Monumental moment!

This article was originally published in Daily News on August 6.

When the 45-year old journalist who had already made his career as a filmmaker entered Asoka Hall in 1964, he sensed the limelight. He was a mere Lester James Peries with no credentials to his name. Yet he could reach for many trophies with much ease. The limelight was soon to be in his favour.

The strange turn of fate brought another audience member who was only 20 years back then. 54 years later, he graced the occasion as the country’s Prime Minister to recall how things unfolded back then a few metres away from the conventional VIP lecture pedestal. The 34th Cargills Sarasaviya Film Festival, held at the BMICH on August 3, was themed to pay tribute to Dr Lester James Peries. Dr Peries is known not only for his meteoric rise to the ecclesiastical echelons of local cinema but also for the illumed presence right throughout the Sarasaviya Film Festival chronology.

The country’s oldest film festival returned to the stellar gallery following a brief spell of absence. The return was not easy as quite a few festivals have already joined the ring to steal the show. The Sarasaviya fest was nevertheless armed with superior weaponry. The cultural segments were choreographed meticulously with a subtle aesthetic sense. The souvenir issued to coincide with the ceremony remains unique and would last for at least a century. The 3D revival of Dr Peries bidding his farewell (with his voice aired in the background) is simply mind-boggling.

As two armchairs sink to the ground and the lampshades evaporate into thin air, the traditional ancestral mansion setting fades into oblivion to pave the path for contemporary upholstery on the BMICH stage. With that, the players come to the fore to breathe life into the much-celebrated short narrative which made a long way to the much-talked-about film, Nidanaya (The Treasure). The creative stimulus of Lester James Peries and Tissa Abeysekara was deconstructed into a ballet-like tale.

The souvenir was devoted to the memory of Dr Lester James Peries. It is unique on several grounds. The souvenir which is, in fact, a coffee-table book, compiled by Dr Nuvan Nayanajith Kumara and Hemali Wijeratne, provides a comprehensive account of the Lester James Peries filmography with no eye-sore advertisements in between. In his lifetime, Dr Peries often stressed the need for a film archive. The coffee-table book is one step taken in that long journey.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, flanked by other eminent invitees, presented a special award to Sumitra Peries for her lifelong inspiration on Dr Lester James Peries in his epic journey.

The panel of judges (chaired by Gamini Weragama) was tasked with watching close to 50 films to handpick the best works of 2016 and 2017. The Sarasaviya 2018 had a special focus on most films overlooked at other festivals. Sayapethi Kusuma, Dekala Purudu Kenek and Bahuchitavadiya were among the host of lesser known, yet artistically ingenious, works introduced to the spotlight thanks to the jury attention.

Rest assured

This article was published in Daily News on August 3.

Innovation and exchange are not only the integral element of the fast-paced society, but they are the major elements of modern economic strategy as well. In today’s world of sciences, destruction has become the catchphrase in an optimistic sense.
When he pointed out the word ‘destruction’, Science, Technology, Research, Skills Development, Vocational Training and Kandyan Heritage Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama apparently did not refer to either physical or mental plain. He pointed at the virtual destruction of the old form to deliver a new model. This form of destruction, Dr. Amunugama added, leads to innovation and exchange in the knowledge society.

“But the innovation itself won’t suffice. It requires a certain certification. Such a guarantee is a vital ingredient in the world of consumption. Before we consume something, someone must assure that it is good or fit for consumption. If it is not good, then you can complain. You can raise the red flag to say something has gone wrong,” Dr. Amunugama explained.

Such a process, in a clear and a transparent manner, is exactly what the public demands. Before making the purchase, they are entitled to have an idea of the worth of the product. To achieve that end, proper research must be done on time in a transparent manner. What is called into question is whether the certification is executable in time to cater to the public demand.

“The competitors have an edge when the certification process takes time. If certification does happen on time, more countries will open doors to our experts and exports. It makes the certification really vital. For instance, the United States needs certification for our exports. This is simply because they need some assurance. It is a vital organ of administration. Whatever comes in and go needs certification in a transparent manner catering to the public demand as we live in a highly competitive world,” Dr. Amunugama elaborated.

