Charismatic actor-politician may have changed the nation’s destiny

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By
D.B.S. Jeyaraj

 

The political landscape of Sri Lanka seems gloomy and desolate. Most of the actors who strut about the political stage posing as visionaries and leaders are in actuality empty vessels devoid of substance. Proverbial wisdom tells us empty vessels make most sound. This is most apparent in the cacophony of voices currently prevalent in the polity. In the words of William ButlerYeats: “The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.” The positive dream of Sri  Lanka evolving into an inclusive, plural nation is slowly turning into a numerical majoritarian hegemonic nightmare.

One of the many reasons for this dearth of truly visionary and genuinely dedicated leaders has been the political violence of the tragic past. The secessionary war spearheaded by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the anti-State insurgencies led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the repressive, no holds barred counter-violence unleashed by the State to combat the LTTE and JVP insurrections at different times have cumulatively resulted in the lives of many brilliant, benevolent leaders being snuffed out abruptly. This violence and counter-violence too brought to the forefront of politics many parochial personalities without depth of wisdom. Sri  Lanka suffers! 

It is against this bleak backdrop therefore that I pen this week about an endearing personality with an enduring vision whom I liked, admired and respected. A man who voiced for the powerless against the powerful. A man who envisaged the transformation of Sri Lanka into an inclusive, multi-ethnic, egalitarian and plural nation. A man who fought against race, religion, caste and class oppression. A much loved man of the masses who may have altered the destiny of this resplendent isle in a very positive manner, had he not been felled in the prime of life by foul assassins. A man whose worth is increasingly valued in the present time where communal discord is deliberately promoted for short-term political gain. I write this week about the beloved actor turned politician Vijaya Kumaratunga whose 32nd death anniversary falls on February 16.

 

The positive dream of Sri  Lanka evolving into an inclusive, plural nation is slowly turning into a numerical majoritarian hegemonic nightmare

 

I have written some articles about Vijaya in the past. I will be drawing on some of them in writing this column. Also, I need to mention that Vijaya’s surname was originally spelled ‘Kumaranatunga.’ It was as VijayaKumaranatunga that he blazed a trail on screen. Subsequently, the name was modified from Kumaranatunga to ‘Kumaratunga.’ I shall however be referring to him as Kumaratunga in this article though he was actually known as Kumaranatunga for the greater part of his life. Also, his name has been spelled as both ‘Wijaya’ and ‘Vijaya.’ I shall refer to him as Vijaya in these columns. 

It was in 1975 that I saw Vijaya Kumaratunga in the flesh for the first time. I had not entered journalism then. He was coming out through the gates of a private hospital on High Street (W.A. de Silva Mawatha) in Wellawatte in a red car. Clad in a t-shirt and trousers, Vijaya was in the driver’s seat with strongman actor Piyadasa Gunasekara by his side. A bunch of girls going along the road had seen Vijaya in the car and surrounded the vehicle. Soon others including myself gathered around. 

The giggling girls entered into good-humoured bantering with him. Vijaya gave back in style, cracking jokes effortlessly. A few got his autograph. After what seemed an eternity, Vijaya got the permission of his fans to leave. The crowd parted and Vijaya drove away waving and smiling. The girls who mobbed him were in a delightful daze. One of them remarked loudly, “Aney bonikka vaage ney” (Oh, like a doll!). “Pirisudhu Muhuna” (pure face),” said another. I had seen many of his films before but this was the first time I had seen him off-screen. I was impressed by his simplicity, accessibility and cheerful rapport with his “unknown” fans. 

 

SLFP Candidate for Katana
The next time I saw Vijaya was on the night of July 21, 1977. It was Election Day and I, as a cub reporter at Tamil Daily Virakesari, was at the main counting centre and returning office at RoyalCollege. The results were trickling in. Vijaya dressed in white came inside along with another Sinhala film actor (either Boniface Fernando or Roy de Silva). Vijaya was the SLFP candidate for Katana. He walked around with a smile and then seeing us journalists came over to exchange pleasantries. 

1977 was the year when Tamil Nadu actor M.G. Ramachandran (MGR) was tasting political success in India as the founder-leader of All-India Anna-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham (AIADMK). MGR had been elected Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in June 1977. I introduced myself and asked Vijaya whether he was the MGR of Sri Lankan politics. He laughed loud and said he wished he were MGR and replied that he had a long way to go before he could ever be compared to MGR. 

