Dr. Pandit Amaradeva: The legend lives on 

The loss of Dr. W. D Pandit Amaradeva widens the void within the Sri Lankan music industry which was once enriched with the works of numerous composers, lyricists and musicians. Among the stalwarts of this industry, Dr. Amaradeva was given a special place for his unique style of singing and the message sent through his various songs. Some of his evergreen hits including ‘Nim Him Sewwa’, ‘Ratnadeepa Janma Boomi’, ‘Nivahal Sithuvili’ have taken the music industry by storm for decades. 

According to his colleagues and fellow musicians, Dr. Amaradeva was one of the most humble musicians whom they have either worked with or have associated with. He was the recipient of many awards including the Philippine Ramon Magsaysay Award (2001), Indian Padma Sri Award (2002), Sri Lankan "President's Award of Kala Keerthi" (1986) and Deshamanya Award (1998). He has also represented Sri Lanka in many forums including the UNESCO 1967 Manila Symposium. 

However with his demise it is in the hands of the younger generation to take his legacy forward. But in doing so, they need to protect his identity and ensure that justice is being done to his inspirational music. 

Keeping this in mind, Life Online spoke to a few veteran and amateur artistes to listen to their views about how Dr. Amaradeva’s legacy should be carried forward. 

“At a time when everything has become westernised, it was people like Dr. Amaradeva who worked towards protecting the identity of Sri Lankan music. He had an excellent combination of lyrics and music which gave birth to evergreen hits. Therefore I believe that the amateurs too should follow his steps without distorting originals, so as to continue what he started.” - Uresha Ravihari 

“Our music industry has been inspired by melodies which have been used elsewhere. Dr. Amaradeva was one of the musicians of the present era who started composing originals. According to my knowledge original songs were composed by Ananda Samarakone and Sunil Shantha which was followed by Dr. Amaradeva. Nobody can replace this individual but the least that we can do is get inspiration from his work, apply it to new melodies and take his name forward.” - Prof. Sunil Ariyaratne 

“I was introduced to Dr. Amaradeva when I was very young and I have had the privilege of singing with him in various programmes. He was never moved by these various new ‘waves of music’ which influenced our music industry during the latter stages of his life. He has never boasted about his work but whatever he did turned out to be a brilliant song in the end. We are still children walking along the path he paved for us and sadly but fortunately I had the honour of working on a duet with him for my album ‘Numbata inne man witharada.’ He was a national asset and from here onwards we all have a huge responsibility in carrying his legacy forward. The younger generation should be very precautious when utilizing his melodies for their work because if distorted the value of his work will just die down.” - Deepika Priyadarshani Peiris 

"He was the only person who used the Utthara Bhaarathiya music to create his own original music. I know for a fact that he was not an extremist and he always wanted the young people to experiment. Many artistes in his era were extremists but he was not one of them. So the younger generation should keep the Amaradeva legacy while taking his name forward through creativity." - Bhathiya Jayakody 

"There are many things that you can learn from a person like Master Amaradeva. So the younger generation should be honest with their work and should take his name forward without distorting his work." - Gayathri Khemadasa