From that well-known sphere, Dr. Amunugama shifted into a lesser-known territory: accreditation. He expressed these sentiments at a seminar on Accreditation – Delivering a Safer World held in Colombo organised by Sri Lanka Accreditation Board in collaboration with UNIDO, International Trade Centre and European Centre recently. Accreditation is a third-party attestation related to a conformity assessment body conveying formal demonstration of its competence to carry out the tasks of conformity assessment.
The process is duly accredited to the Sri Lanka Accreditation Board for Conformity Assessment (SLAB), the national accreditation authority established under the Science, Technology and Research Ministry. Strengthening the quality infrastructure and conformity assessment procedures in Sri Lanka and enhancing the recognition and acceptance of products and services in international and domestic markets are the main objectives of SLAB activities. SLAB offers accreditation for different types of conformity assessment bodies (laboratories, certification and inspection bodies, GHG validation and verification, good laboratory practices) in accordance with international principles.
Quality and reliability of test reports are the prime concern of the customers. SLAB Accreditation scheme is an excellent tool to instil these essential characteristics into the service. This scheme is instrumental in upgrading the competence of testing towards international level. The SLAB Accreditation for testing and calibration laboratories is based on ISO/IEC 17025 standard, which is used to assess the testing and calibration laboratories throughout the world.

According to Tung-Lai Margue, Ambassador and Head of European Union Delegation to Sri Lanka, the world of 9 billion people is facing a critical challenge with limited access to resources. How can they have sufficient access to the limited resources? That’s not a simple solution.

“We have issues such as climate change on one side. That is why we need legislation policies to change platform. The accreditation or certification process caters to that need. It is the Sri Lankan way of thinking globally,” Margue said.

Work-related diseases or occupational accidents take a toll on 2.78 million people on an annual basis. Worse, about 125 million workers are prone to asbestos-related conditions such as lung cancer. One in eight of total global deaths, around 7 million people annually die as a result of air pollution exposure. Plus, 1.25 million has been recorded as road traffic deaths, on a global scale, in 2013. About 374 million non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses each year add insult to injury resulting in extended absences from work. This finally affects not only the humans but the economic impact as well stemming from poor occupational safety and health practices (which is estimated to be 3.94 per cent of the global gross domestic product or about US$ 2.8 trillion, in direct and indirect costs of injuries and diseases each year).

Recent problems with tainted food, drugs, electronic devices and other consumer products have made clear that more needs to be done to protect consumers. Injury statistics indicate that design problems, defects and inadequate safety information for consumer products are associated with many injuries.

In a wider social scope, the products, especially the electrical goods and the children’s toys, are expected to be hazard-free. On the contrary, the same commodities pollute the environment smashing the hopes of water without contaminants and air free from harmful pollutants. The large-scale infrastructure projects such as road, bridges, and public transportation systems are no longer safe to use. The daily sources of energy such as gas or electricity should also be accessible without risk of injury or harm. The business titans have a responsibility to ensure that their employees, visitors and customers are able to enjoy freedom from injury or disease. They should also ensure that they provide for a sense of mental, physical and social well-being.

Wong Wong Wah, Assistant Commissioner, Innovation and Technology Commission, Hong Kong and Immediate Past Chairperson of Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC), stressed on the conforming assessment. The process has an international definition. The certification is an in-house verification.

“How can I tell you that I am what you expected? There should be a reliable proof of compliance required. We make decisions on a regular basis. We make decisions every day on what to eat when to eat where to go and how to do a certain thing.”

The completed projects, raw materials, products, services, management systems and personnel can be evaluated against a standard, code of practice or regulatory requirement by testing and calibration laboratories, inspection bodies and certification laboratories, inspection bodies and certification bodies (collectively known as conformity assessment bodies). Conformity assessment bodies are used to check that products and services are safe for use.

Accreditation is the independent solution to this predicament.

The evaluation of the conformity assessment bodies against recognised standards to carry out specific activities to ensure their integrity, impartiality and competence. Through the application of national and international standards, government departments, businesses and wider society can, therefore, have confidence in the calibration and test results, inspection reports and certification provided. Accreditation bodies are established to ensure that conformity assessment bodies are subject o oversight by a competent body. Internationally recognised accreditation bodies, which have been evaluated by peers as competent, sign international arrangement that enhances the acceptance of products and services across borders, thereby creating a global infrastructure to support health and safety related processes.