As is well-known, the SLFP was utterly routed by the UNP at the 1977 polls. Wijepala Mendis, who was the Katana sitting MP, defeated Vijaya Kumaratunga by a majority of 4,212 votes. Wijepala polled 23,950 to Vijaya’s 19,738. When the Katana result was announced, Vijaya had left but a triumphant Wijepala Mendis remained. 

After congratulating Mendis, I asked him what it felt like to defeat Vijaya Kumaratunga, the MGR of Sri Lankan politics. Mendis guffawed and said: “Aiyo, what is his experience in politics compared to me? Who is this fellow born the day before yesterday?” 

Wijepala Mendis was right then, but as years progressed, Vijaya Kumaratunga not only established himself as a film hero but also played a heroic role in politics, achieving great stature. In later years, I got a few opportunities to meet and converse with Vijaya Kumaratunga. He was always open, frank, amiable and courteous. 

 

Dashing and debonair Vijaya
Thirty-two years has passed since the brutal assassination of Vijaya Kumaratunga but the handsome film star-politico remains evergreen in the collective memory of his numerous fans and followers. In his thespian career of more than two decades, the dashing and debonair Vijaya enthralled millions of filmgoers with his scintillating screen performances. 

He had acted in 114 films at the time of his demise – eight more were released after his death. Thus, Vijaya’s final tally of films is 122. It is said he had acted without getting any payment in 13 films. Almost all of his films were financial successes at the box office. Due to political machinations in the cinema sphere, Vijaya was seldom bedecked with laurels for his acting skills but as far as the film-going masses were concerned, he was their popular idol. He was voted most popular actor for eight years successively. 

Vijaya starred mainly in run-of-the-mill movies that entertained but he did act in some films that were different and made a difference too. 23 of the films acted in by Vijaya are regarded as artistic “avant garde” movies within the Sinhala cinema sphere. Like Sinhala cinema’s superstar Gamini Fonseka, Vijaya Kumaratunga too was commercially valued and artistically acclaimed as a film actor. 

Acting was his accredited profession but politics was Vijaya Kumaratunga’s chosen vocation. Possessing left-leaning views and also being closely related to Prof. Carlo Fonseka, Vijaya was involved with Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) in his youthful days. He later joined the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and became its Katana organiser. As mentioned earlier, Vijaya contested the Katana constituency unsuccessfully against Wijepala Mendis in 1977. 

 

Wooing and winning Chandrika’s hand
He married into the first family of the SLFP in February 1978 by wooing and winning the hand of Chandrika Bandaranaike. Chandrika was to disclose in a newspaper interview decades after Vijaya’s death that she had met Vijaya for the first time in 1977 at Kandy. Although Chandrika had seen a few of his films, it was as the SLFP candidate for Katana in 1977 that Vijaya was first introduced by Anura Bandaranaike to his sister. All SLFP candidates were attending a party conference in Kandy then. 

Thereafter, Vijaya made several trips to Horagolla where Chandrika was residing then. The Katana SLFP candidate began inviting the party leader’s daughter for many political meeting in the constituency. The SLFP suffered a political debacle in July 1977. Vijaya however continued to meet with Chandrika for the ostensible purpose of discussing national and international political issues. 

These discussions flowered into a beautiful romance. They married on February 20, 1978. Film director Lester James Peries was the attesting witness on behalf of Vijaya and former Agriculture and Lands Minister Hector Kobbekaduwe attested for Chandrika. It was a simple ceremony with only 19 guests present. 

Vijaya moved in with Chandrika to 63,RosemeadPlace after marriage. Later, they relocated to residences in Kynsey Road, Borella and Polhengoda Road in Kirulapone. Vijaya and Chandrika have two children. Daughter Yashodara was born in 1989 and son Vimukthi in 1982 – both are medical doctors in Britain now. Vijaya and Chandrika planned to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary grandly on February  20, 1988. But alas! Vijaya was assassinated four days before that on February 16.

