Prasanna Vithanage, the acclaimed poster boy of Sri Lankan cinema, crafts films that cross cultural borders and touch hearts with poignancy. Prasanna began his career in the theatre and has directed many plays, including Bernard Shaw’s Arms and the Man. In 1992, he entered Sri Lankan cinema with his debut film, Sisila Gini Gani (Ice of Fire), which was honoured with nine awards. One aspect of Vithanage’s films is to bring out the forlorn portrayals of women who are being marginalised in male chauvinistic society. He carries a discourse with contemporary Sri Lankan society through his strong female protagonists. Another aspect of his filmmaking regards Sri Lanka’s 30 years of civil war and its consequences. His war trilogy cannot be described as war stories but simply, stories about the war. Prasanna Vithanage doesn’t show warfare, battalions with arms and blood shedding war sequels as we see in Hollywood films. He talks about the inner conflicts of ordinary people and their own journey of freedom.
- Shameela Yoosuf Ali (www. desiblitz.com)
Prasanna Vithanage (IMDB): www.imdb.com/name/nm0900013/?...
Filmography:
Sisila Gini Gani (Ice of Fire) - 1992
Anantha Rathriya (Dark Night of the Soul) - 1996
Pawuru Walalu (Walls Within) - 1997
Purahanda Kaluwara (Death on a Full Moon Day) - 1997
Ira Madiyama (August Sun) - 2003
Akasa Kusum (Flowers of the Sky) - 2008
Oba Nathuwa Oba Ekka (With You, Without You) - 2012
Usaviya Nihandai (Silence in the Courts) (Documdrama) - 2015
Thundenek (Her. Him. The Other) (Anthology Film) - 2017