Dr. Sapumal Dhanapala, Director Environment, Occupational Health and Food Safety of Health Ministry focused on food safety.

“When we have food, we have the natural question of how safe they are. For that, we need to strengthen the analytical capacity. Our food is good on par with the international platform. But we are not in a position to show that. The international audience might think that our food is not safe,” Dr. Dhanapala explained.

The Health Ministry has implemented some regulations to ensure that the hotels can carry on business only if they meet certain regulations. The National Food Policy is being drafted in order to certify food safety. Dr. Dhanapala also hinted how the food imports from the developing countries are subject to a thorough inspection procedure in developed countries.

“We need to apply security measures on bottled water as they are in high demand. More products in this category enter the market. We need to check whether they are up to the standard and whether it is safe,” Dr. Dhanapala added.

The biggest stumbling block used to be waterborne diseases. The figures decline but indicate the growth of food poisoning on a parallel track. Dr. Dhanapala urges proper farming and animal husbandry habits to make sure that the food does not get contaminated. Most importantly, the food produce must not be mixed with animal faeces. The human sewage, on the other hand, must never be used as manure.

“Even in slaughterhouses hygiene needs to be maintained. Then, of course, storing and transport of the meat or vegetables must be done in a proper manner using the correct temperature. Kalmunei is where the food poisoning happens a lot. Comparatively, it is much lesser in Colombo. The Colombo residents are better equipped with food-analytical knowledge,” Dr. Dhanapala elaborated.

Professor Ajit de Alwis, Project Director, Coordinating Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation (COSTI), emphasised on the safer environment.

“Safer environment and a clean environment are an essential requirement in today’s milieu. We have come up in the global climate risk index because we are not prepared for disasters,” he said.

Professor de Alwis also made reference to climate departure which marks the point at which the earth’s climate begins to cease resembling what has come before and moves into a new state. It is the core point where heat records are routinely shattered and what once was considered extreme will become the norm. That means to essentially enter a carbon-neutral era for the first time.

Designing a chain reaction is essential, but ensuring the standard is equally important. Maintaining quality is the first step followed by cost assessment. It gives a clear idea of the productivity. Cost assessment and productivity together leads to a stable stay in the market.

For SLAB Chairman Namal Rajapaksha, 2018 is a memorable year. The Board has completed 12 years of accreditation in Sri Lanka.

“Up to now, SLAB has received nine international recognition for accreditation schemes for testing, calibration, medical testing, inspection, product certification, food safety management systems, quality management systems and environmental management systems certification and greenhouse gas validation and verification bodies. Sri Lanka Accreditation Board has accredited above 100 conformity assessment bodies which include all categories including personnel certification bodies. In the near future SLAB intends to expand its services into other areas like Good laboratory Practices, Proficiency testing service providers and reference material producers, personnel certification while enhancing the effectiveness of current accreditation schemes,” Rajapaksha elaborated.

Once every four years, the SLAB faces a comprehensive peer evaluation conducted by regional accreditation corporations to maintain this international recognition.

“We are grateful to all our assessors, committee members, professionals and academics who are currently engaged with SLAB activities and present and previous SLAB staff, for their collective efforts which contributed to the present success of the organisation,” Rajapaksha added.

As Science, Technology, Research, Skills Development, Vocational Training and Kandyan Heritage Ministry Secretary Sandhya Wijayabandara said, in most of the current regulations in Sri Lanka, mechanisms for implementation are not adequately addressed.

“No proper regulatory impact analysis was done so far. It is a requirement of good regulatory practice to carry out regulatory impact analysis to make sure that regulations are effectively implemented while giving intended results. In many cases, the implementation is not effective due to lack of resources and policies and rules which are not suitable and not comply with current trade practices,” Wijayabandara said.

She went on to add that the developed countries and emerging economies in the region such as Vietnam, Bangladesh are transforming their systems in line with current world requirements to strengthen their economies.

“According to WTO principles, Accreditation and Conformity Assessment could be used as an effective supporting tool to implement technical regulations. Therefore, it is very much important to complete review of technical regulations and carry out a proper regulatory impact assessment to align our current regulations to meet national and international requirements. Under this background, I strongly believe that all institutions of the National Quality Services Department, all regulatory agencies and Sri Lanka Accreditation Board should work very closely in identifying and implementing strategies to improve the quality of products marketed in the domestic market and produced for the export market,” she added.

