Rohana Weerasinghe

Dr.Rohana Weerasinghe is arguably the foremost musical director in Sri Lanka today. Not only is he a very talented musical director, but he is also a talented singer in his own right. As a young artiste, his first musical compositions were done in 1972, while working for the SLBC. In 1982, he came into prominence as a talented Musical Director, winning a “Sarasavi” Award for Best Music Director, with his very first film “Aradhana”. Rohana continues to be inundated with a multitude of awards throughout his distinguished career, which now comes to 45 years. He has been the recipient of over 40 prestigious awards, including the “Sarasavi” awards in 1986, 1990, 1995, and 1996 and the “Presidential” award in 1994 and 2006. Dr.Weerasinghe has directed the music for over 350 tele-dramas and some 75 full length films. He has also done over 6000 music compositions for a huge variety of artistes: from Pandit Amaradeva to Umaria Sinhawansa. In September 2006, Rohana became the first Sri Lankan musical director to perform at the prestigious Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, with 9 artistes and a 25-piece orchestra performing more than 35 of his creations. Dr.Weerasinghe has not only enriched our culture with his own compositions and musical direction, he has also been a guiding light for our young musicians and helped many of them to advance in their careers.