Arts

Mortifying existence or extreme asceticism? 

By Risidra Mendis 

The story of the present (a  problem in this birth), the  story of the past (the karmic connection of the previous birth) and the realisation of the cause and effect of the two stories is the traditional Buddhist Jathaka or parable method used by Writer/Director, Satyajit Maitipe in his cinematic debut Bora Diya Pokuna (Scent Of The Lotus Pond).

Bora Diya Pokuna was awarded the special prize for the best fiction film at the recently concluded Honolulu International Film Festival (HIFF) 2005 in Hawai, USA.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, Maitipe said the three Buddhist parables used in his film can be translated into the judaeo-Christian concepts of sinning, suffering and salvation.

"The film has a very simple and straightforward narrative. I created the characters of the three girls as a representation of the three archetypal paths of salvation discussed in Buddhist philosophy. They are mortifying existence or extreme asceticism (Gothami), the Buddhist ideal or the middle path (Swineetha) and Absolute hedonism or worldly self indulgence (Mangala)," says Maitipe.

Bora Diya Pokuna revolves around three rural working class garment factory girls, a pampered prima donna (Mangala), a safe runner (Swineetha) and a tormented vixen (Gothami) who go through trials and tribulations of their bitter sweet youth in a liberalised industrial zone in the city.

Lovelorn Gothami makes life difficult for everyone around her and creates her own tragedy by obsessively falling in love with her pretty friend Mangala's sexually frustrated lover Vipula.

"The carefree existence of the three girls ends in catastrophe and Gothami disappears. An accidental meeting of the two girls after several years results in a confession by the ever-winning Mangala. The revelation shocks Gothami. Perhaps for the first time Gothami sees life, winning and losing, suffering and salvation in a completely different perspective that she never thought existed explained Maitipe.

According to Maitipe, his protagonists are garment factory girls, soldiers and Middle East returnees with peasant roots. "They are raw, pretentious and live on the brink of life. I find them pathetically endearing."

"I am always on the protagonist's side not because of a political learning, because it is fashionable to champion the underdog or because creatively it is exhilarating to play the anti-hero. When you live in the grim, political, social and economic circumstances of South Asia and share life with these people emotionally and sexually, I have realised that I have no choice but to express myself through them. Even in this darkness, life for me as a Buddhist is not a bottomless pit. Everything we value in life is transient. I believe that life itself offers you 'light,' but only if you are sharp enough to 'see' and strong enough to 'accept.' As a film maker I do not believe that life is terrible and then you will die kind of aesthetic," Maitipe said.

The sex and sexuality in Bora Diya Pokuna is a metaphor or crucial element in building the moral dilemma which is the centre of the plot and becomes a catalyst for characterisation. "The scene where Gothami and Vipula copulate is the moment where their souls collide, instead of merging. This is an integral part of the story. The sex they have is what interlocks their fate and changes their destinies," says Maitipe.   

According to Maitipe, the 22 movies that competed at the HIFF were processed alike using approved software and lodged in auxiliary servers for digital screening.

At the HIFF, awards were given for categories of screenplay direction, actor and actress performances, art, photography, editing and integral realisation. The jury also grants special prizes for Best Fiction Film and the Best Documentary Film.

Bora Diya Pokuna previously won the Tiger Award nomination for the most promising new directors of 2004 at the Rotterdam International Film Festival in Netherlands. In 2004 the prestigious Smithsonian Institute, USA selected Bora Diya Pokuna for their Discoveries 2004 programmes as one of the six most exciting, entertaining and original films from Asia.    

Jay Weisberg of Variety described the film as "surprisingly explicit content and complex protagonists." Bora Diya Pokuna represented Sri Lanka at international film festivals held in Vancouver, Canada, Seattle, USA and Brisbane, Australia. The film was hailed by Western critics as "at once a modern day Buddhist parable, a deliciously juicy melodrama and an astonishingly frank depiction of sexual obsession."

Maitipe was born in 1964 in north western Sri Lanka to an urbane Catholic mother and a rural Buddhist father. He has studied political science, sociology and English literature at the University of Melbourne Australia and Colombo.

