CodeKadiya writes...

Dushyanth was an unknown personality for many Sri Lankans until the Sirasa Dancing Stars(SDS), though some knew him as a singer of the modern times. He was not releasing songs at a rate which most of our young artists are inclined at present. The talent he showed in performing as a singer while dancing a few steps covering the length and breadth across the outdoor stages where he performed was also a novel experience for the Sri Lankan audience who witnessed the variety entertainment shows held from time to time in festival seasons. (View Video: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9) Those who knew Dushyanth as a dancer were his school mates and contemporaries from other schools who watched him perform in Royal College shows. There were still others from outside Sri Lanka who knew Dushyanth as a singer and a performer for international audiences. (View Video) However, there were a few eminent people who knew his talents and that’s when he was given the opportunity to play the main roles of good quality dramas which may not have been screened to a wider audience due to various limitations in production of drama in the recent times in

Sri Lanka

.

In contrast Sirasa Dancing Stars was accessible to a wide audience where Dushyanth got the opportunity to open the doors to show his talents. Though we interpret it this way as ‘showing his talents’, if you had listened to him in the brief interviews he made from the beginning of SDS to the end, his dances are a dedication for the audience. His imaginary audience within the closed doors of his room became a reality with the rise of the curtain of the SDS.

Everyone was looking forward for a tough and

interesting contest with 20 Sri Lankan popular stars participating. Contestants were free to select their dances in the first few rounds. Dushyanth, wanting to do something he has not done before, chose the famous Hindi song “Pretty Woman”. This was his first public performance for a Hindi song. It was a cool free-style dance in which he acted as a boy who flirts after a girl wearing red t-shirt, white pants and a funky cap. This opening dance itself gave him 28 points out of 30 from the judges. (View Video)

In the 2^nd ro

und, Dushyanth came out with what he was known for among a selected set of people before the competition. I’m sure this was the performance that turned the tables around in SDS. Dushyanth dressed up in Michael Jackson (MJ) style outfit danced for a medley of songs including his own hit single Jayththu Noney, Usher’s Caught up, MJ’s Billy Jean and They Don’t Care About Us. In this he did smooth and energetic moves of MJ as good as MJ and his moonwalk across the stage for the song Billy Jean took a lot of attention of the media and public. This was a breadth-taking performance which took Dushyanth a long way ahead the other participants. Dushyanth was the first to get full 30 points from the panel of judges in SDS. Mrs. Rosie did not hesitate to call it the best performance seen on SDS stage by far out of all in two rounds. Mr. Ravindra Randeniya stated that Dushyanth even managed to renew the standard of the contest with this kind of a performance and that he has a born talent to dance. (View Video)

Felicitation to veteran actor Mr. Gamini Fonseka was a very unique episode for Dushyanth. I do not know whether it was the first time he got an opportunity to do any act from Sinhala screen. The dance he did with the female co-star was in fact a very soothing one to watch.

It was revealed that he can play the role of an ardent lover of the Sinhala screen just as Mr. Gamini Fonseka did in the original piece of work. Though he did not show the stature of the veteran actor I feel Dushyanth's act made many of the young hearts turn their ears to the beautiful background song composed two decades back. (View Video)

Dushyanth's versatility was beginning to show in this programme when he made a brilliant performance with a group of co-stars. It was a joy to watch him dancing away as a carefree youngster in the early seventies. You can see him in the group as a special person. His lightness in the movements and expressions make our hearts pick up the joy of the youth. (View Video)

From the 3^rd round onwards themes were provided for each week. The first such theme was to do dance for an old Hindi song. Dushyanth proved that he’s not only a good dancer but a very good comedian as well.

He had a lot of moves of Charlie Chaplin blended with ones he created on his own which gave a new life to the competition. I personally believe this act was quite underrated by 26 points although he was the top scorer for the day. Especially I get this feeling when I get to know how many people love this particular act. (View Video)

Stars were asked to dance for a Sinhala song which was released after year 2000 in the next round. Dushyanth having released a single called “Nelum Vilen Pena” few weeks prior to this theme chose the same track to do a hip-hop styled dance. It was amazing to see how he moved himself with each dance sequence. It had a lot of RnB style moves which Dushyanth perfectly executed to match the meaning of the song as well.

The song too became a hit over night thankful to its hot fast beat and this excellent dance performance. For the second time Dushyanth was able to receive full points from judges including his own brother Santhush. His body flexibility was proved once again. (View Video)

By this time there were people who indicated boldly that they watched SDS to see Dushyanth performing. Dushyanth attracted the attention of viewers of all ages and of both gender.

