"Saroja" and "The Road from Elephant Pass"

For some strange reason, "Derana" has re telecasted Somarathna Dissanayake's masterpiece "Saroja" today, which emphasizes almost the complete opposite of the racist media policy of Derana TV. That is how it is in Sri Lanka nowadays and most people will gladly accept the lie beneath without questioning. Therefore, Dilith Jayaweera not being a racist, Reno Silva not being a drug addict and Namal Rajapaksa being a non alcoholic vegitarian are accepted, respected and considered as reasons for voting, in this strange island. 

Saroja is a movie which discusses a sensitive aspect of LTTE cardres where some of them are forced to bear arms for various reasons. By the time Saroja was in theaters for the first time, most of the Sinhala community were not racist. Most of them actually weapt after watching the movie. However, after 20 years from when it was firstly telecasted, Sinhala community appears to have equipped with aggression towards other communities which was halfly justified and halfly fabricated by politicians for their betterment. 

Showing an aspect where some LTTE cardres might be under influence and force of their leaders and having them being sympathiezed by the sinhala community was the farthest point Sinhala Movie Industry could ever achieve. Actually discussing it from the point of view of a reasonable tamil man who has decided to join LTTE and take up arms on his own free will is still far far away. 

This reality was seen when Nihal Silva's Gration Award winning novel, "The Road from Elephant Pass" was played on screen subject to significant amount of deductions and alterations compared to the book. 

The original book actually consists a considerable amount of actual arguments borne by the tamils, who considered they were not treated equally and fairly in Sri Lanka. Upto now, most of the Sinhala people do not know and do not care, why a significant number of tamils decided to join LTTE. Until they at least agree to listen to what the other party is actually thinking, the unrest between Sinhala and Tamil communities will last. 

This harsh and bitter truth is unveiled throughout Nihal Silva's The Road from Elephant Pass book. But when it was converted to a movie, it has turned out to be some kind of a heroic love story involves an idea of terrorist rehabilitation. Simply how pathetic and how poor? 

Saroja was a touching movie which was successful in bringing tears even to the eyes of the most stubborn racist. However, portraiting LTTE cardres as people who were satisfied Sri Lankan citizens of the way they are being treated, forced to take arms by the LTTE, was not entirely a lie but significantly misleading in understanding their choice of separatism.