Despite losing elections, Vijaya plunged zestfully into SLFP politics and was the livewire behind islandwide campaigns protesting the deprivation of Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s civic rights in 1980. I can yet recall the press conference held in October 1980 at Rosemead Place by Mrs. Bandaranaike. She was flanked by lawyers V.W.Kularatne and Gamini Iriyagolla. The atmosphere got “electrified” when Vijaya arrived in a jeep, dressed in a strikingly-colourful batik sarong and shirt. 

 

Arrested under JR regime for “Naxalite” plot
In 1982, Mrs. Bandaranaike could not contest the presidential poll because her civic rights had been taken away. HectorKobbekaduwe contested as the SLFP candidate. Vijaya and Chandrika actively campaigned for Hector. J.R.Jayewardene however won and was re-elected as President. Recognising the political abilities and leadership potential of Vijaya, JR had him locked up along with hundreds of SLFP activists in a makeshift prison in November 1982. Vijaya was later transferred to Welikada and kept in solitary confinement for a while. Severe restrictions were imposed. 

The pretext under which Vijaya and others were imprisoned was over the allegation that they were engaged in a “Naxalite” conspiracy to overthrow the UNP Government of the day. The so-called Naxalite plot was a total fabrication. After winning the presidential poll, J.R. Jayewardene ordered a referendum to be held for extending the term of Parliament for a further six years without holding elections. He did not want dynamic persons like Vijaya canvassing against JR’s objective in the referendum. Hence, the Naxalite conspiracy was a calculated ruse to prevent Vijaya and his political comrades from participating at the referendum. 

Although Gamini Fonseka was a UNPer, the matinee idol opposed Vijaya’s incarceration. He personally met President Jayewardene and appealed for Vijaya’s release. Actor Tony Ranasinghe drafted a petition calling for Vijaya’s release to be signed and sent to JR. Sadly, a very few in the Sinhala cinema industry had the courage to sign it then. Apart from Tony Ranasinghe, only maestro Premasiri Khemadasa, Nanda Malini, Roy de Silva, Sumana Amarasinghe and Suneetha Weerasinghe signed it. Such was the prevailing climate of fear then. Some of us who remember the not so distant past can see signs of a similar fear psychosis setting in now. 

JR won the referendum in December 1982. Thereafter, pursuing the Naxalite conspiracy investigation became unnecessary. Vijaya was released in January 1983. Unafraid and unbowed, Vijaya began engaging in SLFP politics again. In May 1983,Vijaya contested the Mahara electorate for the SLFP in a by-election and lost by a narrow margin. There was however a lot of intra-party intrigues in the SLFP against Vijaya and Chandrika. 

 

Forming “Sri Lanka Mahajana Pakshaya”
Vijaya found himself unable to continue in the SLFP. In 1984, Vijaya Kumaratunga broke away from the SLFP along with Chandrika and others like T.B. Illangaratne and Ratnasiri Wickramanayake to form the Sri Lanka Mahajana Pakshaya (SLMP). The SLMP had a broad, refreshing political perspective. Its advent on the Sri Lankan political horizon was like fresh rain pouring on dry, parched earth. 

In 1986,Vijaya contested the Minneriya by-election on behalf of the newly-formed SLMP. The UNP won but Vijaya came second, pushing the SLFP to third place. What was most significant about the Minneriya result was that Vijaya was first at the first count. The UNP wanted a recount. While counting was on, there was a mysterious power blackout. Counting resumed when lights came on. Lo and behold! Vijaya’s votes had decreased during the blackout. 

The SLMP also played a crucial role in trying to bring about ethnic reconciliation. Vijaya Kumaratunga had an accommodative approach towards the long-festering ethnic crisis. He led a delegation including Chandrika to meet Tamil militant leaders in Tamil Nadu in 1985. He met people like Anton Balasingham and Lawrence Thilaghar from the LTTE, Umamaheswaran and Vasudeva from PLOTE, Padmanabha and Ketheesh Loganathan from EPRLF and V. Balakumar and Eliyathamby Ratnasabapathy from EROS. Vijaya also met with Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran and had a lengthy dialogue with the actor turned politician. Vijaya told a journalist later that MGR had talked about the Tamil film “Nankooram” (anchor) in which Kumaratunga was lead actor. Tamil actress Lakshmi was the leading lady. 

