History & Culture - Roar Media

Making Angampora A Ring Sport

“Our main focus is on bringing out the technical aspect by breaking some of the traditional barriers that have kept this art a secret from the world.”

Why Colombo’s Neighbourhood Salons Will Never Go Out Of Style

My mum never referred to Salon Naresh by its actual name, so I only ever knew it as “Shobi’s”. She would go to get her nails done at Shobi’s, or call and schedule a haircut at Shobi’s, or take me to get my fringe trimmed at Shobi’s. From the age of four, I sat in a black leather swivel chair, flipping through piles of imported fashion and beauty magazines, watching women be transformed into whomever they wanted to be — at Shobi’s.

‘Wadakaha Sudiya’: The1955 Solar Eclipse Hoax

What do you get when you combine a solar eclipse, fake news and colourism? Islandwide chaos — and, for Wally Bastianz, a hit baila song.

A Farmer’s Fascination With Mathematics

“Maths is a very important subject” D I Anurasiri told Roar Media. “If the field of mathematics is successful, it is guaranteed that the country’s future is also successful.”

The Slow Death of Colombo’s DVD Shops

The reigning currency of the early-2000s entertainment industry may as well have been DVDs. More accessible, of higher quality and more conveniently sized than the VHS cassettes that preceded them, the advent of DVDs put movie magic within reach of anyone who had a DVD player, a TV and a composite cable, or even just a laptop with a DVD drive, at home — which, by the late 2000s, were most working and upper class Sri Lankans.

Who Were The Ceylon Planters’ Rifle Corps?

At a First World War memorial on the Gallipoli peninsula, off the coast of Turkey, the gravestones of three soldiers identify them as belonging to the Ceylon Planters’ Rifle Corps.

The Ancient Sri Lankan Deity At The British Museum

Over the course of its colonisation of Sri Lanka, the British Empire took possession of a number of cultural artefacts that remain in museums and institutions across England to this day.

The Thai Prince Who Became A Monk In Ceylon

The ruins of a Siamese-style dagoba on Galgodiyana island, off the coast of Matara, still remain today, despite the damage inflicted by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.

Who Is The Lady In Red?

On 12 December 2021, the curators of the National Art Gallery and conservation expert Jennifer Myers made a curious discovery.

Behind what was thought to be the portrait frame of Ananda Samarakoon, who famously composed the national anthem, was a mystery painting, hidden for over 90 years.

The curators believe that the ‘Lady In Red’, painted by Mudaliyar A C G S Amarasekara in 1928, could be an unidentified social elite of the ’20s — a wife of a politician, a daughter of an ambassador, or perhaps another artist.

She wears a wedding band on her right hand, prominently displayed in the portrait.

But discovering her true identity is proving to be a nearly impossible task.

Kopi Kale: A Brief History Of Sri Lanka’s “Coffee Era”

Before #SriLanka was known for its tea estates, it was known for coffee cultivation. The country’s “kopi kale” — or “coffee era” — gradually became forgotten as the tea industry rose in popularity and profitability, but the beginnings of the local coffee industry had a lasting impact on the local economy, agriculture, and demography; a history worthy of reminding.

Colombo: The Lost Garden City of The East

Colombo was once nearly named the ‘Garden City of the East’, after an European architectural concept, which sought to create cities with the best qualities of rural life.

‘Lakmahal’: Colonial-Era Abode Turned Into A Community Library

Here is a house that once hosted galas attended by Colombo’s elite; where artists mingled with politicians when Sri Lanka was ‘Ceylon’ and under colonial occupation. Lakmahal, at number 8A, Alfred House Road, Colombo 3, has undergone many changes since. The black paint on the doors is replaced with a modern brown varnish. The once polished, red floor is now cool cut cement.