Gamini Fonseka

Fonseka was born on 21 March 1936 in Dehiwela as the third child of William and Daisy Fonseka. Starting school at a Presbyterian institution, he later transferred to S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia. As a child, he gained a reputation for imitating administrative figures at school. Foneska also prospered in the study of the Sinhala language and literature (under the guidance of D. S. Jayasekera, who is also reputed to have introduced him to acting in stage plays){{cite web |title=D. S. Jayasekera – the consummate educator The Chief Editor, Sunday Observer 6th August 2006. |url=http://www.tyretracks.com/showthread.php?t=440 |access-date=6 August 2012 |publisher=tyretracks.com}} and placed in the upper fourth for a Sinhala literature prize. The award for this achievement was presented to him by S. Thomas' graduate and Sri Lankan Prime Minister D. S. Senanayake. Foneska was also an accomplished cricket player.

Fonseka abruptly ended his secondary education and dove into the film industry. He originally wanted to be a cameraman and in this line worked as the second Assistant Director on David Lean's The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lester James Peries' Rekava (1956). Fonseka was first on-screen in Rekava as part of a crowd. He also did some work on an English television series filmed in Sri Lanka.

Fonseka's first credited acting role was in Daiwa Yogaya (1959) in which he played a minor role. Lester James Peries' Sandesaya (1960) first established Fonseka in a leading role. With films like Adata Wediya Heta Hondai, Ranmuthu Duwa, Getawarayo, and Dheevarayo, Fonseka achieved popularity and became a box-office draw.{{cite web | url=http://www.silumina.lk/2019/09/28/රසඳුන/ගාමිණි-ෆොන්සේකා-නම්-වූ-සිනමා-විශිෂ්ටයාගේ-රංගන-දිවියේ-මහා-අස්වැන්න | title=The Great Harvest of the Performance of a Film Excellence | publisher=Silumina| access-date=5 May 2019}}

Seeking to not play in only commercial roles, Fonseka appeared as Jinadasa in the groundbreaking Gamperaliya (1964), working again with Peries. In Titus Thotawatte's Chandiya, Fonseka played his first anti-heroic role in Sri Lankan cinema and in Mike Wilson's Sorungeth Soru (1968), he played the role of Jamis Banda, the Sinhalese James Bond.{{cite web | url=http://gossip.hirufm.lk/17985/2017/09/gamini-fonseka.html | title=It's 16 years | publisher=Hiru FM| access-date=5 May 2019}} In 1964, at the first awards ceremony of the United Ceylon Fan Club held on 12 January at the Royal College Hall, Colombo, Gamini won the Best Actor award in 1963 for his role as Jinadasa in the film Gamperaliya. This was Fonseka's first acting award.{{Cite web |title=Gamini: the most prolific stage personality in Hela cinema |url=http://www.silumina.lk/2021/03/20/තරංග/හෙළ-සිනමාවේ-ප්%E2%80%8Dරපාතවත්-රංග-පෞරුෂය-ගාමිණි |access-date=2021-06-04 |website=Silumina}}

Fonseka also tried out directing many accolades. His debut directorial work Parasathu Mal was warmly received. He directed a political satire Sagarayak Meda.{{cite news| url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2106623/|title= Sagarayak Meda|publisher=www.imdb.com}} Other films directed by Fonseka include Koti Waligaya and Nomiyana Minissu. He entered television as well and became the best teledrama actor for the role he played in Kalu Saha Sudu.

Fonseka's role as Willie Abeynayake in Nidhanaya (1972) and as ASP Wicrema Randeniya in Welikathara (1971) are widely considered to be his crowning achievements. Both films have been recognised by Presidential Awards as amongst the 10 Best Sri Lankan films of all time. In 1979, Fonseka played Jaffna Tamil clerk Nadarajah in Sunil Ariyaratne's Sarungale. He has also has written some songs for the movies Sarungale (1979) and Mayurige Kathawa (1980).

In 1989, Fonseka entered politics after joining the United National Party. He was elected to Parliament in 1989 as a representative of the Matara District with the highest number of preferential votes and was appointed Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka. He was later appointed by President Chandrika Kumaratunga as Governor of the now-defunct Northeastern Province.

Fonseka married his longtime girlfriend Dorothy Margaret Valencia also known as "Tina" in 1962, and the couple had four children: Chamila, Thanuja, Dammith and Ishara. Many years later he fathered Kaushalya and Poornima with his partner Angela Seneviratne.