Vijaya Kumaratunga also went to Jaffna in 1986 when the peninsula was dominated by the LTTE and met with Tiger leader Sathasivampillai Krishnakumar alias ‘Kittu’ and his spokesperson Srikumar Kanagaratnam alias ‘Rahim.’ How this came about is an interesting tale by itself. The LTTE had captured two Sri Lankan soldiers in 1986 and were keeping them in custody. The Tigers decided to derive some political mileage by releasing them unilaterally to a prominent Sinhala political leader who was sympathetic towards the problems faced by Tamils. LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran thought of Vasudeva Nanayakkara but Kittu and Rahim felt Vijaya was a better choice. 

 

LTTE invites Vijaya to Jaffna
What happened thereafter was revealed by Rahim to a journalist some years later. Initially, the LTTE in Jaffna did not even have Vijaya’s telephone number. Rahim phoned T.B. Illangaratne without divulging his identity and obtained the actor’s telephone number. He then called Vijaya and told him who he was. Vijaya suspected a hoax and called him back. After several calls back and forth, Kumaratunga was convinced that the LTTE was serious. He was happy about the LTTE wanting to release the two soldiers. The Tigers invited Vijaya to visit Jaffna with Chandrika. Chandrika however was unable to do so due to some personal reasons and hence Vijaya planned to visit Jaffna with Ossie Abeygunasekera. Subsequently, Felix Perera too joined them. 

The trio was given a rousing welcome by the LTTE. They also met with the two soldiers in captivity. It was arranged for Vijaya to return to Jaffna with members of the soldier families and some religious leaders. The soldier duo would be handed over to Vijaya in the presence of family members and religious dignitaries, it was said. Vijaya’s trip to Jaffna and inter-action with the LTTE was extensively filmed and made into a video cassette. In those days, there was no internet and the word “Viral” had not been popularised as it is now. However, the video cassette of Vijaya’s Jaffna trip to meet the LTTE became very popular. Copies were made and circulated widely. Vijaya Kumaratunga became a political hero overnight. More importantly, the video helped improve ethnic relations. 

The UNP Government and National Security Minister Lalith Athulathmudali got worried. Lalith thought of undermining Vijaya by appropriating “credit” for the release of soldiers. He used his channels of communication with the LTTE and made an offer to release two LTTE suspects in the custody of security forces in return for the soldiers. It must be noted that the LTTE had been prepared to release the two soldiers to Vijaya without expecting a quid pro quo. 

Meanwhile, another “twist” occurred in the North. The LTTE learnt belatedly that one of their senior leaders, Aruna, was being held by the army at the Jaffna Fort. It had been believed earlier that Aruna had perished at sea when a Sri Lankan Navy vessel fired on an LTTE boat. Aruna hailing from Kalviyankaadu in Jaffna was a very senior Tiger leader and had even functioned as the LTTE commander for the Batticaloa District. However, Aruna had not divulged his real identity to the navy when he was picked up by sailors after the Tiger boat capsized. Aruna had identified himself as “Kunju Kumar” the helmsman or “Oatti” of the boat and claimed to have been hired by the Tigers to steer the vessel. Thus, Aruna remained in army custody without the security forces realising they had a prize catch in their hands. 

 

Tigers disappoint Vijaya Kumaratunga
Once the LTTE in the north confirmed that Aruna was alive in army custody, its plans changed. It grasped Athulathmudali’s offer and began negotiating quietly. While clandestine negotiations were going on, Vijaya Kumaratunga arrived in Jaffna with the religious leaders and family members. The LTTE gave them a warm welcome and allowed family members to meet and spend time with the soldiers. JaffnaTiger commander Kittu even offered “Ata Pirikara” to the Buddhist monks. The Tigers declined to release the soldiers as arranged earlier. 
A disappointed Vijaya returned empty-handed. National Security Minister Lalith Athulathmudali was jubilant at Vijaya’s discomfiture and expedited the exchange of prisoners with the LTTE. But he was left with a lot of egg on his face when it became known that Kunju Kumar was actually Aruna and that the government had unwittingly let slip the top-most Tiger it had ever captured alive. To strike a personal note, it was I –working then as Colombo correspondent of “The Hindu” – who scooped the story of the government releasing Aruna to the Tigers without knowing who he was. 