With the increasing variety of products and services on offer, there is an increasing demand for intervention by the state to assure public safety and protection of consumers.

In 2016, in order to implement proposals of Cabinet of Ministers, State regulatory authorities were requested to make accreditation mandatory in implementing technical regulations covering products and services related to health, safety, consumer protection, fraud prevention and market fairness.

As Wijayabandara placed it on record, the requirement to assess was based on associated risks and prevalence of unfair, unethical practices. This could ensure the effective use of limited resources to the maximum benefit of the society.

“State intervention should be planned in areas where it is identified as necessary. Strategies adopted and implementing mechanisms should be effective in achieving the identified objectives. All state regulatory authorities need to give serious consideration to these aspects in formulating regulations and implementation mechanisms for public safety, environmental protection and consumer protection,” Wijayabandara said.

Deadly Innocence

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 31, 2018.

Soon to be well-lit, the abode is ready for the battle. The guru steps into the ground and lights the brass lamp and burns the incense sticks to pay reverence to the Buddha statue. In the well-lit abode, the disciples prepare for the battle with meditation. Following meditation, the disciples take a few vows. The game they are about to practise is deadly, but the disciples vow never to use it for ungainly needs. The game is an art studied only for self-defence – and yes, self-defence alone!

Mere interest in this art would not qualify you to enter this abode. With the brass lamp well lit, Master Karunapala will penetrate into your mind and body to assess your eligibility. Tougher than any written or oral examination, you cannot afford to cheat here. Utter falsehood, and you will no longer be eligible to unearth this ancient art, angampora, which trains you to handle your own body with amazing dexterity.

G Karunapala is the eldest surviving angampora guru in Sri Lanka. Although the art comes under the martial art category, Guru Karunapala does not quite agree with it. It is a deadly art, yet you do not kill people.

“We take a vow not to engage in any misdeed before the training. You train yourself to kill someone in one blow, yet you cannot do it unless your life is in grave danger,” Guru Karunapala insists.

Angampora is a vanishing art simply because the masters have chosen not to pass it down. The disciple must earn trust in addition to dedication. No disciple is privy to the subject in its entirety, though they will be entitled to the nitty-gritty.

“Most artists are familiar with all kinds of martial arts. They learn bits and pieces of everything and claim to be angampora veterans. But none of them knows the real subject in entirety. It is easy to differentiate the genuine ones from the fake ones,” Master Karunapala warns.

One basic question on how many elements that the subject has is enough to drive the so-called angampora veterans crazy. The number of elements remains a secret confined to the angampora caucus. Anyone can dance. Anyone can play with the clubs. The angampora is an admixture of all this, yet remains unique as every weapon used serves a specific purpose.

The run-of-the-mill artiste chooses the easiest path of raking in money. What they engage in for the sake of a few rupees does not offer anything worth in return to the country, Master Karunapala emphasizes.

Guru Karunapala is the only academic at the Sri Jayewardenepura University who teaches angampora as a subject.

“I ask my students not to engage in the malpractices. Learn the right kind of art. If you don’t know the art, learn it somewhere. But don’t do anything bad. People teach karate and wushu in the guise of Angampora,” Karunapala laments.

His journey to protect the much-hallowed subject is filled with challenges and dare beyond the physical dexterity. On principle, Guru Karunapala never gets along with the swathe of so-called angampora artistes.

“I had to face a few angampora fighters at the request of the Cultural Affairs ministry. Before dealing with them, I invited them for a getapoottuwa (an angampora element) challenge. None of them accepted the challenge. I realized that I had nothing to do with such a crowd. It was a government-mediated event, but I backed off. I told them I deal only with the genuine angampora veterans who can accept any challenge,” Guru Karunapala recalls.

The art runs in the family. Master’s father was a veteran. His grandfather paid reverence to the sun and the moon and got certain work done. Guru Karunapala follows their footsteps and continues to pay reverence to the sun.

“This is the best art form in the world. You witness the best civilisation here. You see the unique costumes here. The royalty dwells in this art. If someone seeks to distort the art, they would not do well,” Master Karunapala insists.

