''Maharaja Gemunu (King Gemunu)'' ( si, මහරජ ගැමුණු) is a 2015

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 Sinhala

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

film directed by Jayantha Chandrasiri and produced by Gunapala Rathnasekara for Sipvin Films. It stars

Uddika Premarathna Uddika Premarathna (born 16 September 1980; උද්දික ප්‍රේමරත්න) is an actor in Sri Lankan cinema and television. Apart from acting, he is also a singer, TV announcer and a member of parliament. Personal life He i ...

and Jackson Anthony in lead roles along with

Sriyantha Mendis Hiddadura Jude Neil Sriyantha Mendis (Born 25 October 1957) ( si, ශ්‍රියන්ත මෙන්ඩිස්), popularly as Sriyantha Mendis, is an actor in Sri Lankan cinema, theater and television. Highly versatile actor from drama to ...

and

Yashoda Wimaladharma Yashoda Wimaladharma ( Sinhala: යශෝධා විමලධර්ම) is a Sri Lankan actress in Sri Lankan cinema, stage drama and television. Often referred to as the "innocent on the small screen", Wimaladharma excelled in cinema, telev ...

. Its music was composed by Nadeeka Guruge. It is the 1221st Sri Lankan film in the Sinhala cinema. The movie is based on the odyssey of King Gemunu (ruler of

161–137 BC) who is renowned for defeating and overthrowing

King Elara Ellalan ( ta, எல்லாளன், translit=Ellāḷaṉ; si, එළාර, translit=Eḷāra) was a member of the Tamil Chola dynasty, also known as "Manu Needhi Cholan", who upon capturing the throne became king of the Anuradhapura Kingd ...

, the usurping

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, nati ...

prince from the

Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...

Kingdom, who had invaded the Kingdom of Rajarata in 205 BC.

Synopsis

King Elara is a former soldier and spy under King Kharawela of Kalinga, who rules the Southern Kingdoms of India during the second century BC. Elara arrives at Lankadveepa, in the guise of an overseas naval chief, in order to threaten the prosperity of the Kingdom. Elara is victorious against the Kingdom of Rajarata, having killed King Asela. However, he is not satisfied with his victory because the kingdom of Ruhuna continues to be independent and he is haunted by a prophecy inscribed by

King Devanampiyatissa Tissa, later Devanampiya Tissa, was one of the earliest kings of Sri Lanka based at the ancient capital of Anuradhapura from 247 BC to 207 BC. His reign was notable for the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka under the aegis of the Maurya ...

. Bhattara, an advisor to Elara, found the inscribed prophecy which alluded to a King named Gamani Abhaya (Dutu Gemunu) who would later secure the Kingdom of Rajarata and build a massive pagoda (dageba) at its center. Bhattara and Elara scheme against the prophecy. King Gamani Abhaya deploys strategies to overcome the tactics of Elara and vanquish him. However, because of his spiritual ideology, he does not allow his people to forget the humanity that was rooted within the enemy. This act universalizes King Gamani's profound humanity.

Cast

as King

Dutugemunu Dutugamunu the Great (, , also spelled as ''Dutthagamani''), also known as Dutthagamani Abhaya ("fearless Gamini"), was the greatest king of the Anuradhapura Kingdom who reigned from 161 BC to 137 BC. He is renowned for reuniting the whole island ...

* Jackson Anthony as King Ellalan *

as King

Kavan Tissa Kavan Tissa, also known as Kavantissa, Kaha Wan Thissa,(that means who has the color of golden body) or Kaka Wanna Tissa,( that means who has black skin tone like a crow). was the king of the Kingdom of Ruhuna in the southern part of Sri Lanka. H ...

Kusum Renu Dabare Kusum Renuka Liyanage (born January 30, 1961 as කුසුම් රේණු) inhala, popularly as Kusum Renu, is an actress in Sri Lankan cinema theater and television. She is best known for the role ''Madhuri'' in television sitcom ...

as Queen

Viharamahadevi Viharamahadevi ( Sinhala:විහාරමහාදේවි) was the mother of King Dutugamunu, Saddhatissa and the Queen consort of King Kavantissa (King of the Ruhuna Sri Lanka). Some scholars suggest that her original name was 'śavera', wh ...

