Stranger in a Sari

When Dinesh Ravindra Gunaratne (otherwise known as DRG), longtime friend, movie maker and fellow arts-enthusiast invited us for “Stranger in a Sari”, I literally rubbed my hands together and exclaimed “finally!”

Having known this individual for quite a while as an incredibly gifted artistic soul with this sense of something (we have always interpreted as) just bursting to come out, in my head he had always been this ticking time bomb, ripe for bursting forth with something wonderful. But we knew him mostly as a movie maker with a flare for the unusual and his never-seen-a-box-in-his-life way of thinking. So when “Stranger in a Sari” finally came out, Dinesh had more than a few surprises in store for us. 

The venue was laid out tastefully with elegance and sophistry, one that you would only expect from someone with an eye (kudos to the awesome deco person Gihan Karunanayake). The program was short and sweet with a few readings from some intriguing pieces including the fascinating short story “Stranger in a Sari” which held the audience captive within the short time it unrolled. The crowd present was comprised of Dinesh’s closest circle and the love was indeed felt as Dinesh took the microphone in hand to thank the myriad people who were involved. Judging by the response of the crowd, it was quite plain to see that the writer and artist is a much loved individual cherished by many.

Let me rewind just a little bit.

So there I was having arrived early, flipping through the beautiful booklet that was handed to me (classy and intriguing cover, 4 elegant bookmarks n all) waiting for my other half (who was characteristically late). It didn’t take long for this unassuming little thing to draw me right in. It was a strange feeling, sitting there in the midst of the crowd yet hardly even aware of them, lost within the pages of the book. The crowd did not exist. The Cappuccino in front of me did not exist. Simply said, the words on those pages wrenched my heart right out of my rib cage, squeezed it open and left it bleeding, exposed and vulnerable. All my life’s heartbreaks came tumbling back to me. There was pain, yes, unbearable, all consuming, pain, but there was also hope. And it was amazing how he has taken that pain inside him, twisted and twirled it into a masterful craft, sprinkled it with a bit of hope and unleashed it full blast upon us unsuspecting beings. It was cruel, beautiful poetry, brought forth by a cruel beautiful world.

Weirdly enough, this hard-hitting phenomenon left me nostalgic for all the heartbreaks of the past. Hardly something that one would be nostalgic about. Most importantly, it made me “feel”.

“I woke up

With pain

Gushing through my veins

Losing you

Made me fear life”

He says. And on the next page he is

“kissing the mirror

To feel the wetness of

Your lips”

Pungent. Vivid. Resonating. And the reader goes, ‘I know that deep stabbing pain in the morning just as you wake up. I know exactly how you feel!’.

My personal favourite has to be the below.

“It’s hard when

Memories remain in

Your old phone’s

Memory card

She took the exact picture

The same pose

With her new husband…..”

Very real, very true to life. This could be anyone, phones bearing too many memories, exes taking the same kind of pictures in the same poses as they once posed with you with their new found lovers – we’ve all faced that pang of deep, deep hurt, that first moment of discovery when you stumble upon your pictures with them on Facebook just when you thought you are over them……

“Health tip

Don’t try to own

A travelling heart

With the hope of

Hiding it

Inside your soul

From the rest of the world”

How very, very true.

What is remarkable about this is that even though it seems like the protagonist has suffered a deep loss and has been in a dark lonely place, there is no bitterness, no anger nor hatred detected in any of these pieces. There is a childlike innocence in the protagonist, an eternal optimism that shines through his words. The woman, the creature that caused him pain is presented as a sublime, sensual, mysterious creature by whom the protagonist continues to be very much fascinated. There is respect and awe of the female creature still and a sense of adoration. This amazes me - in a world where females are lashed at, insulted and objectified every second of the day, this is refreshingly new indeed.      

Dinesh refers to his collection as “sentimental rants”. And with that he shows us how easy it is to enjoy and to feel humanity with all its faults, its sensuality, emotions, sentiments and feelings without the pompous grandeur or the unnecessary embellishments. The empathy in his work is astounding. It is honest to goodness emotions turned to words, scattered upon the pages, with love. Simply, beautiful.   

I particularly loved the short stories. If anything, Dinesh Ravindra Gunaratne is a superb story teller and this is not the first time he has exhibited it. Unexpected plot twists, incredibly detailed accounts, he sucks you into these little parallel universes he creates with his stories and abandons you there, leaving you to your own antics. You simply could not rest until you’ve read it all. He has this old school style of writing, showcasing I think, a love for all things vintage and a sort of yearning for the past when things were lavish and dramatic. This, especially, appeals to me. Things are much too sterile and minimalist these days, boring in execution and insipid in design. His prowess as a movie maker sharpens his knack for story writing, these tales bringing characters to life and engraving them in your mind. These are memorable stories showcasing rare genius. It’s been a while since I’ve read a memorable short story, Dinesh’s being the first in perhaps, years.

Speaking about his movie making, I wish I had a few links to his short movies to back up my claim. But here is the trailer of just one of his many works called “Mata pissu naha” that I managed to find online after raking through tons and tons of material. However, do check out the Mathwada Facebook page managed by Dinesh and his best friend and partner in crime Naveen Marasinghe. This is bound to capture your attention. 

In the meantime I also found this. A short film named Cleopatra’s shoe, inspired by a story by the great G.B Senanayake, who also happens to be my favourite Sinhala writer.

Did I mention that they are also the creators of Mathawada? Checkout the site here.  

The book feels intensely personal. It is like the publishing of the book is the final let go of the pain and suffering and I could almost hear the writer shedding a sigh of relief, finally letting it go. I recognize this feeling. I can relate to it. It is akin to amassing all the gifts, the poems, the notes, written by and to a past love, making a huge heap of it in your front yard, ceremoniously setting it all on fire and watching the flames consume it all, a little bit of pain disintegrating, freeing you as the fire disintegrates the paper bit by bit. It feels deeply satiating. 

And another thing that really stood out at the event and further proved that he really is an individual dedicated to the arts – the book was not for sale. It was distributed among whoever attended and those who wished could have made a donation, any amount they liked at a cardboard box placed on a side table. And what’s more, anyone who wished could download the book online free of charge! Generosity, selflessness – never before seen characteristics in anything in this country, let alone in arts! In this and many other things Dinesh stands a unique individual and a worthy example.

The book was backed by a series of mesmerizing photographs by   Lakmal Ranasinghe, who was entrusted with the task of interpreting the work by DRG. I think he has done a marvelous job. The photographs are haunting and capture the essence of the woman - the root of the protagonist’s heartbreak. They are sensual, just like the writings themselves. You can checkout some of those photographs here.

A little word on the venue and the staff. Held at the Café Mocha by Barista right next to Gandara, the venue was charming with its wooden floors and the old school glamour to it, which I thought suited the event very well. And the staff was extremely friendly, ever ready to help and I could very well hand over the “staff of the year” award to these lovely boys and one girl who manned the place on that day.

Also, everything was 15% off to people who came for the event! That was definitely the cherry on top of the cake. At least for me :D

All in all, a beautiful, tasteful event, inspiring and refreshingly different. A wonderful booklet brimming with flavoursome things which for me was also emotions bound in paper Download the free PDF if you wish (and I strongly recommend that you do) and savour the loveliness. In the meantime, do enjoy the reading below.