Next theme was comedy. Dushyanth’s choice was to act out the character of

Seargeant Nallathambi for famous Sinhala song “Dhawaale Paayana Chandraya”. He was again successful in bringing out the funny movements of Sgt. Nallathambi. But still he was not able to score good points as in previous occasions since he was being rigidly compared to the original actor of this role by the judges. However, if you watch this dance once again, you will surely realize that he gives his best as usual. It is his courage and perseverance that made him select such a challenge. Can you believe it’s the same Dushyanth who did all the other performances before? Well, it’s hard for me! (View Video)

Participants had to do a performance to Tamil songs in the next round.

Dushyanth had prepared a medley of Prabhu Deva’s Mukkala Mukkabala dance and the popular Tamil song Gemini which allowed him to show his talent in two vastly different types of dances. Even though the first had moves somewhat close to his favourite style, the second was totally new and everyone was excited to watch him dance like a natural Tamil boy. He was superb once again and public was surprised to see his adaptability for all the kinds of dances so far. Mind you this was only the half way of the contest. (View Video)

Seeing the presentations so far, a lot of eyes were starting to turn towards this versatile performer by this time.

He had a rationale for selecting a piece of dance/song during each stage within the given theme for which the public had begun to await for some exiting novel experience. Next they were asked to do an act for an old Sinhala movie song as a tribute to Mrs. Malini Fonseka. Dushyanth did not forget to select a top class Sinhala hit and it was “Hada Viman Dorin” a song which had made a lot of popularity in the seventies. It was a pleasure to watch Dushyanth bringing back the vivid memories of handsome Mr. Gamini Fonseka with this act. Here he showed his talents as an actor too by doing an act with full of romance. (View Video)

I thought the next theme was not really suitable for this contest; though it was good for someone to prove they can do that as well. It was a theme for kids. All the stars had to act and dance as kids to suit this theme.

Again Dushyanth did not fail to impress his fans with his creativity. His choice of songs for this item was again done intelligently. He combined three children’s songs, a very popular Hindi, a Sinhala and an English in such smooth blend that would not have been easy for anyone else. It was so refreshing to watch him jump around the stage, getting angry at the simplest of things, trying to outdo his sister and being playful which symbolized the sweet childhood. His clothes, his hairstyle, the toys and the background helped to bring back our childhood memories. It was yet another successful performance in the SDS journey. (View Video)

The competition was getting tougher each week with one participant getting eliminated.

All remaining stars had to be on top of their dance in order to exist in the contest. Next challenge to male artists was to act as girls and vice versa. Once again Dushyanth had a song in his set of released tracks which suited the theme. It was well-known hit single “Karaliya” which describes about the feelings of a boy who watches a beautiful female dancer on stage. Who would have thought one day Dushyanth himself would act the role of the girl for his own song? I don’t think even Dushyanth did. It was amazing to see how he adapted to execute certain moves of a girl in a very natural manner without giving the slightest feeling to the viewer that a guy is trying to act like a girl. This song was followed by Pussy Cat Dolls’ Don’t Cha. The performance was a success and Dushyanth and his partner was awarded full points again for the 3^rd time! (View Video)

It was time to give up free-style movements which they could do throughout the competition. The week’s theme was to do Ballroom/Latin American performance. Most of the participants found this theme very challenging since they had to do proper dancing steps in order to make an impact in this round.

Dushyanth’s fans were very excited to see what he would do this week and expected something special as always. Dushyanth being a very wise artist chose 4 different types of rhythms to show his talents separated from one another when most of the other artists made it a mess by mixing a lot of dancing techniques for one beat. started off with the famous song of Mr. H.R.Jothipala, which I thought gave a good start for the theme. However, my favourite was Michael Buble’s Sway. It was such a great pleasure to watch him on the dance floor. I was truly mesmerized while watching this dance and even after it was over. I simply could not realize whether this was truly happening

on a Sri Lankan stage. The dance came to a climax in the final part of it where they performed a tango which was exceptional. The panel of judges including dance maestro Mr. Channa Wijewardene gave him some unmatchable comments which set Dushyanth far ahead from all the other stars in the program. Mr. Channa said they used different muscles for each technique and they proved that they are truly professional dancers. As Mrs. Rosie mentioned Dushyanth had looked into all necessary elements for this kind of a dance; his clothes/styles, the body, hair etc. At the point of converting their comments to points, they awarded much more than which was available in the scoring system. They literally awarded him 38 points, which meant he received another 30 for the 5^th time in the contest. Dushyanth became emotional could not hold the tears after this achievement for all the hard work he did to make this dance a perfect one! For me I name this the best even though it is really hard to select one out of all he did during SDS. I call this a dream performance… (View Video)