** Tharuka Wanniarachchi as Young Queen

* Saranga Disasekara as

Saddha Tissa Saddha Tissa was the king of Anuradhapura ( Sri Lanka) from 137 BC to 119 BC. Saddha Tissa was the son of Kavan Tissa of Ruhuna and the brother of Dutthagamani. He was the ruler of Digamadulla, the present day eastern province of Sri Lanka. Si ...

as Queen Dharatri (Elara's wife) * Buddhadasa Vithanarachchi as Monk Mahasiva * Sandun Bandara as Bhattara * Ajith Weerasinghe as Nandimithra * Arjuna Kamalanath as Suranimala * Anura Dharamasiriwardana as Welusumana *

Umali Thilakarathne Irudini Umali Thilakarathna () is a Sri Lankan cinema, teledrama and stage actress. She was awarded the best actress in 2017 for her role in "Bohimiyanuwa" in both Sumathi Tele Awards and Raigam Tele Awards. In addition to working in Sri Lanka, ...

as Elara's daughter *

Damitha Abeyratne Sedhavi Mudiyanselage Damitha Buddhini Abeyratne Bandara (born September 14, 1975), popularly as Damitha Abeyratne, is a Sri Lankan film and teledrama actress. Biography She schooled at Samudradevi Balika Vidyalaya, Nugegoda and St. Paul’s ...

as Rohini * Buddhini Purnima as Kathee * Lucky Dias as Minister Mahananda *

Rebeka Nirmali Rebeka Nirmali (27 November 1964 – 13 August 2014 as රෙබෙකා නිර්මලී) inhala, also as Rebecca Nirmali, was an actress in Sri Lankan cinema, theater and television. Highly versatile actress with a career spanned for m ...

as Dancer * Meena Kumari as Dancer * Randiv Ranga Jayawardena as Deeghabaya * Uditha Nishantha as Nandi * Muditha Wijesundera as Tissa Senevi * Hemantha Randunu as Panimuththa Senevi * Maithree Peramuna as Ghotagaththa Tissa * Anuruddha Chamila as Gotaimbara * Lahiru Prasanna as Pussadeva * Don Vipularatne as Kanchadeva * Mahesh Premathilake as Therapuththabhya * Asitha Nuwan as Bharana * Ajith Silva as Labiya Wasabha * Jagath Jayawardene as Maha Sona

Music

The music for ''Maharaja Gemunu'' was composed by Nadeeka Guruge, with lyrics written by Jayantha Chandrasiri and Rev. Pallegama Hemarathana Thero.

Release and reception

The film premiered on 23 January 2015 in EAP Holdings cinema halls. Released on 23 January 2015, the film was highly acclaimed by critics and fans alike, who considered it to be a landmark in Sinhala film-making and an achievement in the epic film genre. The film earned 1000 Lakhs of Sri Lankan rupees until December 2017.

Awards and nominations

Sarasaviya Film Awards 2016 * Best Movie * Most Popular Movie of the Year * Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) – Jackson Anthony as King Elara * Best Cinematography – Ruwan Kostha * Best Editing – Raveendra Guruge * Best Music Direction – Nadeeka Guruge * Best Art Direction – Rohan Samaradiwakara and Aruna Priyantha Dharmapala * Best Playback Singer (Female) –

Nirosha Virajini Virajini Lalithya de Silva, also known as Nirosha Virajini ( Sinhala: නිරෝෂා විරාජිනී) is a Sri Lankan award-winning singer, musician and music director with a career spanning over 23 years. Personal life Nirosha ...

for the song "Sanda Mandala Vee" * Best Makeup – Jayantha Ranawaka * Best Sound Design – Priyantha Kaluarachchi * Best Lyricist – Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana for the song "Sanda Mandala Vee"

Hiru Golden Film Award ''Hiru Golden Film Awards'' (Sinhala:හිරු රන් සිනමා සම්මාන) is an award bestowed to distinguished individuals involved with the Sri Lanka's silver screen, awarded by the Asia Broadcasting Corporation, Sri Lan ...

s 2016 * Most Popular Movie * Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female) – Kusum Renu as Queen Viharamahadevi * Best Playback Singer (Female) – Nirosha Virajini for the song "Sanda Mandala Vee" * Best Lyricist – Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana for the song "Sanda Mandala Vee" * Special Jury Award – Jackson Anthony as King Elara

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 3471472 2015 films 2010s historical films Films set in the Anuradhapura period Sri Lankan historical films 2010s Sinhala-language films