He likens the subject of angampora studied today to a Malay pickle, a mixture of everything. The angampora that most artistes claim to be well versed in is not the genuine subject, as the master clarifies. The art form is used as a defence mechanism to fight any death threat. The art is pure in three kinds. First, it could be followed only in a Buddhist background. Second, it should be studied in Sri Lanka. Third, the disciples should be the Sinhalese. It is not studied to fight against each other. The foreigners approaching Grand Guru Karunapala would not get the complete training.

The collapse of the most civilized art form began with the British intervention. Following the Kandyan convention, the colonial rulers imposed a ban on the angampora practice. They used physical arms to ensnare the mental strength of the Sinhalese. The angampora training centres were polished off. Anyone caught in the angampora practice was shot under the knees. The art faded into oblivion, yet did not perish. A few families preserved the art form in secrecy until the country finally gained Independence.

The tradition was preserved. But the British act took a heavy toll on the authenticity. Like any other subject, the angampora began to resurface albeit with dilutions and distortions.

78-year old grand guru never utters filth. Nor is he into falsehood and other vices. He firmly believes that the art has to be passed down to the next generation before he breathes his last. Yet, he is very much careful and meticulous in choosing the disciples. Only a handful of disciples have been privy to the art form in its entirety.

Meditation is an essential ingredient of the Angampora. Your mind needs to remain in the centre. That ensures firmness. When the mind is focused on one point, then you will be able to grasp the art.

Yet, master warns, you cannot master the art with temper issues.

“A genuine Angampora artiste never steals. Plus they can control their temper. If you have temper issues, it will be your weakest point. When you speak to each other, you should be mindful not to hurt the other party.”

Angampora exists everywhere, Master Karunapala declares, but in many fake forms. Even the street drama artistes claim knowledge on angampora. The snake-charmers are no exception either. Anyone familiar with karate and wushu easily steps into the angampora territory and claims proficiency.

Angampora is also deemed as a human gym with no liabilities. You are prone to no injuries. Even if there is an injury, the art form has the healing therapies within itself. This well-fed art form must be practised slowly. The slowness ensures the steady mastery.

Monstrous milestone

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 24, 2018.

TripAdvisor once offered a tip for budget travellers: fly on rickety old planes for less. If you have come across that tip and given it a thought, go watch Hotel Transylvania 3 first. It will transport you to the horrors of flying on rickety old planes. The monster-driven aircraft goes into many spasms before finally reaching its destination. The destination is marked by the ships piled on top of each other. Before that takes you to the good old days of Titanic movie, you feel ripped apart within as you hear the lines: “Welcome to the Bermuda Triangle.”

That itself is the paradox. How can someone be welcome to somewhere that sounds terrific? But that’s the gist of this movie, Hotel Transylvania 3, directed by Genndy Tartakovsky.
Before the opening credits, the movie introduces us to two lead figures: Dracula and a human who calls himself Professor Van Helsing. Following a series of Jack-and-Jill fashioned encounter between Van Helsing and Dracula, the vampire wraps up the deal. But Van Helsing vows to avenge. Van Helsing shares many similarities with Professor Moriarty of the Sherlock Holmes saga. Like Helsing, Moriarty was a fictitious character produced to create a rift between Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. He is the criminal mastermind whom Holmes describes as the Napoleon of crime. The writers, Michael McCullers and Genndy Tartakovsky, must probably have been largely inspired by Sir Arthur’s darling mischief-maker, Professor Moriarty.

Hotel Transylvania 3 is, of course, a silly animated movie that offers you a great deal of fun. That said, the production has a few interesting themes running underneath. First, it stirs up our memory of the Hitlerist fascism that wished to see a world purged of Jews. Second, the battle between the monsters and humans can relate to many oriental as well as occidental aspects. The orientalism, in fact, is brimming with such bi-partisan battles. Suras and asuras, manussas and amanussas can count in as a few examples in orientalism whereas the battle between good and evil is an ever-present phenomenon in the occidental lore.

