Category: Daily Financial Times

The stakes are high. Electricity is not just a utility, it is the backbone of economic recovery, industrial growth, and climate resilience. Sri Lanka cannot afford to get this wrong.

Over the past two years, Sri Lanka’s electricity sector has transitioned from a period of reform-driven ambition to reverting to centralisation. The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB)-long burdened by inefficiency, debt, and political inertia-was poised for transformation under the 2024 Electricity Act No. 36. But the 2025 amendments passed by the National People’s Power (NPP) Government have reversed course, reasserting state control and raising urgent questions about the sector’s future viability.

The CEB is a massive corporation with 2024 revenues of Rs. 547 billion (~$ 1.8 billion). It rivals corporate giants like MAS, Brandix, Hayleys and John Keells. But, until IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program imposed a requirement for cost reflective tariffs, CEB was frequently loss making with cumulative losses from 2004 to 2024 of about Rs. 427 million (see Figure 1).

But this is not just a story about electricity or a large public sector corporation. It’s about a crucially important energy source. It is about whether Sri Lanka can modernise its infrastructure, attract investment, and deliver reliable, sustainable and lower cost power without repeating the mistakes of the past.

The 2024 Electricity Act No. 36: A market-oriented blueprint

The 2024 Electricity Act represented a significant initiative to restructure the CEB and liberalise the electricity market to enable delivery of cost-effective and reliable electricity in a sustainable manner. The Act sought to facilitate increased private sector participation and investment in the sector, addressing longstanding inefficiencies and underinvestment within these areas. The Act proposed:

1. Unbundled CEB into Independent Corporate Entities by splitting the CEB into distinct entities to improve competition, efficiency and transparency:

Generation: Divided by technology-coal, large hydro, oil/gas, and renewables.

Transmission: Centralised under a single, state-owned National System Operator.

Distribution: Handled by four independent companies plus LECO.

Support functions: Specialised entities for procurement, trading, and retail supply.

2. Established a Wholesale Electricity Market in a phased rollout, allowing generators and distributors to transact through transparent bidding and contracts, with the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka as regulator.

3. Created a National Electricity Advisory Council as a statutory body with institutional independence, intended to provide broad-based, expert advice on electricity policy and regulation.

4. Encouraged open access and private sector participation

Permitted open access to the transmission network, enabling private generators to sell directly to distributors.

Encouraged public-private partnerships and allowed listing of successor companies on the stock exchange.

Private investment was explicitly welcomed in generation, distribution and transmission. Large hydropower assets remained state-owned.

5. Established a National System Operator (NSO) responsible for real-time dispatch, grid management, scheduling and balancing, and overseeing bulk transactions between generators and distributors.

6. Provided a transition plan and employee protections

CEB’s assets and liabilities were to be transferred to successor companies via a process managed by the Power Sector Reform Secretariat.

Employees were given options to transition to new entities with preserved benefits; or opt for voluntary retirement.

A dedicated fund was established to manage pensions and provident funds.

Sri Lanka Electricity (Amendment) Act, No. 14 of 2025: Ideology over investment?

The NPP Government’s amendments reflect a different vision-one rooted in centralised control, public ownership, and cautious reform. The Sri Lanka Electricity (Amendment) Act, No. 14 of 2025 introduced several consequential changes that significantly altered the reform trajectory set by the Electricity Act No. 36 of 2024. Here are the most impactful changes:

1.Structural reversal and governance centralisation

National Electricity Advisory Council replaced by a Minister-appointed committee, reducing institutional independence.

Boards of successor companies are appointed by the Minister, with Treasury and Ministry representation-reintroducing political influence into operational governance.

2.Ownership and licensing restrictions

Generation and distribution licenses are restricted to state-owned entities only. It blocks private sector entry into grid operations.

Cross-ownership limits imposed: Private companies cannot hold more than 5% in generation and distribution companies simultaneously, discouraging integrated private investment. If LECO or LTL eventually gets listed, divesting these assets will become challenging as companies with financial and technical capacities may be precluded from bidding.

Curiously LTL with 894+ MW of thermal and renewables generators, is now within the transmission company, creating a potential conflict of interest.

3.Fragmentation instead of functional unbundling

Aggregates generation and distribution (including LECO), into successor companies under Treasury ownership-with only a vague promise of future disaggregation.

Recreates the vertically integrated CEB in fragmented form, preserving inefficiencies and union dominance, and increasing costs, rather than achieving the functional separation and competition that true unbundling was meant to deliver.

More concerning is that safeguards against future rebundling have been removed, undermining efforts to attract private investment.

