Pearl Peters (born 30 March 1915 – died 19 June 1987 as
පර්ල් වාසුදේවි)
inhala, popularly as Pearl Vasudevi, was an
actress
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...
in
Sri Lankan cinema as well as a singer.
Personal life
Vasudevi was born as Pearl Peters in
Galle
Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Souther ...
on March 30, 1915 to a Burgher family.
She studied at the
Good Shepherd Convent, Colombo __NOTOC__
Good Shepherd Convent is a semi-government Catholic girls' school and the first Catholic convent in Sri Lanka. Located in the neighbourhood of Kotahena, the convent school educates girls from Kindergarten to age 19.
The convent includ ...
and became interested in theater at a young age.
She was married to fellow actor
Eddie Junior
Bulathsinhalage Hubert de Silva (12 March 1926 – 3 November 1982 as එඩී ජූනියර්) inhala, popularly known by his stage name Eddie Junior, was an actor in Sri Lankan cinema and theater as well as a music composer and singer.
...
. The couple has one daughter, Sujeewa Lalee. Sujeewa also acted in few films including maiden acting in ''Sithijaya''. Vasudevi died 19 June 1987 at the age of 72 following a brief illness.
Career
Vasudevi made her debut as an actress in 1930 playing the role of a princess in the play ''Aparikshakari Nadu Theenduwa'' at the age of 15. With her fluency in English, she also secured a leading role in an adaption of ''
Merchant of Venice
''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock.
Although classified as a ...
''.
Vasudevi joined Eddie Master's troupe shortly after acting in the role of Seetha in ''Ramayanaya''. The dramatist's son Eddie Junior composed the music for the play. Through their work together, Pearl and Eddie Junior would fall in love and got married in 1940.
She also served as a Radio Ceylon singer at
Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation
The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) ( si, ශ්රී ලංකා ගුවන් විදුලි සංස්ථාව, ''Shrī Lankā Guvan Viduli Sansthāva'', ta, இலங்கை ஒலிபரப்புக் க ...
(SLBC).
Vasudevi made her film debut with husband Eddie Junior in
Sirisena Wimalaweera
Sirisena Wimalaweera ( si, සිරිසේන විමලවීර; born 23 June 1901 – died 24 August 1963) was a Sri Lankan filmmaker and theater master. He made several critically acclaimed films from 1949 to 1960. He is the first indepe ...
's 1949 movie ''
Amma
Amma or AMMA may refer to:
Acronym
* American Medical Marijuana Association
* Amhara Mass Media Agency (created in 1993), a media organisation in Amhara Region in Ethiopia
* Association of Malayalam Movie Artists
* Assistant Masters' and Mist ...
''.
She would subsequently appear in over 150 films including ''Sithijaya'' with her daughter Sujeewa Lalee.
Filmography
References
External links
Pearl Vasudevi's Biography in Sinhala Cinema Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasudevi, Pearl
1915 births
1987 deaths
Sri Lankan film actresses
People from Galle
20th-century Sri Lankan actresses