Pathiraja Navaratne Wanninayake Mudiyanselage Ranjith Dharmasena (28 March 1943 – 28 January 2018) was a
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
n
film director
A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...
and
screenwriter
A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based.
...
. He has been referred to as a 'rebel with a cause', an ‘''enfant terrible'' of the '70s', and is widely recognized as the pioneer of Sri Lankan cinema’s 'second revolution'. He is also renowned as an academic, playwright and poet.
Early life
Educated at
Dharmaraja College, Kandy, Pathiraja graduated from the
University of Peradeniya
The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a public university in Sri Lanka, funded by the University ...
with an honours degree in
Sinhala and Western Classical Culture in 1967. Subsequently he began work as a lecturer in Drama and Performance Arts,
and later obtained a PhD in Bengali cinema from
Monash University
Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...
. His thesis was ''The Dialectic of Region and Nation in the Films of Bengali Independents: Ghatak, Ray and Sen (2001)''.
He learned the language of cinema from the film society movement, which was popular in Sri Lanka in the early sixties. He also recognized their sociopolitical limitations in a country which was heading into a period of deep turmoil. He also studied the cinema of radical activists like
Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran ...
, Third Cinema filmmakers like
Fernando Solanas
Fernando Ezequiel "Pino" Solanas (16 February 1936 – 6 November 2020) was an Argentine film director, screenwriter, and politician. His films include; '' La hora de los hornos (The Hour of the Furnaces)'' (1968), '' Tangos: el exilio de Gardel'' ...
and
Glauber Rocha
Glauber de Andrade Rocha (; 14 March 1939 – 22 August 1981) was a Brazilian film director, actor and screenwriter. He was one of the most influential moviemakers of Brazilian cinema and a key figure of Cinema Novo. His films ''Black God, White ...
, and Asians like
Mrinal Sen
Mrinal Sen (''Beng.'' মৃণাল সেন; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Bengali, and few Hindi and Telugu language films. Regarded as one of the finest Ind ...
,
Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian director, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker, author, essayist, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligrapher, and music composer. One of the greatest auteurs of fil ...
and
Ritwik Ghatak
Ritwik Kumar Ghatak (; 4 November 19256 February 1976) was a noted Indian film director, screenwriter, and playwright. Along with prominent contemporary Bengali filmmakers Satyajit Ray, Tapan Sinha and Mrinal Sen, his cinema is primarily remembe ...
.
First wave of success (1970–1977)
Pathiraja made a short 10-minute film titled ''Saturo'' in 1970. His full-length feature film ''Ahas Gauwa'' followed four years later. Dealing with the urban lower class, the film was atypical of most commercial films of that period. It was critically well-received, sweeping the FCJAC Awards landing Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor and winning the Office Catholique Internationale Du Cinema (Sri Lanka) awards for Best Film and Best Director.
1975's ''
Eya Dan Loku Lamayek
''Eya Dan Loku Lamayek (How to Be an Adult)'' ( si, එයා දැන් ලොකු ළමයෙක්) is a 1975 Sri Lankan drama film directed by Dharmasena Pathiraja. It was entered into the 9th Moscow International Film Festival.
Cast
...
'' was Sri Lanka's entry at the
9th Moscow International Film Festival,
winning a Special Diploma for Female Performance in 1976 and the Special award from the peace council of the USSR to be screened at the 18th
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...
in
Bergamo, Italy
Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Com ...
in 1975.
1978's ''
Bambaru Avith
''Bambaru Avith (The Wasps are Here)'' ( si, italic=yes, බඹරු ඇවිත්) is a 1978 Sri Lankan Sinhala drama film directed by Dharmasena Pathiraja and produced by director himself with Thilak Godamanne for Saranga Salaroo. It exp ...
'' is widely considered Pathiraja's masterpiece. That year it represented Sri Lanka at the 10th Moscow International Film Festival and was screened at the Venice and
Los Angeles Film Festival
The LA Film Festival was an annual film festival that was held in Los Angeles, California, and usually took place in June. It showcased independent, international, feature, documentary and short films, as well as web series, music videos, episod ...
s. In Sri Lanka it was awarded Best Director and Best Film honors at the first
Presidential Film Awards
Presidential Film Awards is a film award ceremony held in Sri Lanka. It is organized by the National Film Corporation along with the Presidential Secretariat and the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. It was 1st awards in 1979 by President J. R. Jayew ...
and the OCIC Awards. In 1997 a special council selected to celebrate 50 years of Sri Lankan Cinema named it the fourth best Sri Lankan film of all-time.
Middle period (1977–1981)
Later that year, Pathiraja made the
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
* Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils
**Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia
* Tamil language, nativ ...
film ''Ponmani'' shown at the International Film Festival in India. 1980 saw the filming of ''Para Dige'' which was shown some time later at
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...
in the Third World Cinema Program and in France and
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
.
1981's ''Soldadu Unnahe'' would be Pathiraja's last film for 13 years. It was Sri Lanka's entry to the 8th International Film Festival of India and was awarded Best Film, Best Director and best Script at the third Presidential Film Awards and Best Director and Best Film at the OCIC Awards. OCIC named it the best Sri Lankan film of the 1980 –1990 period in 1990.
Return to film (1994–2002)
1994's ''Wasuli'' was a relatively minor film. In 2001 Pathrija returned on a bigger scale with ''Mathu Yam Dawasa'', shown at the
Singapore International Film Festival
The Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF) ( Chinese: 新加坡国际电影节) is the longest-running film festival in Singapore. Founded in 1987, the festival has a focus on showcasing international films and providing a global platform fo ...
and the 4th
Osian's Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema
Osian's-Cinefan is one of Asia's leading film-festival devoted to Asian and Arab cinema, and is part of ''Osian's Film House Division''. The festival celebrated its 10th anniversary in July 2008. After a two-year break, the 12th staging of the f ...