I know of some viewers who had some doubts about the performance to be expected for the theme ‘nadangam, nurthi’. Even those who had confidence about Dushyanth’s abilities did not expect the magnificent

performance he did for the most famous song “Siri Sangabodhi”. I do not know whether anyone had the slightest clue that Dushyanth had the traditional dance style in his rapporteur. I do not know whether even Dushyanth did know. Although some of the introductions by media indicates that he has had training in western dance according to him and his family it is not true. To complicate matters, with this dance no one could believe that he has had no training for this type of dance. His appearance and performance as an arrogant local Prince in history is worthwhile watching again and again. The spectators who viewed this dance made an additional comment about his creativity for how he managed to create a role for his partner in the dance sequence which is absent in the original drama. Judges admitting that Prince Gotabhaya’s movements and the spirit was depicted so well on that historical Saturday of SDS gave 30 points again without any hesitation. It was the third consecutive 30 he made. This dance was an important landmark for Dushyanth to clear certain misconceptions about his capabilities that may have been in certain groups of the Sri Lankan audience. (View Video)

Maybe this is not what Dushyanth’s fans expected when they heard the theme was to perform Hindi song which was released after year 2000.

Dushyanth’s idea was to do a dance to combination of songs sung in Hindi by Sri Lankan music duo Bathiya & Santhush targeting the Indian market. This performance became somewhat controversial when he brought some of the original singers of these songs on the stage. The judges questioned the fact that whether it is ethical enough to have more stars in the stage. Dushyanth making the fact clear stated that he did not intend to bring more stars, but only to surprise his fans. With this statement he made one can see how much Dushyanth wanted to entertain his fans over and above scoring high marks and winning the contest. However, there was one comment which took a lot of attention from the invited artist. That’s when Mr. Roy de Silva said Dushyanth is the ‘enchanting dancer’ in the contest and he has already become the star out of all in SDS. I too feel he had actually achieved it by this time of the contest putting every one apart with his unmatchable talent and dedication. (View Video)

The effect of the Latin American dance on veteran actor Mr. Ravindra Randeniya was reflected

by the choice he made at his discretion to invite Dushyanth to do another of the same kind at the semi finals. All contestants faced the challenge of having to comply with the judge’s choice. At the semi finals Dushyanth danced another Latin American dance for the second time in the contest so well that the all the judges praised Mr. Randeniya for making such a wise choice. He scored yet another 30 for this dance! His body posture and the stylish movements for the Latin American dance were so perfect so that there was no slightest confusion over the techniques that are adopted. The costumes were very differently made out of his imagination from the earlier one giving a different outlook for the dance. (View Video)

Semifinals was not ending with just one dance per contestant. All contestants had to perform to a recent Sinhala film song as well.

Sinhala film songs

have a particular style where dancing is light but having a full of romantic interplay between the couple. Dushyanth was able to switch to this romantic episode so well that all judges being inspired by the dance said that the current between the couple had an exotic effect on the audience. This act revealed another facet of his capabilities. (View Video)

Though the moment of waiting for the announcement of the decision of the two finalists was highly exiting, the fact that Dushyanth getting eligible into finals was not a surprise. I feel he gathered more and more fans during each round of SDS. I know of people who voted him with hundreds of SMS’s in each round and others who voted with one or two as resources permitted but with lots love and commitment.

The pressure of the finals would have been too much to handle for anyone who would have been in that position. It is amazing how Dushyanth managed himself both as a star and as an individual the stress that might have arisen to a level beyond coping. It is a lesson for our youth or anyone to understand how he worked through to achieve what he wanted when hundreds of thousands of eyes were focused on him. I wish Dushyanth would write up how he managed everything and performed with such grace to conceal the hardships that he may have gone through in preparation for the event.

Dushyanth’s number was SDS 1 at the finals.

His first dance as Mrs. Malini Fonseka rightly expressed was a grand opener to the festival. The spirit and the passion he had in dancing to the Hindi song would have paved the way to make him the winner of the crown from that instance.

The Latin American as usual was very vibrant. The Sri Lankan audience who had seen Ricky Martin and Latin American performers in TV were able to see the same dances in front of their eyes. It was again one of the most awaited dance sequels from Dushyanth. He did not forget the Sinhala screen and his pick of the song for the occasion was indeed intelligent and it made the audience settle for the next items of the evening’s programme.

