Sirilal Kodikara Explained

Sirilal Kodikara
Birth Date:27 August 1924
Birth Place:British Ceylon
Nationality:Sri Lankan
Occupation:novelist, poet, journalist, and radio play writer
Children:Deepa Senevirathna, Amila Kodikara, Pasan Kodikara

Sirilal Kodikara (27 August 1924 – 19 November 2021) was a Sri Lankan novelist, poet, journalist, and radio play writer who wrote in Sinhala. He was a Buddhist priest in the early part of his life.

Life and career

Kodikara was born on 27 August 1924.[1] He started his journalistic career in 1948 writing for a weekly Sinhala newspaper, Sinhala Jathiya.[2] Later he worked under Editor-in-Chief D. B. Dhanapala at the newspaper Davasa, founded in 1961 by M. D. Gunasena. This period of journalism by Kodikara and his contemporaries has been described as “a golden era in the history of local media in Sri Lanka”.[3] Kodikara later wrote for the newspapers Aththa, Heta, and Ravaya. He authored many books on various subjects.

He was known for his stint as a journalist at the now defunct Aththa (Truth) newspaper. His daily column “Ranchagoda Lamaya”, in the form of a two-stanza poem, was heavily laced with biting criticism of whoever was in power[4] and was very popular during the 1970s and 80s. In addition to his short stories, poems, and novels, he wrote “Mahawansa Vimansana” (non-fiction) exploring the myths of the Mahawamsa chronicle. His “Manasa Vila” was produced as an opera by Premasiri Khemadasa.[5]

Kodikara received a 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Press Institute.

He died on 19 November 2021, at the age of 97.[6] [7]

Books

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Selected Sri Lankan Short Stories: 1928-1980 . 2003 . Godage International Publishers . 239 . 14 March 2021.
  2. News: Daily Mirror . Five senior journalists to be honoured. 27 July 2010 .
  3. News: Welabada . Lakmal . Arthur U. Amarasena talks of his life with veteran actress wife Sriyani Amarasen . Sunday Observer . 28 September 2008.
  4. News: 'Api Okkoma' once again from a unique family of six writers . Sunday Times . 7 March 1999 . Kala Korner by Dee Cee .
  5. News: Maestro Premasiri Khemadasa: Reminiscence of his real-life sonata . Daily News . Mahendra . Sunanda . 27 October 2008 .
  6. News: Senior journalist Sirilal Kodikara passes away . 11 December 2021 . Daily News . 20 November 2021.
  7. News: Death of Snr. journalist Sirilal Kodikara . 11 December 2021 . Ceylon Today . 19 November 2021.