Entertainment

Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka wins Booker Prize

Published

3 years ago

October 18, 2022

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The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida by Sri Lankan author – Shehan Karunatilaka, has won the Booker Prize.
The Sri Lankan writer’s novel is about a photographer who wakes up dead, with a week to ask his friends to find his photos and expose the brutality of the Sri Lankan civil war.

Camilla, the Queen Consort, presented the prize, and the author said it had been “an honour and a privilege” to be on the shortlist. Pop singer Dua Lipa was the star guest.

The prestigious £50,000 prize, for a single work of fiction published in the UK in English, also gives the other five writers on the shortlist £2,500 each.

The writer said he decided in 2009 to write “a ghost story where the dead could offer their perspective” after the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, “when there was a raging debate over how many civilians died and whose fault it was”.

Karunatilaka said as he accepted his prize: “My hope is that in the not too distant future… Sri Lanka has understood that these ideas of corruption and race-baiting and cronyism have not worked and will never work. “I hope it’s in print in 10 years… if it is, I hope it’s written in a Sri Lanka that learns from its stories, and that Seven Moons will be in the fantasy section of the bookshop, next to the dragons, the unicorns and will not be mistaken for realism or political satire.”

The opening of the book sets the slightly absurd tone. It starts in the afterlife, which turns out to be bureaucratic and banal. It then flips back and forth between the underworld and the real world during the Sri Lankan civil war in 1990 as Maali Almeida tries to work out who killed him – and why.

Shehan Karunatilaka says the book has been in his head for 10 years and goodness his brain must have been busy. But he struggled to find an international publisher.

The Seven Moons of Maali is Karunatilaka’s second novel, having previously won awards including the Commonwealth Book Prize for his debut book Chinaman, which was called the “second best cricket book of all time” by cricketers’ almanac Wisden.

Born in 1975, the writer has also worked as an advertising copywriter, and his songs, scripts and stories have been published in Rolling Stone, GQ and National Geographic.

He is the second Sri Lankan-born author to win the prize, following Michael Ondaatje for The English Patient (1992).

(Excerpts : BBC)

Related Topics:Entertainment lka SriLanka

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Beyoncé pauses show as flying Cadillac tilts mid-air

Published

22 hours ago

June 30, 2025

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Beyoncé was forced to stop her show in Houston on Saturday night when the car she was sitting in started to tilt mid-air.

The elaborate stage prop – a red Cadillac – is suspended on cables and carries the superstar high over her fans near the end of her Cowboy Carter stadium show.

But during Saturday’s performance, the car started to slowly tilt to one side, leaving the 43-year-old performer clinging to a flag pole for support.

“Stop! Stop, stop, stop stop,” Beyoncé said, bringing an abrupt end to her country ballad, 16 Carriages.

Gasps could be heard from the audience when fans realised what was happening, but then applause as the star was slowly lowered to the ground, smiling and waving to the crowd.

“If ever I fall, I know y’all will catch me,” she said later.

Fans took to social media to post their videos of the frightening moment, commenting with Beyoncé’s now-infamous catchphrase “somebody’s getting fired”, which she quipped on stage during a lighting problem in 2010.

Beyoncé’s company, Parkwood Entertainment, said a “technical mishap” had caused the car to tilt.

“She was quickly lowered and no one was injured. The show continued without incident,” the statement added.

This was not the first prop malfunction Beyoncé has experienced over her years of touring.

Earlier in this tour, a robot supposed to pour her a drink missed its mark, no doubt leaving a puddle of Sir Davis whisky for the crew to clean up. And during her On The Run II tour with husband Jay-Z in 2018, a moving platform broke, forcing Beyoncé to climb down a ladder – in heels and a sequined leotard, no less.ame

The performance in her hometown of Houston, Texas, was the 23rd of her 32-show Cowboy Carter tour, which wraps up in Las Vegas next month.

The three-hour extravaganza of chaps and cowboy boots has been lauded for its high-energy and artistry, and has delighted fans with appearances by Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s daughters, Blue, 13, and Rumi, aged eight.

The show has broken ticket records at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London (the previous record holder was… Beyoncé) and Stade De France in Paris.

(BBC News)

Entertainment

‘Riverstone’ wins 02 major awards at Shanghai Film Festival

Published

1 week ago

June 23, 2025

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Sri Lankan film ‘Riverstone’, directed by Lalith Rathnayake, won 02 awards at the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival Golden Goblet Awards held on June 21.

Lalith Rathnayake and Nilantha Perera were awarded ‘Asian New Talent Best Script Writer’ while Prabath Roshan received the award for ‘Asian New Talent Best Cinematography’.

The film, which stars popular actors including Mahendra Perera, Shyam Fernando, and Nimanthi Porage, is expected to be released in local theaters soon.

Entertainment

South Indian actress Varalaxmi arrives in SL

Published

2 weeks ago

June 18, 2025

editor

Renowned South Indian actress Varalaxmi Sarathkumar arrived at Katunayake Airport yesterday (June 17) to play the lead role in the upcoming film “Cage Bird”.

The film is a Sri Lankan production directed by Chandran Ratnam, which is set for international release.

She arrived at the Katunayake Bandaranaike International Airport at 11:04 a.m. via SriLankan Airlines flight UL-122 from Chennai, India.

She was welcomed by Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) officials, including Deputy Director Harendra Wijewardene and Assistant Director Chaminda Munasinghe.