Gratiaen Trust - Judges' Comments

Trustees of the Gratiaen Trust, fellow judges, Ladies and gentlemen,
We are honoured to be the judges of the prestigious Gratiaen Prize 2010 for Creative Writing in English in Sri Lanka. We are here today, to announce the Winner of the Gratiaen Prize for 2010.
The judges took a considerable length of time to read each entry, and all our decisions were unanimous and were based on extensive discussions.

We evolved our own set of criteria which we believe in no way disadvantaged the entries we received. The following criteria, were applied to each of the texts. We considered how each work sustained the readers’ interest through

Feizal is also a correspondent for Inter Press Service (IPS) news agency in Colombo reporting essentially on development news and features, and is a contributor to some Middle East newspapers.

He is a social activist working on helping children in need, and supports causes relating to poverty and women's' empowerment. His special interest is music and he has helped raise money for children's charities through UNICEF and Save the Children by organizing annual country and folk music concerts titled Country Roads since 1988 through his non-profit organization, the Country Music Foundation (CMF).

• a theme or themes that the reader could relate to
• originality in the theme selected
• the manner in which the narrative unfolds – that is, whether it suits the style of writing adopted and the themes that are explored
• a judicious use of language – that is the use of fresh, non hackneyed language that is also error free
• detailed and nuanced character portrayal, and  
• the use of innovative literary techniques and creative devices

We would like to commence our presentation by giving a brief evaluation of each of the five short listed entries. I will be doing so in alphabetical order of the authors’ names.

The first text I will be dealing with is titled Colours of the Sun. This is a novel written by Rozaine Cooray. It is presented as an epistolary narrative - that is to say, a narrative presented entirely as a series of letters written by a mother to her daughter, over a period of four months. These letters cover the entirety of her life’s experiences, from childhood to the present. The language the writer uses is similar to that between a mother and a daughter - language which is uncomplicated and accessible, with a strong degree of warmth and affection in the way the narrator addresses her daughter. The very fact that the narrator is writing about situations which are very personal to her, adds an element of sentimentality and self indulgence. Although the situations captured in the narrative are perhaps not dramatic, they nevertheless describe human relationships, and how they play a role in shaping the narrator’s life. It is also interesting to note that the narrative deals with how the narrator’s personal history intersects with and is affected by the recent history of Sri Lanka and her experiences as a migrant.
The strength of the novel lies in the very fact that the narrator neither overdramatizes her life’s experiences nor reaches out for sympathy from her daughter. Instead, she sets down her life story in a simple and matter of fact way. The reader is left with a feeling of understanding and empathy for the characters and situations depicted in the novel.

The next entry I wish to comment on is Dalada by Shyam Dissanayake. This is a novel written in the traditional style of a thriller. It adopts an identifiably authentic Sri Lankan setting, and negotiates a fine line between fact and fiction. The text portrays a conflict between two Tamil nationalist groups. The core of the narrative deals with the disputes between these two groups, whilst taking on a common enemy, the Sri Lankan state. It also deals with the State’s efforts to contend with an attempted attack on one of its most sacred precincts. The well-crafted plot involves conspiracies, counter conspiracies, intrigue and violent action, in a post-war Sri Lankan setting. The novel manages to effectively capture the reader’s imagination and sustain reader interest. The characters in this novel are portrayed compellingly, providing us with insight into their psychology and behaviour. The novel’s main appeal can be located in its fast pace, minutely detailed character and situation portrayal and its philosophical ending.

Next on our list is The Suicide Club by Herman Gunaratne. Subtitled “a virgin tea planter’s journey”, the book consists of the reminiscences of the author, presented through a series of colourfully and humorously portrayed vignettes. This is a text that effectively straddles the boundary between memoir and anecdotal history, taking the reader through life on the estates during the British Raj to the nationalization of the plantations in the 1970s. The writer comes across as a person who is conscious of his duties as a tea planter, whilst at the same time displaying a boyish sense of humour.  This is clearly seen in the flow of the narrative which goes from the role he plays as disciplined and committed member of the plantation community to his obvious enjoyment of playing amusing pranks with his friends. The author’s strength is his ability to breathe life into the characters that he describes, evoking vivid images of the personalities and situations described.

Now we come to the fourth text on our list which is a book of short stories by Shirani Rajapakse, titled Breaking News. This collection of short stories deals with a variety of themes. The stories that have the greatest impact are the ones that deal with conflict situations drawn from Sri Lanka’s recent history from the north as well as from the south. Each story in the collection is located within a different social milieu, and yet, the author manages to do justice to each different social background she portrays. When she describes situations in which the main characters are the victims of violence, she manages to convey to the reader their emotions in powerfully descriptive language, which is poetic and nuanced. She does not merely use a linear narrative style but experiments with literary devices like flashbacks and at times employs overarching metaphors in some of her stories.

Finally, I wish to give our evaluation of a book of poetry titled On the Streets and Other Revelationsby Sakuntala Sachithanandan. The poems in this collection reflect real-life situations and are located within recognizably Lankan contexts. The writer, through her poetic portrayals, draws the reader’s attention to situations that should not be accepted by civilized society.   In many of the poems in this collection, the writer shows empathy for those who have been victimized by society’s callousness, insensitivity and brutality. The characters the writer portrays display a sense of hopelessness at times, born of poverty and despair. They seem to resign themselves to their lot in life due to lack of support from social, political and economic systems which discriminate against them. The poems are written in a style that is simple and down to earth. Nevertheless, their very simplicity of expression is what makes the poems potent. Sachithanandan’s poetry works best when it is socially engaged and encapsulates issues of justice and fair-play.

Ladies and gentlemen, we take great pleasure in announcing the winner of the Gratiaen Prize for Creative Writing in English in Sri Lanka for 2010.

For the writer’s pithy, unembellished writing style and use of appropriate literary techniques and devices.

For the writer’s creative use of Sri Lankan English and unique ability to use words from Sinhala and Tamil to create atmosphere and lend authenticity to what is described. 

For the vivid portrayals of characters and their situations which impact strongly on the reader
For, focusing attention on inhuman situations that exist around us on a daily basis, thereby unsettling our equilibrium, and.
For invoking in us a need to reassess our behaviour and realign our practices.

The Gratiaen Prize for Creative Writing in English in Sri Lanka for 2010 goes to SAKUNTALA SACHITHANANDAN for her collection of poems titled ON THE STREETS AND OTHER REVELATIONS. 

Feizal Samath
Chairman- Panel of Judges