{"id":30645,"date":"2014-06-15T10:55:39","date_gmt":"2014-06-15T14:55:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=30645"},"modified":"2014-06-15T13:55:55","modified_gmt":"2014-06-15T17:55:55","slug":"sri-lankan-film-maker-prasanna-vithanage-whose-filmwith-you-without-youreleases-in-india-on-june-28-enjoys-life-long-love-affair-with-tamil-films","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=30645","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lankan Film Maker Prasanna Vithanage Whose Film”With You Without You”Releases in India on June 28 Enjoys Life-Long Love Affair With Tamil Films"},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/p>\n

Subha.J.Rao<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sri Lankan director Prasanna Vithanage speaks to Subha J. Rao about making movies in the war zone and his love affair with Tamil films<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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Prasanna Vithanage<\/i><\/p>\n

When Sri Lankan filmmaker Prasanna Vithanage, known for his searing commentaries on war, was in college, he made quite a few Tamil friends. \u201cThey introduced me to Ilaiyaraaja, Bharathirajaa, Balachander\u2026 They set me on a life-long love affair with Tamil films,\u201d says the director, whose latest film, With You Without You (Oba Nathuwa Oba Ekka), is to release in select Indian cities on June 20.<\/p>\n

The film, adapted from Fyodor Dostoyevsky\u2019s novella A Gentle Creature, originally written in 1876, has been recast to suit a modern-day post-war situation. It explores the relationship tangles between a Sinhala pawnbroker and a Tamil girl. The film is the final one in Prasanna\u2019s war trilogy after Death on a Full Moon Day and August Sun.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Nearly a century and a half after it was written, the storyline of A Gentle Creature still seems strikingly relevant to current times. \u201cIt is a timeless classic. The two human characteristics it highlights are masculinity and consumerism, which are even more valid to contemporary society. The story has been adapted to the silver screen three times before (including the late Mani Kaul\u2019s Nazar) in three continents,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

For 30 of his 52 years, Prasanna has seen his beautiful country racked by a bloody conflict. Despite that, his heart still beats for reconciliation and peace. \u201cThe ethnic war has affected the common man \u2014 irrespective of whether he is Sinhala, Muslim or Tamil. So many have died, been wounded\u2026.\u201d So, as a filmmaker, he tries to bring communities together, being objective about his works even though he is part of the equation. \u201cIt is hard to be objective when the country is polarised on ethnic lines; everyone wants a subjective take on a situation. But it is better when you set aside your dogmas and opinions\u2026 when you learn to see the world through another\u2019s eyes. But to be truthful is not easy,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Prasanna would know. He has never been short on perspective. Each of these three films has been shot in a different time period. Death\u2026 was shot during the conflict, August\u2026 during the brief ceasefire and With\u2026 in the aftermath of the war.<\/p>\n

What was the reaction to his films, which also focus on Tamils, at a time when there was bitterness all around? \u201cIt is strange, I admit,\u201d he says, \u201ceveryone has lost something. But we must learn to look beyond our grief. My films speak from the heart. It helps that, personally, I believe in social justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Happily, his films have allowed him to reach out to Tamils too. \u201cWe have always been in a relationship that has been strained. I\u2019m happy I have been able to reach out to them as a person.\u201d Making these films, says Prasanna, is also therapeutic, after all the agony of war. \u201cIt helps one look at the other\u2019s story; it makes you realise you are not alone,\u201d he explains. \u201cAnd, importantly, if you don\u2019t bother to look, how will you know? How will you grow?\u201d<\/p>\n

Prasanna is aware of where his country is right now, and says that it saddens him to see the slow reconciliation process. \u201cI understand the past has overwhelmed most of us, made us take sides, but we must make the attempt.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, is the prolific filmmaker done with war films? Is the angst out of his system? \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d he pauses. \u201cThere might be other stories from other fronts. I want to tell the stories of all the people of Sri Lanka. I\u2019ve done workshops with the Tamil majority in the North, I believe they have a lot of stories to tell\u2026\u201d Next, the filmmaker is planning a docu-drama, in collaboration with Indian artistes, about the social justice system. He\u2019s also looking at some scripts that will shortly be translated onto the big screen.<\/p>\n

A lot of Prasanna\u2019s technicians are from India. For With You\u2026, he collaborated with award-winning editor Sreekar Prasad and sound designer Tapas Nayak, and the film was processed at Prasad Studios and Lab in Chennai. \u201cChennai is like a second home, I have so many friends there,\u201d he says. \u201cFor many, Chennai is about petrol and diesel fumes and pollution. For me, it is like a breath of fresh air, a city that inspires me no end. And, you know, Chennai is also where the pirated DVDs of my films sell the most,\u201d he laughs.<\/p>\n

With You Without You stars Anjali Patil and Shyam Fernando in the lead, and the Tamil-Sinhalese film will be released with English subtitles in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune. The film has been lauded at many international film festivals.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

COURTESY:THE HINDU<\/em><\/p>\n

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By Subha.J.Rao Sri Lankan director Prasanna Vithanage speaks to Subha J. Rao about making movies in the war zone and his love affair with Tamil films Prasanna Vithanage When Sri Lankan filmmaker Prasanna Vithanage, known for his searing commentaries on war, was in college, he made quite a few Tamil friends. \u201cThey introduced me to …<\/p>\n

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