How did he do all that within that 4-5 minutes along with change of costumes is hard to imagine. The panel of judges seriously appreciated his versatility and paid their respect to him. (View Video)

All the fans of Dushyanth, I’m sure was waiting till this moment. They all were expecting to see him performing his favourite typical Micheal Jackson style dance. As the opener Dushyanth had chosen MJ’s “Scream”

and it went really well for 2 minutes but unfortunately the soundtrack stopped half way, making everyone freeze in surprise and dead silent. Dushyanth and his group of dancers were in their poses. I was amazed how one could be so calm and tactful in a moment of ‘do or die’. He waited for a few seconds expecting music to play again. But it didn’t. Having everyone in the audience cheering him, Dushyanth started to sing while dancing without any music in high pitch just like MJ. This brought out his character and it was simply unbelievable the way he reacted in the unexpected situation. After realizing that the music is not going to come back he decided to walk off the stage with the group. It may have been the moment that Dushyanth was able over come all evil forces that may have been shadowing him like an overcast was def

eated by his strength, commitment and perseverance. Dushyanth and the group came back after few minutes and they managed to do a shocking performance which took the contest to the climax as expected by the majority. I know that this was the dream performance he had in his mind through out his life; to entertain people with a MJ performance. Later in several interviews I heard him stating that it was the best moment in his life, hearing all the people screaming; the glorious response he had just after finishing the dance. Judges wanting to show their respect to the magical show awarded him 59 points!!! (View Video)

Such flawless victory was unseen in recent times in any competition; the judges and the audience agreeing one hundred percent in all the rounds and in the final. The birth of a people’s star at a most needed time!

Dushyanth’s m

ultifaceted versatility has to be evaluated as unique as it would be unfair to compare with any other. The neat foot work, the appropriate body muscle movement for each style, facial expressions to suit the act, the accuracy of steps for the selected dance form are some of the criteria for evaluation where he has scored over and above the maximum. Although we saw him only as a dancer in the contest his versatility as a choreographer, director, a trainer (for his partner and co-dancers), a musician, costume designer, a lyricist could not be evaluated in the limited dimensions of this contest. How will Dushyanth navigate his life as an artist? When and where can we see him as a entertainer again? Will the Sri Lankan film industry take Dushyanth as an opportunity to seriously upgrade its status? It remains to be witnessed….

It was Sunday evening and I was able to watch the match peacefully at home without having to go anywhere. It's been a long since I watched a match in full. I used to watch cricket ball-by-ball no matter it was a one day or a test match when I was young.

As Sri Lankan team started to bat first, I was hoping to watch a cracking start with Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara opening the batting. The opening pair failed as Sangakkara was miles away from crease when the Indian fielder hit the wicket directly. Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma was in fire, sending three top order batsmen of Sri Lanka cheaply back to the hut. After that, it was all Jayasuriya! What a show it was.. He started to thrash all the Indian bowlers out of the part hitting a brutal 125 off 114 balls. He included nine slapping fours and five gigantic sixes to his unbelievable knock under a serious pressure. Watching his partners depart at the other end, Jayasuriya did not stop his merry way of playing. The arrogant knock of the 39-year old Sri Lankan veteran took the team out of trouble from the disappointing start of 66-4. Tillakaratne Dilshan gave him a good support in the middle putting up a match winning 131 run partnership with Jayasuriya. Soon after Jayasuriya got himself out, Dilshan too followed him scoring 56 marking himself as the only batsman to get a reasonable score in Lankan batting lineup. Sri Lankans had to be satisfied with a total of 273 which all the Cricket commentators thought 30-40 runs short of a challenging total, considering the fact that 300 was an easy target for the teams batting second throughout this tournament.

In reply, Virender Sehwag started Indian inning with a quick threatening 60 off 36 balls. Indians were on top of the game at that time. But it did not last for long as the new spinner, Ajantha Mendis

entered into the scene. It was much expected for him to perform well in this match already having grabbed highest number of wickets in this tour. He did not disappoint his captain at all and managed to produce a stunning bowling figures of 6-13 off his 8 overs. India being well noted as the best players of spin, this performance was a very special one. They were simply clueless of the 'Magic of Mendis' and got out cheaply just like a school team playing against an international cricket team. Cricket commentators continued to say that "the new star is born" seeing the superb performances of Ajantha Mendis throughout this important tour. Indian strong top-middle order fell apart very quickly finishing up with 173 all out, giving Sri Lanka a 100-run victory in the finals of Asia Cup 2008... 8)

I was really thrilled to see the success of our team after a shaky start. What a comeback it was!? Looking forward for the upcoming tournament which will be starting on 23rd July against India.