,
New Delhi
New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
.
Academic career
Dharmasena Pathiraja started his academic career at the
University of Kelaniya
Pannaya Parisujjhati
, mottoeng = Self-purification is by insight
, established = 1875 Vidyalankara Pirivena1959 Vidyalankara University
, type = Public
, endowment =
, adminis ...
as an assistant lecturer. Later he worked as a lecturer in several Sri Lankan universities, including,
University of Jaffna
The University of Jaffna ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாணப் பல்கலைக்கழகம், translit=Yāḻppāṇap Palkalaikkaḻakam; si, යාපනය විශ්වවිද්යාලය, ''Yāpanaya Viśvavidyālaya''; ...
,
University of Ruhuna
The University of Ruhuna ( si, රුහුණ විශ්වවිද්යාලය, රෝහණ සරසවිය (Ruhuṇa Viśvavidyālaya, Rohana sarasaviya),; ta, ருகுண பல்கலைக் கழகம்) is a publ ...
and
University of Colombo
(Buddhih Sarvatra Bhrajate)
, mottoeng = ''Wisdom Enlightens''
, established =
, endowment = Sri Lankan rupee, LKR 1.461 1,000,000,000 (number), billion . Dharmasena Pathiraja was also the Chairman of
Sri Lanka Media Training Institute.
Theatergraphy
*1970 Kora saha Andaya (The Lame and the Blind) script.
Produced by
Dhamma Jagoda
Dhamma Jagoda (28 January 1941 – 4 February 1988) was the first Head of the Drama Unit at the National Television channel Rupavahini Corporation in Sri Lanka. He was a pioneer theater and television play director and actor in Sri Lanka. He in ...
.
*1971 Putu (''
The Chairs
''The Chairs'' (french: Les Chaises) is a one-act play by Eugène Ionesco, described as an absurdist "tragic farce". It was first performed in Paris in 1952.
Setting
A high tower surrounded by water.
Characters
*Old Man, aged 95
*Old Woman, age ...
'' of
Eugène Ionesco
Eugène Ionesco (; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre in the 20th century. Ionesco inst ...
) Translator and director. It won best translation script in the state drama festival in 1971.
Filmography
Unscreened Feature
*1981 ''Sira Kandavura''
*1983 ''Shelton Saha Kanthi''
*1994 ''Whirl Wind (Vasuli)''
olour
Shorts and Documentaries
*2006 ''In Search of a Road''
olour*1988 ''Shelter For Million Families'' – A 15 mts documentary produced to commemorate the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless, Screened at ST. Anne's Theatre, London on the occasion of the ceremonial award presentation for the best housing program of the year won by Sri Lanka. 1988. (35mm Colour)
*1984 ''Putting The Last First'' – A documentary on local level community based projects for NORAD (35 mm Colour)
*1974 ''The Coast (Werala)'' A 30 mts documentary on coast conservation for the Ministry of Fisheries, 1974. ( 35 mm Colour)
*1972 ''Anduren Eliyata'' – From Darkness to Light,A 40 mts documentary on Land Reforms, produced for the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reforms. 1972 (35mm -Black and White)
*1969 ''Enemies (Sathuro)''
&W
Television dramas(series)
*1985 ''Gangulen Egodata'' -Crossing the Stream
*1986 ''Maaya Mandira'' – Mansion of Maya. 1986, 27mts.Tele feature For National TV.
*1988 ''Ella langa Walawwa'' – The House By the Waterfall. 1988,14 (27mts) episodes, Tele Drama for the National TV
*1989 ''Wanni Hamilage Kathawa'' – Story of Wannihamy,4 (27mts) episodes, Tele docu drama
*1989 ''Sudubandelage Kathawa''- Story of Sudu Banda,2 (30mts) episodes Tele docu-drama
*1989 ''Pura Sakmana-2'' (45mts) episodes Tele Drama, An adaptation of Anton Chekhov's ''Lady with the Dog'' for National TV
*1992 ''Kadulla-The Hurdle-21'' (26 mts) episodes, Tele Drama, Won 9 UNDA international awards (Sri Lanka Office) Including Best TV Feature, Best Director, Best Script, Best Male and Female Performances, of the year 1992
*1993 ''Suba Anagathyak-16'' (26mts) episodes, Tele Drama, An Adaptation of Charles Dicken's ''Great Expectations'' for National TV
*1994 ''Nadunana Puttu''- Unknown Sons,21 (26mts) episodes, Tele Drama, for ITN
*1996 ''Durganthaya''- 34 (26mts) episodes, Tele Drama, An adaptation of Emily Brontë's ''Wuthering Heights''
*2009 ''Kampitha Vil''
Publications
* struggle between the form and the content of Sinhalese theatre(Sinhala Naatye Aakruthiyahaa Anthargathayaathara Aragalaya), 2017
*Kora Saha Andaya and vangagiriya, original plays, 2017
*Putu,Sinhala translation of a play by Eugene Ionesco, 2017
* Pedro paramo, translation of a novel, 2012
References
External links
Sri Lanka Sinhala Films Database – Dharmasena Pathiraja*
*
ttp://www.kinema.uwaterloo.ca/article.php?id=78&feature Conversation with Sri Lankan Director Dharmasena PathirajaPathiraja back with Prince Siddhartha
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pathiraja, Dharmasena
1943 births
2018 deaths
Sri Lankan film directors
Sri Lankan screenwriters
Sri Lankan radio writers
Alumni of Dharmaraja College
Alumni of the University of Peradeniya
Academics of the University of Colombo
Alumni of the University of Ceylon
People from Kandy
Kala Keerthi