Family is the base unit of any society. A peaceful, harmonious, developed and just society would be a distant reality if the family unit is in disarray.
by Helasingha Bandara
The Derana TV programme, Leya Saha Laya (L& L hereafter in this article) sounded ridiculous to me at the first hearing of the title. Bemused by the unusual conjunction of blood and heart to coin a title instead of heart and blood, it became inevitable to be curious to find out a bit more. Eye catching titles invariably arouse curiosity. The curiosity overtook the initial negativity and You Tube was the answer to my search. After watching many episodes, selectively though, I found the real meaning of the somewhat strange title of the programme. My own interpretation is that heart denotes love and blood highlights the bond between parents and children. The purpose of the programme is to showcase well-known musical parents and their novice offspring. They are bonded by blood and obviously love each other. Interpreted thus, it becomes a fitting title.
This short article is the result of that search and hopefully it would be a tribute to Derana TV, the production team of the programme, every stakeholder and in particular its presenter Jayantha Chandrasiri. The programme is about musical families of Sri Lanka. A combination of a parent and a child from a musical family is invited to perform together for a TV audience. The show is different from a usual chat show as the chat leads to a performance while revealing many unknown facts about the artistes, their families and about the songs that they have chosen to sing.
In comparison, L & L is a unique musical programme on Sri Lanka TV. Whilst we find reality shows in abundance on TV these days, I hope to draw attention to this particular show for some of its invaluable qualities.
Model families
Family is the base unit of any society. A peaceful, harmonious, developed and just society would be a distant reality if the family unit is in disarray. This show invites families that are sound role models and highlights the loving relationships between parents and their children. It also draws attention of the viewers to the sacrifices that the parents have to make in order for the development of their children.
Throughout the episodes it was clear that parents had determined to educate their children being mindful of the changes occurring around them. Natural talent is good but it could be better with proper education. In fact, most of those children have achieved great outcomes in other fields while learning their parents’ trade. Some examples are Priya Sooriyasena’s son has a PhD in Physics, Janaka Wikramasingha’s daughter is a doctor, Punsiri Soysa’s daughter is studying management at University, Indrani Bogoda’s daughter is taking up her postgraduate studies in management, Sunil Edirisinghe’s son is in management in the UK and Rohana Beddage’s son is a sound engineer. Some of the parent artistes had lived in the era that old cliché “Artistes are beggars” was most prominent. Those parents have worked to prove that, that notion is false.
The traits of human behaviour such as honesty, humility, dignity and so on are apparent in both parents and children who participate in all episodes. The show and its presenter in particular, very skilfully draw out such qualities for the audience to appreciate. Indeed, TV is a powerful medium to convey such messages. This programme, gives a strong message to a society that is in disarray about how to bring up healthy families. The messages this show conveys would enable the rest of the society to change their mind-sets. The resultant society would be a comfort zone for all members of that community to enjoy living.
People and talents
Another underlying aspect of this show is the manifestation of essential human qualities of famous people. Priya Sooriyasena, Janaka Wikramasingha, Kumarasiri Pathirana among others epitomize humility. Sunil Edirisinghe radiates kindness, compassion, love and impresses as a virtuous human being. Much to the appreciation of the viewers, their children show the same traits despite their privileged backgrounds, education and positions they hold.
The show also functions as a platform for Sri Lanka’s best past and future talent to be showcased. For instance, Punsiri Soysa’s daughter can be the next Sujatha Aththanayaka. In the past, listeners only knew the singers. The introduction and the relating of stories connected to various songs together with the mention of its lyricist and the music composer in depth is unprecedented. The appreciation of the immense contribution of a lyricist and the music composer for the success of a song is the justification for this programme to be identified as unique. The show brings out the best in the performers and for the viewers it is a new experience to listen to the songs live together with behind the scenes stories related to a particular song.
The Band
The presenter makes sure that he enquires from his participants their views on the band. It is unique that all members of the band are known to all recognized artistes and the members of the band had worked with all of them sometime or other. The making of a cohort of excellently talented, well-known musicians is nothing short of a miracle
The Presenter
The quality of the show is doubly enriched by its erudite presenter, a well-known film director Jayantha Chandrasiri. The style in which he handles the show is unique to him and his simplicity is impressive. The avid reader could quote from various Eastern and Western philosophers and he possesses incredible knowledge about the entire art field of Sri Lanka. Such knowledge and wisdom are hardly found elsewhere. on many an occasion it was noticeable that Jayantha Chandrasiri was trying to suppress his tears. That sensitivity raises his greatness as a good human being beyond everything else.
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