KALABUSHANA PIYASENA COSTA
Veteran Sri Lankan artiste, lyricist and writer Piyasena Costa passed away recently at the age of 85. Costa became a household name after he penned lyrics for some evergreen Sinhala songs like Rangiri Dambulu Gale, Isurumuniye Pethali Galaka, Lalitha Kala Opakarana, Sarasamy Lanka and Nuwara Alankare which were popularized by late songstress Chitra Sompala and many other singers popular during the 1940s and 50s.
Multi-talented Costa showed his prolific versatility when he wrote the script to Ashoka, a film by Sirisena Wimalaweera. He also acted in P. Welikala’s film Davasaka Venasa. He penned several works of fictions like Geetha Rasaya, Kala Shilpa, Piyuma, Sansara Chakray and Isurumuniya. In 2008 he published a collection of memoirs titled Dayabara Desa.
Costa’s professional teaching career started in 1947 and he was promoted to a painting lecturer position at Lanka Technical College in 1952. Later he served as a senior lecturer of the University of Visual and Performing Arts and became a sectional head.
A devout Buddhist, he served as the Vice President of the Nawala YMBA for several years.
Born in 1925 in Galle, Costa first showed his painting talents at the age of 17, with the painting of Rabindranath Tagore. He won the first place at a painting competition in 1944.
OBITUARY
KALABUSHANA PIYASENA COSTA: JP, retired Head of College of Fine Arts. Dearly beloved husband of Nandawathi (retired teacher of Ananda Balika Vidyalaya, Kotte), loving father of Indrajith (Hayleys), Chakrapani (Bartleet), Yasoja (Canada), Banduwarna (Sampath Bank), loving father-in-law of Hemali, Jeewanthi (Wijeyeratne & Co.), Gamini (Canada), Chamila, loving grandfather of Indramali, Devindra, Chanuka, Vihanga and Kaveesha, expired. Cortege left residence on Thursday 21st October 2010 at 4.30 p.m for Cremation at Nawala Cemetery at 5.00 p.m. 22, School Avenue, Nawala, Rajagiriya.