 

Vijaya Kumaratunga was killed by the JVP just four days before his tenth wedding anniversary on February 20. The history of Sri Lanka may have been entirely different had Vijaya Kumaratunga not been cut down so cruelly in the prime of his life; a life that was so constructive and full of promise

Vijaya Kumaratunga also welcomed the Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987 thereby incurring the wrath of the Rohana Wijeweera-led Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). He criticised the JVP boldly. Referring to the anti-Indian hysteria propagated by the JVP and its fellow travellers, Vijaya said even Lord Buddha would be declared persona non grata in Sri Lanka by the JVP because the enlightened one was regarded as the noblest son of India. The JVP was furious. Vijaya Kumaratunga was killed by the JVP just four days before his tenth wedding anniversary on February 20. The history of Sri Lanka may have been entirely different had Vijaya Kumaratunga not been cut down so cruelly in the prime of his life; a life that was so constructive and full of promise.

 

 

Kovilage Vijaya Anthony Kumaratunga
Kovilage Vijaya Anthony Kumaratunga was born on October 9, 1945in Seeduwa to Roman Catholic parents. His father Kovilage Benjamin Kumaratunga as well as his paternal grandfather Mudaliyar Jayagris Kumaratunga served as village headmen of Seeduwa. Vijaya’s mother Clara Beatrice Perera hailed from Madahamulla, a village between Minuwangoda and Divulapitiya. 

Vijaya had his early schooling at Kandana and then enrolled at St. Benedict’s College, Kotahena. Vijaya excelled in singing, drama and oratory during schooldays and won gold medals frequently. He also led the college’s Sinhala debating team. When the SLFP Government of 1960-65 nationalised private schools in 1961, the Catholic Church running hundreds of schools throughout the island protested vehemently. However, Vijaya belonged to a progressive school of thought among Catholics that welcomed the schools takeover. This created problems for Vijaya at St. Benedict’s. So in 1962,Vijaya left St. Benedict’s College and joined De Mazenod College,Kandana where he completed his secondary education. 

Young Vijaya’s first love was not to act on screen but to don a khaki uniform. He wanted to become a Sub-Inspector of Police. From childhood, Vijaya had wanted to be a policeman but his family, notably his mother, objected strongly. Nevertheless, he remained steadfast in his ambition and applied for a Sub-Inspector post. He was selected for an interview but tears and wails of his beloved mother resulted in him abandoning the idea reluctantly. 

Vijaya now began to think of a career in acting. He made contact with the ‘Apey Kattiya’ drama group of Sugathapala de Silva and made himself available. He went to see almost every performance of the group. Vijaya also enrolled at the Serendib Art Centre run by Shesha Palihakkara to learn dancing. Shesha Palihakkara had co- produced several films like ‘Ran Muthu Duwa’, ‘Getawarayo’ and ‘Sarawita.’ Palihakkara wanted to produce a film about the legendary warrior Puran Appu who rebelled against the British. This was many years before Lester James Peries made ‘Veera Puran Appu’ in 1979. 

Palihakkara picked Vijaya Kumaratunga to play Fransiscu Fernando/Puran Appu and Wally Nanayakkara to act as Gongalegoda Banda/King David in his film. Vijaya was highly excited and went to fellow Benedictine and reputed stuntmaster cum action star Robin Fernando to learn fighting techniques and horse-riding. But Palihakkara’s ‘Puran Appu’ never saw the light of day. 

 

“Ganga Addara Ma Sihil Senehi”
Vijaya was sorely disappointed but was consoled when he got an offer to act and sing in a musical drama ‘Sithijaye’ for which the words were written by T. Kuruwita Bandara and the music composed by Premasiri Khemadasa. Music maestro Khemadasa Master was highly impressed by Vijaya. Many years later, Vijaya got a chance to sing in the award-winning “Ganga Addara” directed by Sumitra Peries. The music was by Nimal Mendis. The song “Ganga Addara Ma Sihil Senehi” sung by Vijaya lingers in memory still. 

It was the Khemadasa Master connection which enabled Vijaya to get his first break in films. Renowned film editor T. Bawanandan was directing a film called ‘Manamalayo’. The film starring Tony Ranasinghe, Joe Abeywickrema and Shiranee Kurukulasuriya had Khemadasa composing music. Bawanandan was looking for some new faces to act in minor roles. Khemadasa Master recommended Vijaya who was given a small part. Finally, Vijaya got his first break in films. ‘Manamalayo’ was released in March 1967. This was Vijaya Kumaratunga’s first screen role. 

