Vasantha Obeysekera

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Vasantha Obeysekera - Wikipedia

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Vasantha Obeysekera
Born	(1937-12-29)29 December 1937 Mathugama, Sri Lanka
Died	8 April 2017(2017-04-08) (aged 79)
Nationality	Sri Lankan
Occupation	Film Director
Years active	1967–2017
Notable work	Walmathwuwo, Palangetiyo, Dadayama, Kedapathaka chaayaa, Maaruthaya, Dorakadamaaraawa, Theertha yaathraa, Salelu warama, AsiniVarsha, Aaganthukayaa

Vasantha Obeysekera (1937 – 2017), was a Sri Lankan film director and screenwriter.^[1]^[2]

Early life and career

Kala Keerthi Vasantha Obeysekera who was regarded as one of the foremost film makers in the 70s decade graduated from the University of Ceylon in 1962. He served on the Editorial Staff of the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited from 1964 to 1970. In addition to his editorial work, Obeysekera wrote several short stories during this period.^[3]^[4]

Obeysekera entered the film industry with Sath Samudura in 1967 which he co-wrote and worked on as assistant director; it was Sri Lanka's entry at the Moscow International Film Festival. In 1971 he was awarded a certificate in Cinematography by the Comité de libération du cinéma français.^[3]^[5]

1970s

In the 1970s Obeysekera wrote and directed Ves Gaththo ("Masked Men") (1970), Valmathuwo ("Lost Ones") (1976), Diyamanthi ("Diamond") (1977) and Palangetiyo ("Grasshoppers") (1979). Palangetiyo won the Presidential Film Awards for Best Screenplay, Best Director and Best Film.^[3]

1980s

1983's Dadayama ("The Hunt") also won the Presidential awards for Best Screenplay, Best Director and Best Film. It was a commercial success as well. Obeysekera made Kedapathaka Chaya ("Reflections on the Mirror") in 1989 after a five-year break.^[3]

1990s and 2000s

In the late-'90s, Obeysekera made Maruthaya ("The Storm") (1995), Dorakada Marawa ("Death at the Doorstep") (1998) and Theertha Yathra ("Pilgrimage") (1999). These also secured several OCIC and Presidential Awards.^[3]^[6]

Salelu Warama ("Web of Love"), Agni Warsha ("Rains of Fire"), Aganthukaya ("The Stranger"), and Sewwandhi were made in the 2000s.^[3]

Filmography

He has directed 13 films across many dramatic genres.^[7]

No. denotes the Number of Sri Lankan film in the Sri Lankan cinema.^[8]

Released Date	No.	Film
12 December 1970	234	Wesgaththo
2 April 1976	339	Walmathwuwo
28 May 1976	342	Diyamanthi ^[9]
27 April 1979	417	Palagatiyo
20 May 1983	558	Dadayama ^[10]
24 March 1989	687	Kedapathaka Chaya
9 June 1995	831	Maruthaya
2 December 1998	904	Dorakada Marawa
1 October 1999	922	Theertha Yathra
17 October 2002	990	Salelu Warama
7 April 2005	1048	Asani Warsha
7 December 2006	1080	Sewwandi
31 May 2007	1087	Aganthukaya

Death

He died on 8 April 2017 in a private hospital in Colombo.^[11]

References

^ "For Vasantha's death - වසන්ත ඔබේසේකරයන් ගේ අභාවය වෙනුවෙන් විශේෂයෙනි". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
^ "Filmmaker fights for the rights of TV viewers". Sunday Times. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "'Sewwandhi': Another dramatic twist by Obeysekere". Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. 2006. Retrieved 2007-12-21.
^ "Vasantha Obesekara - වසන්ත ඔබේසේකර පන්ති පදනමකින් සමාජය විවරණය කළ සිනමාකරුවා". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
^ "For Vasantha's death - විජය - රවීන්ද්‍ර - ස්වර්ණා - සංගීතා හොඳම රඟපෑම් ගෙනාවේ වසන්ත හරහා". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
^ "For Vasantha's death - පත්තර මහ ගෙදරින් සිනමාවට ගිය ආදිවාසියා". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
^ "Filmography of Vasantha Obeysekara - වසන්ත ඔබේසේකර නිර්මාණය කළ චිත්‍රපට". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
^ "Sri Lankan Cinema History". National Film Corporation of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
^ "All about Diyamanthi". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^ "Dadayama: The hunt that was a hunt". Sarasaviya. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
^ "Veteran film director Wasantha Obeysekara passes away". Ada Derana. 8 April 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2017.

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