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Nimal Mendis (1934–2015) was a Sri Lankan singer and songwriter, and was one of a handful of Sri Lankan musicians to appear on the BBC television programme Top of the Pops (1968). Mendis was a longstanding member of the Performing Rights Society and the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society of Great Britain.
Sri Lankan cinema encompasses the Sri Lankan film industry. It is a fledgling industry that has struggled to find a footing since its inauguration in 1947 with Kadawunu Poronduwa produced by S. M. Nayagam of Chitra Kala Movietone. Sri Lankan films are usually made in Sinhala and Tamil, the dominant languages of the country.
Liyanage Boniface Walter Perera, popularly known by his stage name Ravindra Randeniya, is a Sri Lankan actor and former politician. He rose to fame in Lester James Peries's film Desa Nisa in 1975, and was a popular actor during the 1970s and 1980s; He won the Sarasaviya Best Actor Award in 1984 (Dadayama), 1985 (Maya), 1989, and 1990.
Rekava is a 1956 film based on village life and mythical beliefs in Sri Lanka. It is the first Sinhala film fully shot in Ceylon and was film shot outdoors in the country. It was also the first Sri Lankan film that was free from Indian influence. Many Sinhala films in that time were remakes of South Indian films and were not adapted to the Sri Lankan context, even having unnatural dialog.
Ara Soyza is a 1984 Sri Lankan comedy film directed by Herbert Ranjith Peiris and produced by Dayasena Perera for Samagi Films. It stars Freddie Silva, Don Sirisena, Sabeetha Perera and Wimal Kumara de Costa in lead roles along with Rukmani Devi and Piyadasa Wijekoon. Music composed by director Herbert Ranjith Peiris himself.
Visakha Vidyalaya is a girls' school in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is a National School managed by the central government providing primary and secondary education.
"Master Sir" is a Sinhala pop song written by Sri Lankan singer/songwriter Nimal Mendis for the film Kalu Diya Dhahara, in which it was performed over the title sequence by Neela Wickramasinghe.
Ganga Addara was a 1980 Sinhalese language film directed by Sumitra Peiris and produced by Sumathi Films. The film stars Vasanthi Chathurani and late Vijaya Kumaratunga in the lead roles. Adapted from a novel by Letitia Botejue, its script was written by veteran director Tissa Abeysekara. The music and English lyrics were composed by Nimal Mendis. It was translated into Sinhala by Augustus Vinayagaratnam and was sung by Vijaya Kumaratunga, who also made his mark as a playback singer. Ganga Addara, which was the second production of Sumathi Films was set in Kandy, colonial Sri Lanka. Its plot is about a tragic love story between a boy and his uncle's daughter, where all the incidents take place around river Kalani, a famous river in Sri Lanka.
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. Jayewardene, and continue till 2004. The awards were not held from 2005 to 2014 when Mahinda Rajapakse was president. The award started to be presented again in 2015 by President Maithripala Sirisena, and last awarded by President Ranil Wickramasinghe in 2023.
Sumitra Peries was a Sri Lankan filmmaker. She was the first female film director from Sri Lanka. and was known as the "Poetess of Sinhala Cinema". She also held the post of Sri Lanka's ambassador to France, Spain and the United Nations in the late 1990s. Of her films the more popular ones are Gehenu Lamai, Ganga Addara and Yahaluvo. She was married to the most prolific Sri Lankan film director Dr. Lester James Peries.
Gehenu Lamai is a 1978 Sri Lankan Sinhala teenage drama film directed by Sumitra Peries and produced by her husband Lester James Peries for Lester Films. The film introduced Vasanthi Chathurani into Sinhala cinema. Along with her, film stars Ajith Jinadasa and Jenita Samaraweera in lead roles along with Shyama Anandan and Cyril Kothalawala. Music composed by Nimal Mendis. It is the 390th Sri Lankan film in the Sinhala cinema.
Mirihana Arachchige Nanda Malini Perera, popularly as Nanda Malini, is a Sri Lankan musician. One of the best known and most honoured singers of Sri Lanka, Malini's choice of singing themes are based on real life and social-cultural situations. Her songs intricate notional ideas of relationships, life-circumstances, and emotions that stem out of human realities.
Nalin Jayawardena is a popular Sri Lankan singer and vocalist. He was the first Sri Lankan singer to release an internet based audio album in Sinhala allowing his fans from around the world to download the album free of charge. This album titled Kanda Paamule was released in 2004. Nalin Jayawardena lives in Perth, Australia.
Somsiri Sanath Julien Gunatilake, popularly as Sanath Gunatilake, is an actor, director, screenwriter in Sri Lankan cinema and film director. A highly versatile actor across many genres, Gunatilake is a veteran actor in the Sri Lankan cinema industry with a career spanning more than four decades. He Served as a member of Western Provincial Council as United National Party member, and later join as media head of President Chandrika Kumaratunga.
Anula Karunathilaka is a Sri Lankan film actress and theatrical performer. Her work is noted during the 1970s film and cinema history in Sri Lanka. One of the most popular actresses in Sinhala cinema in 1960s, she is best known for the popular role 'Dammi' in the blockbuster film Golu Hadawatha.
Vaishnavee is a 2018 Sri Lankan Sinhala drama thriller film directed by veteran director Sumitra Peries and produced by Mano Nanayakkara. The film stars Yashoda Wimaladharma, Thumindu Dodantenna and Jayalath Manoratne in lead roles along with Vasanthi Chathurani and Cletus Mendis. Popular teledrama actress Samadhi Arunachaya made her cinema debut with the film. The music is composed by Nimal Mendis, and is his last music direction before his death. The film was shot in 2012, and Sumitra Peries was the first director to shoot with the latest Red Epic camera in Sri Lanka. The film had the last script written by Tony Ranasinghe before his death.
Galhenage Rathnapala Perera was an actor in Sri Lankan cinema, theatre and television. He acted in more than 600 television serials, with a career spanned over seven decades.
Devnaka Namindu Porage, popularly known as Devnaka Porage, is an actor in Sri Lankan cinema and television. Started as a child artist through several commercial advertisements. Devnaka became a popular actor particularly with the blockbuster film Gharasarapa and television serials Ganga Addara and Sihina Wasanthayak.