Vijaya kept on trying to act in films. Once, he heard that Lester James Peries was looking for a young man to act in his next film. The film was ‘Akkara Paha’ based on a novel by Madawala S. Ratnayake. Lester needed someone to play the male protagonist Sena. 

Vijaya made his way to Lester’s residence very early in the morning and seated himself on the verandah. When Lester was awake, the director was told that a young man was seated in front for more than an hour for an interview with him. Peries went out to speak to this “outstandingly handsome young man” (in Lester’s own words). Unfortunately, for Vijaya, Lester had already signed up Milton Jayawardene to play the lead role Sena. Peries told Kumaratunga that he would have certainly cast Vijaya in the role but he had already signed in another actor and it was too late now. The director asked Vijaya to keep in touch with him and promised he would consider him for another role in a new film. 

 

Greatest icon in SL cinema
Relating the incident in the book of interviews ‘Lester on Lester’ compiled by Kumar de Silva, the doyen of Sinhala film directors says: “The young man happened to be Vijaya Kumaratunga who went on to become the greatest icon in Sri Lankan cinema.” 

Lester goes on to say: “In life you have things that simply slip through your fingers. I regretted not having given him (Vijaya) even a small part, even to massage my ego in saying that I ‘discovered’ Vijaya. But it is that I did not have the luck to provide him with that breakthrough role.” 

So Sri Lanka’s foremost filmmaker Lester James Peries was not destined to “discover” Vijaya Kumaratunga and cast him in a distinctive role. That honour went to two directors who cast Vijaya almost simultaneously in their films which were released almost together. 

One director was Sugathapala Senerath Yapa who made ‘Hantane Kathawa’ with Tony Ranasinghe and Swarna Mallawarachchi. The other was G.D.L. Perera who made ‘Romeo Juliet Kathawak’ with actors like Rukmani Devi, Douglas Ranasinghe, Joe Abeywickrema and Piyadasa Gunasekara. But Lester himself was to utilise Vijaya Kumaratuga’s acting skills for three of his films. 

 

Three Lester James Peries films
The first in 1975 was for ‘The God King’ –Lester’s historical film about Kassapa of Sigiriya. The Eastman colour film in English produced by Dimitri de Grundwald had western actors like Leigh Lawson, Oliver Tobias and Geoffrey Russell playing the main roles of Kassapa, Migara and Dhatusena respectively. But Sri Lankans such as Ravindra Randeniya, Iranganie Serasinghe, Joe Abeywickrema, Douglas Wickremasinghe and Mano Breckenridge played the other roles. Vijaya Kumaratunga acted the part of Lalith in ‘The God King,’ which was the only English film he acted in. 

The second of Lester’s films in which Vijaya acted was ‘Ahasin Polowata’ released in 1978. The film was based on a novel written by Eileen Siriwardene, a teacher who later became the principal of Visakha Vidyalaya in Colombo. Eileen was the wife of D.B.I.P.S. Siriwardene, one of Sri Lanka’s finest civil servants and an accomplished linguistic scholar with a double doctorate. The film had Tony Ranasinghe in the lead with Sriyani Amarsena and Vasanthi Chathurani. Vijaya Kumaratunga played second lead in the role of a doctor friend. The film was shot in 23 days. 

The third and last Lester James Peries film in which Vijaya Kumaratunga acted in was ‘Beddegama’, the Sinhala film version of the Leonard Woolf novel ‘The Village in the Jungle’. The colour film was released in 1980. 

‘Beddegama’ had artistes like Joe Abeywickrema, Malani Fonseka, Henry Jayasena, Trilicia Gunawardena, Nadeeka Gunasekara and Tony Ranasinghe starring in it. VijayaKumaratunga played the character of Babun, which was in a sense the lead role. Peries in ‘Lester on Lester’ had this to say - “Vijaya Kumaratunga played Babun. There was the famous seduction scene which is really rape by consent, which I knew that Vijaya and Malani would do. Although that particular scene was badly cut here, it was really played with hardly clothes on.” 