Tartakovsky’s attempt is to erect a new platform to the already-prevailing themes. He poses the question of good and bad. How can we define the good and the bad? Who are we to define the good and the bad (and forget about the ugly)? The good is not superior and the bad is not inferior. Hotel Transylvania 3 is Tartakovsky’s attempt to celebrate monsterism or place it on part with humanity.

Van Helsing in a Hitleric wavelength is giving a chase to the monsters. But then at the end, his own life was saved by a monster itself. When he questions why he was saved, the monster (Dracula) responds the obvious: “Because we are the same!” Dracula voices similar concerns in the opening scene by saying that hate should not be entertained to which Van Helsing turns a deaf ear. He never forgets his revenge and continues the scheming with his great-granddaughter. Following the opening credits, Van Helsing becomes a distant memory until we are halfway through. On that note, we see how Dracula makes every step to save Ericka without knowing she is the daughter of his eternal enemy. This humanity of the monster finally leads Erica to change her attitude towards the monsters. Though she admits, at first, that the monsters are disgusting to her great-grandfather, she later changes that attitude with teary eyes.

It rips apart our thinking which seems to stagnate on a conservative plane. It leads us to believe that we need to crack down our own attitudes towards monsters. Who are the monsters? We need to crack down all the monsters in the fairytales. Perhaps the future of humanity might change on this wheel. That change will be the antidote to the current chaos. The so-called die-hard Hitler followers will be forced to abandon their fascist attitudes because of its obvious catastrophic murderousness. In terms of Hotel Transylvania, it is the cluster of monsters that are equipped with over-powerfulness in contrast to the intellectual prowess of the humans.

We live in a maybe monstrous world that it’s hard to imagine a phenomenon without monsters. We have to employ the monstrous tone to make our voice count – it is part of who we are in the global population, especially in Sri Lanka. Hotel Transylvania 3 weaponises that part of the human condition.

Throughout the production, the monsters seem to share all the human features: a fondness for entertainment, being emotional and looking for soft companions. Ultimately it is the socialization that steps to the fore. Monsters are supposed to be anti-social. But inside Hotel Transylvania all the monsters ache for socialization. Only Count Dracula is without a partner. Even his daughter has a partner, a human.

Dracula, though a monster, teaches us the core values of family. He places family over and above everything else. He applies the element in love as well. The crux of the plot unfolds with the relationship between Dracula and Erica the captain of the ship who is also the great-granddaughter of Van Helsing. At first, Erica feigns her romantic feelings for Dracula as she wants to implement her great-grandfather’s scheme. At a certain point, she admits that a relationship between a human and a monster is unthinkable.

Interestingly, and incidentally, Dracula takes us to Edwin Markham’s famous lines from ‘Outwitted’:

He drew a circle that shut me out-

Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.

But love and I had the wit to win:

We drew a circle and took him In!

Both Van Helsing and his great-granddaughter detested Dracula because he is a monster. For them, Dracula was a heretic, rebel and a thing to flout. But Dracula and his love had the wit to win. He drew his own circle and took both great-granddaughter and great-grandfather in.

It was Erica who entered his circle first. Her feigned love turned out to be a feigned attempt to revenge. But she could not go on with either. She gave in. Finally, she was the one to save the life of Dracula who had almost given up hopes in the death throes.

Van Helsing’s attempt to crush Dracula with the mystic music that awakens the death giant is another core element. Each time, Dracula’s party had to outscore Van Helsing with a positive note of music to lull the death giant into a softer move. Even the most horrible creatures can be calmed down with the aesthetic sense.

Funny enough, the contest between the Van Helsing and Dracula’s party reaches the bottom line with the ‘Macarena’. Van Helsing himself begins to dance to the tune of that song.

When it comes to fun, yes, Hotel Transylvania 3 is absolutely a thumbs-up experience. When it comes to themes, the production deserves a heavier yes as we leave the theatre with much to meditate on.

Beat that beat

This article was originally published in Daily News on July 17, 2018.

Sri Lanka’s dance narrates an extraordinary tale. Its timeless allure continues to inspire us. It does not just show us the move. It celebrates the move of the country’s aesthetic wheel.
Long before the Indian edition of this perpetual art called dance reached the shores, this land housed its own traditions. Kandyan and Low-Country dance traditions have been spoken of in the same breath. Though not spoken of in the same weight, the Sabaragamuwa dance tradition has also completed some chapter in Sri Lankan aesthetic history.

