He was a well-known economics teacher in the distant past. Then he relinquished his career as a teacher and became a politician, and for many years he has been a Cabinet Minister
All of the above are the things that everyone knows about him. But through this conversation we tried to reveal things that most people do not know. In addition to a teacher and a politician, there are plethora characters in this conversation.
So the leader of our conversation today is Cabinet Minister Dr. Bandula Gunawardena who speaks to our special correspondent, well-known TV and radio presenter Bashini Samarasinghe.
Q: What are the highlights, if you reminisce about your childhood?
A: I was born in ‘Sumithra’ house which is in the Rajamalwatta area at Battaramulla. While we were living there I went to Rathnajothi College. After my father died, we moved to the ‘Waga’ area where my mother lived in her childhood. It was the area that I got a wonderful feeling about the village.
After passing the Grade 5 Scholarship Examination, I attended Rajasinghe College, Hanwella. Unlike today, we had a very interesting childhood with nature. Even in education we had no competition or pressure.
Later I passed the GCE O/L examination and attended Lumbini College, Colombo to study A/Level from the Commerce stream. At Lumbini College, I was also involved in a number of activities related to the Debate Society, Buddhist Association, and lot of co-curricular activities. Also I held the position of head prefect of the school. In addition, I taught primary classes for relief periods in the school.
We were inspired to read what people like Dr. E.W. Adhikaram and others wrote at the time, what happened in the Soviet Union, and to participate in social discussions.
Despite all these extracurricular activities, I finally I got the highest marks at the GCE A/L exam and was selected to the Faculty of Management at the University of Jayewardenapura. So that’s how my childhood was spent.
Q: When did you become a professional tuition teacher?
A: By the time I finished the GCE A/L, I was well versed in economics and commerce. Due to my teaching experience for students younger than me in my school, my teaching ability had improved somewhat by then. At that time I started conducting tuition classes for Ordinary Level students at a private institute in Homagama. Even then my A/L results had not come. Therefore, it was not even known whether I was selected for the university or not.
Q: We have heard that you met your love in a class you teach. Is that true?
A: Of course. At that time there was a college called Seevali Vidyalaya in Homagama. As an Ordinary Level student of that college, she attended my tuition class, which I did after finishing my A/Levels. So I first met Tamara as an O/Level student in the class I taught.
Q: What are the memorable experiences in your university life?
A: Due to the political uprising in 1971, our universities had become prison camps. As a result of that, university teaching continued in some schools.
When I attend the university, I was already an active political activist in the Lanka Sama Samaja Party, because of above reasons.
Then I joined the student council of the university in my first year.
From the second year in university I conducted more and more tutoring classes so the attendance at university lectures decreased. At that time I also started writing various books on economics.
Q: What was your first book on economics?
A: Aarthika Vidya Prakirana Visadum was my first book about economics. I wrote it in my second year of the university.
Q: You wrote many more books later, right?
A: By the end of my university years, I had written about a dozen books related to economics and commerce. ‘Aarthika Vidya Nibandana’, ‘Vaanija Vidya Nibandana’, ‘Vaanija Ha Mudal’, ‘Vaanija Vidya Gatalu Visadum’ are some of them.
Q: You were getting rich because of your classes and writing books?
A: Yes. In my second year of the university, I brought a Lambretta scooter for Rs. 5,000. That was a big sum those days. Because of this, my political friends began to reject me.
Q: Then there was a disagreement between you and them?
A: Gradually, some kind of theoretical conflicts arose between us. In the 1977 general election I left the LSSP and the Communist Party and joined the People’s United Front (Mahajana Eksath Peramuna) led by Dinesh Gunawardena. That is how my politics took a different path in the past.
Q: So far we have talked about your political history which many people do not know. Apart from politics, we have also seen your name in the field of art, especially as a film producer. What kind of connection do you have with the field of art?
A: The environment which I grew up also made me feel about art from my childhood. Therefore, from the past, I was willing to contribute to art related activities. Also, many artists became my close friends. Professor Sarachchandra was an attesting witness at my marriage. So I had that kind of close relationship with artists from the past.
Q: What are the movies you have produced?
A: I produced the Suddilage Kathawa movie which was screened in 1985. It was a film based on the Suddilage Kathawa, a great novel by reputed writer Simon Nawagattegama. Later I produced films like Sirimadura, Ayoma and the recently released The Newspaper film.
It gives me great satisfaction to be able to contribute to such things in the field of art.
(Pic: Akalanka Marasinghe)