These then were the three films of Lester that Vijaya acted in. Even though the opportunity of being launched in films by Lester James Peries was missed by Vijaya, his career did take off after the releases in 1969 of ‘Hantane Kathawa’ and ‘Romeo Juliet Kathawak’. 

 

Sugathapala Senerath Yapa’s “Hanthane Kathawa”
Initially Vijaya had been reluctant to audition for “Hantane Kathawa”. It was his sister -in – law who encouraged him to try and provided bus fare to Bambalapitiya. When Vijaya arrived at the interview venue, he saw a huge crowd of aspirants. Thinking he would not stand a chance, Vijaya decided to return home after drinking tea at a café. He saw some friends there who persuaded him not to return without being interviewed. They told him he would be selected. Vijaya returned, was interviewed and selected. The interview board was headed by the director Sugathapala Senerath Yapa. Dhrmasena Pathiraja was on the panel too. When the film was shot on location in Kandy and Peradeniya, Vijaya stayed with Pathiraja in a campus dormitory. 
Vijaya acted in many entertainment-oriented, commercially successful “formula films” as well as critically praised artistic films. The directors with different film making sensibilities like Sugathapala Senerath Yapa, G.D.L. Perera, Lester James Peries, Sumitra Peries, Vasantha Obeyesekere, Dharmasena Pathiraja, Sunil Ariyaratne, Tissa Abeyesekera and Titus Thotawatte, along with directors like Neil Rupasinghe, Lenin Moraes, Timothy Weeraratne, Yasapalitha Nanayakkara and a host of others helped make a successful star out of Vijaya Kumaratunga.

Movies of different genres such as ‘Ahas Gawwa’, ’Diyamanthi’, ‘Eya den Loku Lamayek’, ‘Para Dige’, ‘Bambaru Avith’, ‘Maruwaa Samaga Waase’, ”Karumakkarayo”,”Ganga Addara”, ‘Kadapathaka Chaya’ and “Krishtu Charithaya” as well as those like ‘Hathardenama Soorayo’, ‘Thushara’, ‘Pembara Madhu’, ’Sangeetha’ and ‘Monarathenna’ contributed in different ways to create the brand name Vijaya Kumaratunga. 

 

Sinhala cinemagoers embraced Gamini and Vijaya
Gamini Fonseka was the superstar of Sinhala cinema for many years. After Gamini came Vijaya. Both were appreciated and loved by the discerning filmgoer as well as the average film fan. Nuwan Nayanajith Kumara writes of this phenomenon thus - “Prior to the arrival of Vijaya on the silver screen, Gamini Fonseka, the superstar of Sinhala cinema, had constructed the image of a brave and passionate young hero. As an alternative, Vijaya invented a carefree, debonair, romantic lover. Sinhala cinemagoers warmly embraced them both.” 

Vijaya Kumaratunga blazed a successful trail in Sinhala cinematic skies for two decades. As his involvement in politics began increasing he began to decrease the time devoted for films. Despite the popularity and wealth he gained through cinema, Vijaya was willing to sacrifice those for the sake of the country and its people. It was his patriotism and the fervent desire to work for the betterment of the nation that propelled Vijaya into playing an active role in politics. Ultimately it was “politics” that ended his life. 

Vijaya Kumaratunga was shot dead in cold blood on February 16, 1988. He was standing near the front gate of his Kirulapone residence on Polhengoda Road and talking to an acquaintance when the assailants travelling in a two-wheeler struck. 

Vijaya was shot twice in the back and fell to the ground. The gunman then got off the motorcycle pillion and walked up to Vijaya, who was lying motionless, and pumped more bullets into his head and face. Thus ended the life of a charismatic leader who may very well have altered the destiny of this nation if he was not cruelly killed at the age of 42. 

 

Chandrika’s clenched fist salute
Vijaya Kumaratunga’s funeral was held on February 21, 1988 at Independence Square. A record crowd attended it. One still remembers the emotionally-powerful moment when Chandrika bade farewell to her husband and comrade with upraised hands giving a clenched fist salute! 

The memory of Vijaya Kumaratunga remains evergreen still. He is sorely missed by many people including this writer at the present juncture where stormy weather is threatening to destroy democratic freedom and ethnic harmony. 

D.B.S.Jeyaraj can be reached at [email protected]