The value of a country’s national anthem does not need to be explained to anyone. The value of a national anthem cannot be compared to anything else. And the national anthem is a very sensitive thing. It is because of that sensitivity that the people started reacting in different ways to the fact that the national anthem of our country was allowed to be sung in Tamil.
As much as the national anthem, the composer of the national anthem is highly respected by the nation. The respect we all have for Mr. Ananda Samarakoon, who composed our national anthem, is still very high. But there is a question as to whether Mr. Samarakoon received proper respect from our country. There has been a big controversy about it in the country. The conversation started because of a revelation made by veteran film director Mr. Dharmasiri Bandaranaike in a discussion the other day. That story is as emotional as the national anthem.
It is a well-known fact that Mr. Ananda Samarakoon, who wrote the national anthem of Sri Lanka, died by committing suicide. But Mr. Dharmasiri Bandaranaike says that it is not a suicide but a murder. We have not heard of a country that killed the composer of the national anthem. That is why the sensitivity of this story increases. Mr. Bandaranaike says that Sri Lanka is the only country in the world that killed the author of the national anthem.
The story is told in Mr. Dharmasiri Bandaranaike’s own words. “Mr. Ananda Samarakoon received a call from the radio station saying that the national anthem is offensive to the rulers of this country. Therefor the rulers want to protect themselves, and res set up the ‘genres’ of this song and sing it again. Then he asks who said that. It was said that Hon. Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s advisors was the reply he got. Mr. Samarakoon talked to those advisors, after speaking, he said this. There is no mistake in this. I studied this ‘Gana’ techniques from India. Therefore I see there is nothing wrong in it. No one in Sri Lanka knows this ‘ Gana’ techniques.
Then those counsellors complain about this to the lady. After that, the lady calls Mr. Samarakoon and asks him to change it. But the answer was the same. After that, the lady and the counsellors got together and change it. The previous song “Namo Namo Mata” was changed and given to Mr. Samarakoon on the radio station. After hearing that, he went home that day. The next morning he did not get up again. After that he never got up again. I learned later that he took all the pills he was supposed to take at once and committed suicide.” That is how Mr. Dharmasiri Bandaranaike tells that story.
Mr. Ananda Samarakoon’s son told this story later with Mr. Bandaranaike. Mr. Bandaranaike states that he has three letters which were written by Mr. Samarakoon for the last time.
We are not going to comment on this story because there has been a lot of discussion about it in the country. But it is needless to say that the people were not benefited even if the ‘ganas’ were changed just because it was not good for the rulers. Perhaps Mr. Samarakoon’s position in the national anthem would have been better for the people. After changing the status of castes, it is not possible to say whether it was good only for the rulers and bad for the people.
