on Sita, these folk renditions also bring to the fore other figures directly associated with her such as her sons Luv and Kush in the act of capturing Rama’s victory horse as well as Lakshmana.

Interestingly, almost as a counter narrative, which also serves as a comparison to these Ramayana scrolls, the exhibition also presents three scrolls known as ‘bin-Laden Patas’ depicting different renditions on the attack on New York’s Twin Towers.

While the painted scrolls in this collection have been exhibited thrice in India, this is the first time they are being exhibited in Sri Lanka, and it is quite likely such paintings from any community beyond Sri Lanka’s shores were not available for viewing in the country before this. Organised with no diplomatic or political affiliation and purely as a Sri Lankan cultural effort with broader South Asian interest, it is definitely worth a visit. The exhibition will run until 10 January 2026.