Maitipe has worked as a film journalist, broadcaster, copywriter and a social worker dealing with the lonely and suicidal. At present Maitipe teaches language skills at the University of Colombo.

Guys And Dolls

The Overseas School of Colombo has, over the years, developed a well-earned reputation for producing entertaining, modern school musicals of an impressive quality - often with a strong social message.

However, this year sees an interesting shift in style for the students of the secondary school who will present Guys And Dolls Jr. (in association with Music Theatre International) - an adaptation of the 1950's Broadway favourite by Burrows, Swerling and Loesser.

This production is bursting with added excitement for the OSC community as it celebrates the official opening of the school's new multi-million dollar auditorium and music/drama space. The facility has been many years in planning and construction and its completion marks a milestone in the arts at OSC and the realisation of many people's visions and dreams. It is a very impressive performance space complete with state of the art theatrical equipment. There is no doubt that Guys And Dolls is a fitting way to open this facility.

One of Broadway's best-loved Musicals, Guys And Dolls has been described as "the perfect musical comedy." Loosely based on Damon Runyon's short story The Idyll Of Miss Sarah Brown it describes the unlikely romance between a pure at heart urban missionary Sarah (played by Jennifer Entwistle, Grade 11) and a slick Broadway gambler - Sky masterson (Julian Reuter, Grade 11). The show's second romantic storyline involves Nathan Detroit (Karl Lynam, Grade 9) and Miss Adelaide (Jessica Evans, Grade 11), who have been engaged for 14 years. Nathan organises the "oldest established, permanent floating crap game in New York" and Adelaide is the main attraction at the 'Hot Box' nightclub.

A varied assortment of colourful characters emerge as the story unfolds into a melting-pot of gambling, sin, romance, singing, dancing and finally redemption. The show concludes with a predictable but nonetheless satisfactory and very Broadway happy ending.

Guys And Dolls is presented by students from Grades six to 11 and sees a debut into music theatre at OSC for many students. In particular it showcases the talent of quite a few younger students who find themselves in lead solo roles for the first time. The chorus is also a highlight with strong whole cast numbers, bright costumes and dazzling sets.

As a component of the International Baccalaureate's senior Theater Arts Programme at OSC much of the technical and creative aspects of the production have been completed by students who can take credit for areas such as lighting, costume, makeup and set design. Making this just as much a learning experience from a technical perspective as much as from a performance point of view.

Guys And Dolls, directed by Michelle Searle and Stuart Jones and Musical Direction by Annette McKerrow, takes place on Thursday, March 31, Friday, April 1 and Saturday, April 2 at the Overseas School of Colombo's auditorium commencing at 8 p.m.

Tickets are available from the Overseas School of Colombo.

Guys And Dolls Jr, a part of the Broadway Junior Collection is presented through special arrangement and all authorised performance materials are supplied by Music Theatre International.

Mozart and Purcell concert for tsunami relief

Camerata Musica Chamber Choir is preparing a major concert for Easter Saturday, March 26, which will include Mozart's last work, his magnificent Requiem, and Purcell's profoundly moving Funeral Music For Queen Mary. The concert is in aid of tsunami relief.

Formerly conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka and currently resident in Geneva, Lalanath de Silva will be the guest conductor of the Requiem. It will be performed with a classical chamber orchestra led by Thushani Jayawardane and a fine quartet of soloists - Anagi Perera, soprano, Avanti Perera, contralto, Asitha Tennekoon, tenor and Adam Smyth, bass.

Adam Smyth, previously a choral scholar at one of Oxford's foremost chapels, will conduct Purcell's Funeral Music For Queen Mary. It is scored for a brass ensemble with timpani, organ, solo singers and chamber choir.

This is Camerata Musica Chamber Choir's second concert. Its founding concert in November 2004 spanned four centuries of choral music, much of it sung unaccompanied.

The concert on March 26 will be at St. Michael's Church, Kollupitiya at 7.30 p.m. Admission is by programme available from the Lionel Wendt Arts Centre and at the church door.