Punyakante Wijenaike (born

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

, 1933- 8th March 2023) was a Sri Lankan writer. She has been described as "one of the most underestimated fiction writers currently at work in the English language."

Work

Wijenaike writes primarily in English, including fiction, short stories and anthologies. Her first collection of short stories, ''The Third Woman'', was published in 1963. Since then she has published four collections of short stories and six novels, with more than 100 stories published in newspapers, journals and anthologies in Sri Lanka and abroad, and has had her works broadcast in Sri Lanka and on the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

. Although she has spent most of her life in Colombo, she initially used rural villages as her theme, only later turning to urban themes. Her writings highlight "the tyranny of community or a group towards its weaker members." Her 1998 novel, An Enemy within, uncovers "the mask that tend to hide the reality of present times." Her novel ''Giraya'' was adapted into a teledrama by

Independent Television Network Independent Television Network Ltd ( si, ස්වාධීන රූපවාහිනී මාධ්‍ය ජාලය; ta, சுயாதீன தொலைக்காட்சி ஊடக வளையமைப்பு) also known a ...

of Sri Lanka.

Awards and recognition

Women of Achievement Award WP Theater (formerly known as Women's Project Theater) is a not-for-profit Off-Broadway theater based in New York City. It is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing and promoting the work of female-ident ...

, 1985 *

Kala Suri The Kala Suri ( si, කලා සූරී; ta, கலாசூரி, translit=Kalācūri) is a Sri Lankan national honour awarded "''for special contributions to the development of the arts''". It is conventionally used as a title or prefix to ...

Class 1 (literary achievement), conferred by the Government of Sri Lanka, 1988 * 1994

Gratiaen Prize The Gratiaen Prize is an annual literary prize for the best work of literary writing in English by a resident of Sri Lanka. It was founded in 1992 by the Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist Michael Ondaatje with the money he received as joint-winn ...

for her novel ''Amulet'' * 1996, joint winner of the

Commonwealth Short Story Competition Commonwealth Foundation presented a number of prizes between 1987 and 2011. The main award was called the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and was composed of two prizes: the Best Book Prize (overall and regional) was awarded from 1987 to 2011; the Best ...

for Radio Ten of her works are held by the U.S.

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

Books

Novels

*1998: ''An Enemy Within, uncovers'' *2011: ''Giraya'' * ''Amulet'' * ''The Waiting Earth'' *2010: ''When Guns Fall Silent'' * ''The Rebel'' *2009: ''That deep silence'' * ''To Follow the Sun'' * ''Unbinding: A Story of Rebirth and Other Stories'' * ''Anoma'' *1972: ''The Betel Wine''

Short stories

*2004: ''Missing in Action;Sunset Years'' *1963: ''The Third Women''

Personal life

She is the daughter of

Justin Kotelawala Justin Kotelawala, CBE, JP (22 August 1904 - 2 April 1973) was a Sri Lankan businessman and Senator. He was the former Chairman of the Ceylinco Group. Early life and education He was born to John Kotelawala, a police inspector turned businessma ...

, a businessman and senator of Colombo and his wife Millicent da Silva. Her brother is

Deshamanya Deshamanya ( si, දේශමාන්‍ය, translit=Dēshamāṉya; ta, தேசமான்ய, translit=Tēcamāṉya; Pride of the Nation) is the second-highest national honour of Sri Lanka awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a ...

Lalith Kotelawala Deshmanya Deshabandu Jeewaka Lalith Bhupendra Kotelawala is a Sri Lankan businessman, who was the chairman of Ceylinco Consolidated and also was the founding chairman of Seylan Bank. He was listed in 2007 Sri Lanka Richest List. He was remand ...

. She spent most of her life in Colombo, where she published all her works.anciburuwa.blogspot.com/2015/02/interview-with-mr-lalith-kotelawala.html

References

External links

*http://www.loc.gov/acq/ovop/delhi/salrp/punyakantewijenaike.html *https://prezi.com/otgp8p9cvhxy/punyakante-wijenaike-anoma/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Wijenaike, Punyakante People from Colombo 1933 births Living people 20th-century Sri Lankan writers 20th-century Sri Lankan women writers 21st-century Sri Lankan writers 21st-century Sri Lankan women writers