The Sabaragamuwa tradition has received the step-motherly treatment though. It remains largely undocumented to this date. Interested in studying this less-spoken tradition? No direct flight is available, unfortunately. Unless you pick Saman Kumaratunga’s latest research work.

Apart from being a practical dancer, Kumaratunga is Head of Sabaragamuwa Dance Studies Department of University of Visual and Performance Arts. Years of his experience and experiment with the subject is now available in the form of two books: one dealing with the history of the tradition, while the other dealing with the instrumental instrument of the tradition, davula.

“The three major dance traditions of Sri Lanka, upcountry, low country and Sabaragamuwa are significant because of their unique features. The Sabaragamuwa tradition originates from jith thong nan. The uniqueness of the Sabaragamuwa tradition depends on the physical features, drum tunes, davul tunes, melodies and theatre costumes,” Kumaratunga assesses.

Davula is an instrument unique to the Sabaragamuwa dance tradition. The instrument has its own share of contributions at ceremonial occasions such as Shanthikarma (rituals performed for healing purposes), dance and temple processions.

The Sabaragamuwa dance tradition is stretched across Ratnapura and adjunct areas such as Ruwanwella, Deraniyagala and Yatiyantota. Much akin to its counterparts, the Sabaragmuwa tradition is named after the place of its origin – the Sabaragamuwa province.

“You cannot find any specific or specialised group interested in the Sabaragamuwa tradition, unlike the other traditions. That is why this tradition is not quite popular,” Kumaratunga notes.

But that’s not the only reason. The intricate rhythmic structure of the tradition has made itself the unsightly lass. A vast swathe of students seems to be satisfied with the five mainstream melodies of the tradition though there is more to it than they could imagine. The subject is much larger than you think. So to say, it needs a deeper crackdown. This call for a deep study does not hold much water in the popular territory. If your knowledge on the subject is half-baked, then the need to delve deeper into the subject recedes.

The genesis of the Sri Lankan dance rests in the healing rituals. However, the Sabaragamuwa tradition goes beyond the mere rituals, Kumaratunga anatomises. The tradition had also been practised in the presence of the royalty. However, a profound research is yet to take place on the real genesis of the tradition. If someone does not take up that responsibility, the tradition will soon die away, Kumaratunga warns. That is exactly why the Sabaragamuwa dance has become his sole preoccupation.

“That fear led me to compile these two books. I opened the pathway. Anyone can delve into deeper studies.”

Although choreography is a marked presence in many functions, Kumaratunga points out that the traditions are not properly upheld.

“The traditional artistes preserved it. But that preservation does not seem to take place in today’s context. Therefore the University of Visual and Performance Arts has initiated that project of preserving the traditional dances. Yet most traditional dancers have shied away from the art,” Kumaratunga laments.

Although the healing ritual of the good old times is not prevalent today in abundance, various other methods of practice used for exorcist-related activities could still be seen in certain domestic environments. Yet whether these rituals are conducted in the proper way remains a question.

“Any expert drummer of an offering ritual artiste should be able to recite the verses for 60 hours in one go. There are no repetitions in the ritual literature. You are required to memorise the verses of every kind. But most of the younger generation is lazy to memorise them,” Kumaratunga explains.

Laziness is not the only aspect. The supply of the rituals has no social demand. That said, no stimulation or catalyst is available for the modern generation to take up the ritual studies seriously. On the contrary, the dancer of the yesteryear was versed not only in singing, instrumental music and dance, but he was also a master of medicine, carpentry, architecture and engravings.

The ancient dancers have used various medicinal techniques. A ritual is beyond a mental relief. But what is required of the modern dancers is to have a traditional procession or some choreographic event for a special function. Even if it is a special occasion, they pay special attention to the upcountry dance.

“If Sabaragamuwa dance tradition prevails that is mostly because it is a subject taught at the university. There is a considerable growth in the Sabaragamu tradition since 1980. But the knowledge does not disseminate properly,” Kumaratunga said.

Knowledge falters when interest dies down. But when someone comes forward to re-ignite a dying interest, exclusivity barges in and finds its own way to a novel uniqueness. May Kumaratunga’s work offer chapter and verse to that phenomenon!