Sarasaviya Awards - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Sarasaviya Awards are the most prestigious awards presented to distinguished individuals involved with the Sinhala cinema

Cinema of Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan cinema encompasses the films made in Sri Lanka. It is a fledgling industry that has struggled to find a footing since its inauguration in 1947 with Kadawunu Poronduwa produced by S.M.Nayagam of Chitra Kala Movietone.Sri Lankan films are usually made in the Sinhalese language, the...

, each year by the Sarasaviya weekly newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited

Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited

Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited , also known as Lake House, is the largest newspaper company in South East Asia. It publishes three daily, three weekend, five weekly, two monthly and three annual publications in Sinhala, English and Tamil....

(Lake House), Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

in recognition of the contributions made by them to the Sri Lankan film industry

Cinema of Sri Lanka

. Just like the Oscars for the Hollywood fans and Filmfare Awards

Filmfare Awards

The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic and technical excellence of professionals in the Hindi language film industry of India. The Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest and most prominent film events given for Hindi films in India. The awards were...

for the Bollywood

Bollywood

Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...

fans, it is the Sarasaviya Awards for the Sri Lankans.

History

The Sarasaviya film awards ceremony began in 1964 at a time when the local cinema was trying to shed its South Indian orientation and establish an indigenous identity. There was no need to go to India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

to make films any more and the era of Indian artistes too had ended.
The first Sarasaviya film festival was held on May 9, 1964 at the Asoka Cinema Hall, Colombo

Colombo

Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...

, 17 years after the first Sinhala film

Cinema of Sri Lanka

screened. By then a series of good Sinhala films like Podi Putha, Rekhawa, Sandeshaya , Ranmuthuduwa, Kurulubedda, Sikurutharuwa and Gamperaliya had appeared on screen. Yet the main stream consisted of simulations of Indian productions.
The year 1960 is seen as the beginning of the golden era of Sinhala cinema. The first Sarasaviya Awards Festival had as entries not only the films screened in 1963 but also the films screened from 1960 to 1963. The best film, best director, best script-writer, best actor and best actress were honoured that day. Gamperaliya

Gamperaliya (film)

Gamperaliya is a 1964 Sri Lankan drama film directed by Lester James Peries; it was adapted from the seminal novel Gamperaliya by Martin Wickramasinghe. The movie was groundbreaking in Sinhala cinema shot entirely outside of a studio using one lamp and hand held lights for lighting...

was regarded as the best film and it was awarded to its producer Anton Wickremasinghe. Sir Lester James Peiris and Regi Siriwardena

Regi Siriwardena

Regi Siriwardena was a Sri Lankan academic, journalist, poet, writer, playwright and writer of screenplays.- Early life & education :...

won the awards for best director and best script-writer, respectively and that too was for Gamperaliya. D.R. Nanayakkara was awarded the best actor title for his performance in Sikuru Tharuwa, another popular film in the 1964 film festival. The best actress award was bagged by Punya Heendeniya

Punya Heendeniya

Punya Heendeniya is a Sri Lankan cinema actress who currently resides in England.-Filmography:*1954-1955 Asoka - dance sequence choreographed by MasterPanibharatha; Director Sirisena Wimalaweera...

for her performance in Gamperaliya.

Awards at Present

In 2004, there were 33 awards in total, including the 12 prominent awards. However, this varies from year to year. Following is a brief list of the Award winners from each category for each year since 1964.

Prominent Awards

Best Film
Sarasaviya Best Film Award
The Sarasaviya Best Film Award is presented annually in Sri Lanka by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival for the best Sri Lankan movie of the year....
Best Director
Sarasaviya Best Director Award
The Sarasaviya Best Director Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited as part of the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. It was first given in 1964....
Best Actor
Sarasaviya Best Actor Award
The Sarasaviya Best Actor Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival.The award was first given in 1964 ....
Best Actress
Sarasaviya Best Actress Award
The Sarasaviya Best Actress Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival.The award was first given in 1964...
Best Supporting Actor
Sarasaviya Best Supporting Actor Award
The Sarasaviya Best Supporting Actor Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. Although the Sarasaviya Awards Ceremony began in 1964 , this award was introduced in 1969....
Best Supporting Actress
Sarasaviya Best Supporting Actress Award
The Sarasaviya Best Supporting Actress Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. Although the Sarasaviya Awards Ceremony began in 1964 , this award was introduced in 1969....
Best Emerging Actor
Sarasaviya Best Emerging Actor Award
The Sarasaviya Best Emerging Actor Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. Although the Sarasaviya Awards Ceremony began in 1964 , this award was introduced much later....
Best Emerging Actress
Sarasaviya Best Emerging Actress Award
The Sarasaviya Best Emerging Actress Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. Although the Sarasaviya Awards Ceremony began in 1964 , this award was introduced much later....
Best Music Direction
Sarasaviya Best Music Direction Award
The Sarasaviya Best Music Direction Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. Although the Sarasaviya Awards Ceremony began in 1964 , this award was introduced much later....
Best Male Playback Singer
Sarasaviya Best Male Playback Singer Award
The Sarasaviya Best Male Playback Singer Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival....
Best Female Playback Singer
Sarasaviya Best Female Playback Singer
The Sarasaviya Best Female Playback Singer Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival....
Best Lyricist
Sarasaviya Best Lyricist Award
The Sarasaviya Best Lyricist Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival....

Awards Based on Popular Vote

Most Popular Actor
Sarasaviya Most Popular Actor Award
The Sarasaviya Most Popular Actor Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. This award is decided solely on popular vote and is chosen based on the verdict given by the readers...
Most Popular Actress
Sarasaviya Most Popular Actress Award
The Sarasaviya Most Popular Actress Award is presented annually by the weekly Sarasaviya newspaper in collaboration with the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited at the Sarasaviya Awards Festival. This award is decided solely on popular vote and is chosen based on the verdict given by the...
Most Popular Film

Technical Awards

Best Art Direction
Best Cinematographer
Best Editor
Best Script Writer
Best Sound Effects
Best Makeup Artist

Special Awards

Ranapala Bodhinagoda Memorial Literary Awards
Special Jury Awards
Other Special Awards

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