Lucien Bulathsinghala Speaks

  No politician anywhere in the world has uplifted the Arts. Today we find those who work with the aim of reaping profit for themselves.

   It's a long time now that my son Harsha and daughter had given up being involved in the field of Arts.
        - Lucien Bulathsinghala

   Distinguished Artiste Lucien Bulathsinghala has expressed his ideas to a weekend newspaper saying that artistes of today are a group of disorganised lot. He says that they could be identified as a group who work with a view of reaping rewards for themselves. He goes on to say that even his son Harsha and daughter Chapa are now living by involving themselves in other activities, having said goodbye to the field of Arts. He explains the situation as follows:

Don't Artistes maintain silence over the existing situation?
Every Artiste in Sri Lanka has a private image. In Sri Lanka, there are Artistes of the kind mentioned. There isn't a group of people in Sri Lanka who are sensitive to certain aspects and have organised themselves or had dedicated themselves to the Arts or to his/her Field. That is the reason behind the silence. But in other countries there are national organisations representing the Field of Arts. They have occupational organisations. It is only in countries having such organisations that one finds artistes who dedicate themselves to the advancement of the Field concerned. There is no use in pointing the finger at those who are called 'distinguished' in Sri Lanka. It's because 'distinguished' artistes lead a solitary existence. Take me for example. Who am I? Though I am called a 'distinguished' artiste, I was at one time engaged in government service and today I am a 'nobody' after I was kicked out without any rhyme or reason. As such, there is no such united sect of individuals. There is only a personal, private image.

What is the reason for such a thing to happen?
The reason is that there is no organised field of Arts. None of them has a disciplinary foundation. None of them possess a code of ethics. There are no educational institutions. As such, it is not possible to continue with the Field of Arts. Every country which has a what is known as the Elite or Intellectual Arts in the world possess a distinct educational methodology for it. There is a set of ethics or foundation which the Artistes are expected to follow. At the same time they have plenty of opportunities available to engage in their own Field. But it is not so in Sri Lanka. That is why we are silent. Every creation that we have so far done have been on a personal or private basis. There is no one on a State level to stand on its behalf or take responsibility. There is no organisation which can collect even 10 Artistes in Sri Lanka.

Isn't this a reason for lack of guidance on the part of senior Artistes?
No, no, senior Artistes cannot play a guiding role that way; because there is no distinction between senior and junior Artistes in Sri Lanka. Such a difference would occur only when there are organisations which have a foundation of ethics of which I spoke earlier. What we find here is a set of Artistes who contribute just what they have. They can't be addressed as Artistes; not a group of those who have embarked through a process of an educational methodology, but those who were with an inborn skill Therefore that question can't be answered. If Sri Lanka is to reach that level, first of all the seniors that you talk of should unite. What we find here is a group of people who work for profit for themselves.

What you have is a sort of repentance or disgust?
No, not a sort of disgust. But we should understand something. What is our country? What is the culture that we have? What kind of people live in our country? Is this cultur of Arts inborn in them? Because there is a culture akin to any field of Arts. There is no such thing in Sri Lanka. What I see is that Sri Lanka also does not have a culture. I recently saw crackers being lit in a cemetery. What kind of culture is that? Today there is nothing that portrays our identity. But apart from the majority (Maha jaathiya), everyone else has such an identity. Therefore Sri Lanka has no culture of Arts. We should understand that, and not have a sense of disgust. If there is a sense of disgust, we won't work.

Doesn't unnecessary political interference into the arts influence this downfall?
I do not at all wish to combine politics with the Arts. No country in the world has uplifted the Arts through politics. Politics always thinks that Artistes are a power that works against them. Therefore, no effort has been taken by politics to advance the Arts. If possible they would exploit in bringing the Artiste closer to them in order to fulfil their ulterior motives. There is no politician in the world who has uplifted the Field of Arts. That was done by those who were involved in the Field of Arts.

Don't you think that your children should be an extension of yours?
No, no. They have totally disengaged themselves from this; except that Harsha gives his contribution to something of my own. He doesn't do anything else. They were unable to do what they wanted. This society dispelled the. What and what things the media said about Harsha and Chapa! As a result, they are engaged in other occupations. To say how much Chapa was insulted, she ultimately left this country. Even Harsha is living here not with any pleasantness.

Finally, what have you got to say?
My idea is that I was born in this country for some reason. We happened to become people unsuitable to the methodology of this country. Therefore, wehad to face a number of obstacles. It came to a position where it was not possible to carry on with the occupation. That means that there is some problem in the country that we were born in. When society says 'no' to a person who refrains from cheating and any other fraudulent activities, then there is something wrong happening somewhere. But then that 'wrong' does not mean that we should leave the country. We are people who have been dispelled from a powerful social authority. Whatever it is, there is some group of people who still loves us. They still retain their bond with us. We live because of them. Though my voice was stilled, I am not a person who would remain silent forever.