Through his 6 children, Fonseka has 10 grandchildren: Yasara, Vivek, Indula,Daniel, Tarik, Janik, Hrithik, Ruveka, Isuru and Tiasha. Fonseka remained married to Tina until his death in September 2004.

His son Damith was a popular film actor in 1990s. He acted in many commercially successful films such as Chandi Rejina, Ira Handa Illa, Chandiyage Putha, Cheriyo Darling, and Raththaran Malli.

Until his death, Fonseka acted in 108 films, 86 of them as a lead actor and 19 more as a supporting actor. He directed 10 films and produced 2 films.{{cite web |url=http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2014/09/25/?fn=sa14092523 |title=Gamini Fonseka filmography |publisher=Sarasaviya |access-date=20 October 2017}}{{cite book|last=Kumara|first=Nuwan Nayanajith|title=ගාමිණි – විශ්වීය රූපණවේදයක ආසියානු පුරෝගාමියා|publisher=Sarasa Publishing Private Limited|isbn=955-8811-61-0|page=295}}

• Parasathu Mal (1966){{Cite web |title=All about "Parasathu Mal" |url=http://www.sarasaviya.lk/films-story/2019/06/06/5626/පරවුණු-මල්වල-සුවඳ-අතීතේ |access-date=2021-01-23 |website=sarasaviya}}
• Uthumaneni (1980){{cite web | url=http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2020/10/01/19094/යුක්තිය-රජයන-ලොවකට-අප-රැගෙන-යන්න | title=All about 'Uthumaneni' | publisher=Sarasaviya | access-date=1 October 2020}}
• Mayurige Kathawa (1980)
• Sagarayak Mada (1981)
• Bandura Mal (1981)
• Ra Manamali (1981)
• Sakwithi Suwaya (1982)
• Koti Waligaya (1986)
• Nomiyena Minisun (1994)
• Anthima Reya (1998)

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb name|id=0284715|name=Gamini Fonseka}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060628023339/http://www.gaminifonsekafoundation.org/ Official Website – Gamini Fonseka Foundation]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20071011010323/http://srilankafilmcorp.com/ Official Website – National Film Corporation of Sri Lanka]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20081005200344/http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/09/30/fea01.asp Gamini Fonseka: A Man of the Troops]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20081223213717/http://sarasaviya.lk/lankeyacinema/?id=Gamini Gamini's Film History in Sinhala]
• http://www.nfc.gov.lk/artist/gamini-fonseka-132/
• [http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2017/09/28/?fn=sa1709289 ගාමිණී 13 යි] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919155915/http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2017/09/28/?fn=sa1709289 |date=19 September 2018 }}
• [http://www.silumina.lk/2019/09/28/රසඳුන/දැවැන්ත-වෘක්ෂයේ-සෙවණ-ලැබූ-අපේ-සිනමාවේ-සරුඵල දැවැන්ත වෘක්ෂයේ සෙවණ ලැබූ අපේ සිනමාවේ සරුඵල]

• ගාමිණි – විශ්වීය රූපණවේදයක ආසියානු පුරෝගාමියා
• [http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2014/10/16/?fn=sa14101613 අපේ සිනමාව ගැන ලියැවුණු මිළ අධිකම ග්‍රන්ථය රුපියල් 6000]
• [http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2014/09/25/?fn=sa14092525 ගාමිණී ෆොන්සේකලා හිටියේ එක්කෙනයි එයාට හිටියෙත් එක පුතයි]
• [http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2014/09/25/?fn=sa14092524 සමන් පිච්ච මල් අරණක කවි, ගී පබැඳූ ගාමිණී..]
• [http://www.sarasaviya.lk/2014/09/25/?fn=sa14092522 හෙළ සිනමාවට මිණි කැටයක් වූ මගේ වීරයා, ගාමිණී අයියා....]

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{{s-bef|before= Lionel Fernando}}

{{s-ttl|title=Governor of North Eastern Province|years=1995–1998}}

{{s-aft|after=Asoka Jayawardena}}

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{{Governors of North Eastern Province}}

{{Members of the 9th Parliament of Sri Lanka}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fonseka, Gamini}}

Category:Alumni of S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia

Category:Deputy speakers and chairmen of committees of the Parliament of Sri Lanka

Category:Governors of North Eastern Province, Sri Lanka

Category:Kala Keerthi

Category:Members of the 9th Parliament of Sri Lanka

Category:People from Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia

Category:Sri Lankan actor-politicians

Category:Sri Lankan film directors

Category:Sri Lankan male film actors

Category:1936 births

Category:2004 deaths