by R.G. Vitharana
"Esala Kaluwara" (July Darkness?) - Completed its run over national television Rupavahini - a few days back. Esala Kaluwara was also described as a "Soundairya Roopa Kavya" - whatever that may mean. Esala Kaluwara was directed by, its script written by and its songs composed by Jackson Anthony, stage and film actor.

Before attempting to evaluate this tele-drama, let me briefly go through its story. It appears to be set against the background of the 1983 July riots that occurred in the country when hordes of hooligans robbed and set fire to residences and trading establishments belonging to the Tamil community, some of whom also lost their lives. During these riots, the mother of a Tamil family living in Colombo, died of a heart attack. The husband of one of the daughters of the same family according to the story, had been killed. This family comprising the father, the widowed daughter and younger unmarried daughter, having left Colombo, is next seen in their Jaffna (?) home.

A Sinhalese married couple, Sankabanu, an artist, played by Lucien Bulathsinhala, his wife Sundareenanda, played by Sabeetha Perera, and a friend of the family, Maduwantha, played by Kamal Addaraarachchi, take a boat-ride off the northern coast. Rough weather causes difficulties for the riders to the sea culminating in the disappearance of Sankabanu. Sundareenanda and Maduwantha manage to save their lives and return home.

Sankabanu is feared drowned. The clothes he was wearing at the time, had been washed ashore and produced later before wife Sundareenanda, who then takes it for granted that husband Sankabanu is no more. However, Sankabanu is washed ashore, half-dead, and rescued and thereafter lovingly looked after by the father of that family played by Joe Abeywickrema) referred to above.

Word goes round that a Sinhalese is being cared for in a Tamil home and appah escorts Sankabanu, who has now recovered, up to Kalpitiya, from where Sankabanu finds his way home.

Now, having come home, Sankabanu does not meet his wife, Sundareenanda, but plays hide and seek in his own home, making a few noises occasionally, giving the impression to the wife that the ghost of Sankabanu is haunting their home. Several times Sundareenanda, actually sees Sankabanu in flesh and blood but is too frightened to believe that Sankabanu is back and sticks to her imagination that a ghost is haunting the place.

Sundareenanda's fears and forebodings are shared by the young family friend Maduwantha and they seek advice from the temple Buddhist priest also a friend of the family and a lover of object d'art. To relieve Sundareenanda's mental agony, a house-keeper played by Lucien Bulathsinhala's wife, is provided, recommended of course by the Buddhist priest. And they all go off on a holiday. Somewhere they get down and it is the Buddhist priest who orders somebody to "arrange a room for the nona".

At this stage it is appropriate to mention that the tone of conversation and behaviour of this saffron-clothed character playing the role of a Buddhist priest, arranging rooms for a woman at a guest house, is most unbecoming and not in keeping with the usual austere role of Buddhist priest that had been characterised in other teledramas. His very walk resembles cross-country runners and Sundareenanda's demeanour in the presence of this Buddhist priest resembles not of those familiar with the Buddhist way of life but of non-Buddhists.

All these are results of incompetent direction by someone who seems unfamiliar with the presentation of themes predominantly focusing a Buddhists story-line.

To come-back to the script, the Buddhist priest himself goes alone to the house, probably to lay the ghost, but on seeing Sankabanu in flesh and blood is convinced that Sankabanu, is in fact alive and kicking. In the meantime, while on holiday, Sundareenanda, convinced that Sankabanu is dead and gone, develops a soft corner for Maduwantha (Kamal) who does not mind the idea at all. Then suddenly the appah from Jaffna together with his younger daughter, arrives at Sundareenanda's house and swears that Sankabanu is alive and that he himself escorted the man to Kalpitiya.

At this stage, Sundareenanda and her lover (Kamal) call the police, thinking that this could be a Tiger terrorist plot. The police promptly bundle the appah and daughter into a jeep and on hearing the commotion, Sankabanu who has been hiding inside the house for so long, being shy to present himself to his own wife, and apparently suffering from bronchial pneumonia, limps in the scene, and even follows appah to the police station to prove that appah is a genuine man, not a terrorist.

Sankabanu exhausted and seriously sick, succumbs to his death in the hands of Maduwantha. Whether Sundareenanda takes the hand of Maduwantha or becomes a religious recluse is left to the imagination of the viewers, although Maduwantha is heard to shout in disgust to Sundareenanda: "You have cheated me". No further comment is necessary on a script, where to say the least, an "O" Level student in Polonnaruwa district would have written with greater imagination.

The first six or seven episodes in the tele-drama, never moved and one would have observed Sankabanu the artist picking twigs on the sea-shore and having a close look at them for arts' sake. The entire script is plagued with insipid dialogues and irrelevancies which contributed to the waste of prime screen time and valuable film material.

The most incomprehensible piece in the script is why Sankabanu returns safely home (after been assumed drowned) and feels shy to confront his wife Sundareenanda, but plays hide and seek in his own home. Was he trying to test his wife's fidelity or catch her in a compromising position with Maduwantha? What a stupid way to achieve either!

Jackson Anthony is undoubtedly a good actor, when he is acting under a good director. Script writing is a skill which every Dick, Tom and Jackson cannot excel in overnight and should be left in the hands of the skilled. This same observation is equally or more applicable to film and teledrama direction.

My observations in the foregoing lead me to raise a very serious question about sponsorship. "Esala Kaluwara" has been funded by Sri Lanka Telecom and telecast over National Rupavahini.

I would like to request SLT to make a public statement regarding all the monies that it paid to such a trashy teledrama as Esala Kaluwara. I am raising this question in the public interest as SLT is a public company wherein the general public of this country as well as the Government has a stake and an interest. Is there an organized racket by teledrama organizations to defraud public companies such as SLT (where the Government and the general public have shares and an interest) by so-called teledrama script-writers and incompetent directors who present a platter of rubbish in the guise of teledramas? Earlier, ITN presented another such piece of nonsense in the guise of a teledrama named "Gutthila" which was roundly condemned by critics who also raised the question of funding by another state organization, namely, Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation. It is time that the authorities took a serious look at the sponsorship of rubbish leading to the defrauding of public funds by hurrah-boys and supporters of the powers that be.