4.Shift in dispatch philosophy

The 2024 Act emphasised least-cost economic dispatch. The 2025 amendment replaces this with security-constrained economic dispatch, prioritising reliability and system stability over cost optimisation. While this aligns with global practices for grid resilience, it may increase costs unless paired with efficiency reforms.

This approach implies a preference for ‘dispatchable’ generation, which is CEB identifies mainly as thermal generation. Intermittent sources such as solar and wind are given lower priority, even though they can be made dispatchable at lower cost, as demonstrated in other countries.

5.Policy realignment

Although the NPP Government aims to green Sri Lanka’s power sector, there is also support for including natural gas as a clean energy source to help meet greenhouse gas reduction targets. While it is cleaner than coal, few countries consider natural gas as ‘clean energy’.

However, the structural and market changes may hinder private investment in renewables, especially if procurement remains opaque or politically influenced.

Entrenched benefits: Ring-fencing inefficiency

Perhaps most tellingly, the 2025 Act seems to ring-fence the generous salaries, allowances, and overstaffing that have long characterised the pre-reform CEB. These protections-while politically aligned with the NPP Government-undermine the very efficiencies that greater private sector participation could have delivered under the 2024 framework. The NPP Government has signalled its intention to sign a collective agreement that will also bind the successor companies to guaranteeing several existing benefits and processes.

It is perfectly understandable that CEB employees would do their utmost to preserve the benefits they have enjoyed. Any workforce would. But it is the role of Government to act in the interest of all Sri Lankans-not just one segment. Protecting entrenched privileges at the expense of national progress is a short-sighted bargain.

Table 1 shows CEB’s productivity is similar to some Indian utilities but lags East Asian ones, while its salary costs are higher than those of its peers.

Financing in a post-reform landscape

Here lies the paradox. The 2025 Act reinforces state control-but under the IMF agreement, the government ability is constrained to offer sovereign guarantees or expand public borrowing to fund CEB investments. The very tools that once sustained the CEB-Treasury bailouts, state-backed loans-are now effectively off the table.

The 2024 Act was designed precisely to address this constraint. By permitting private ownership in generation and distribution and in transmission, it aimed to attract capital without burdening the state. It offered a pathway for independent power producers, renewable developers, and distribution operators to invest, innovate, and expand the grid.

The CEB anticipates needing $5 billion in new capital investment up to 2044, compared to $1.2 billion in capital investment made in the preceding ten years. But, the 2025 amendments have made investment less attractive by limiting cross-ownership, tightening licensing, and increasing political oversight. With no sovereign guarantees or strong private involvement, the CEB now faces a shortage of capital.

What’s left on the table?

Ultimately, to effectively mobilise the required investment, the NPP Government will need to balance the constraints of the new legislative framework with innovative financing mechanisms, regulatory clarity, and a willingness to partner with both international and domestic stakeholders. There may be yet a few financing options:

Multilateral finance: Institutions like the World Bank, AIIB and ADB may offer concessional loans, sector or policy loans, or green bonds, but these funds are limited and come with policy conditions and limited flexibility.

Bilateral finance: Countries with strategic energy interests-India, China, Japan, EU-may offer targeted financing, but often with geopolitical strings attached.

Ring-fenced project finance: Special Purpose Vehicles for renewables could attract private capital but require regulatory clarity and credible governance. The experience with the Adani Wind Farm Project is not encouraging.

Tariff reform: Raising prices to reflect true costs in line with the IMF EFF has generated internal cash flow, and profits, but remains politically sensitive.

Asset recycling: Monetising non-core assets could offer short-term relief, but not long-term sustainability.

Employee engagement refers to one’s emotional and intellectual involvement in unique value creation. It is a positive attitude held by employees towards the organisation and its values. This becomes evident when an employee demonstrates a business sense supported by the right competence to perform the job, along with timely commitment. Employee engagement is a crucial factor in establishing a customer experience culture in any organisation.

When service quality drops, leaders often look at training, systems or policy. Too often, they overlook the human factor – employee engagement. The truth is simple: disengaged employees create disengaged customers.

Purpose drives performance

A feeling of psychological connection with the organisation generates Positive Energy Transformation (PET) across the entity. This creates a positive atmosphere in the workplace, where even the most routine tasks are performed with enthusiasm. When staff have a clear understanding of the real purpose for which the business exists, they demonstrate engagement. Thus, employee engagement drives performance.

Staff should be given clear directions and made to feel that they are a vital part of the business. When employees are clear about their mission and understand the bigger picture of the organisation’s existence, they put their heart and soul into delivering outputs that achieve stakeholder delight. Engaged employees experience positive emotions which broaden their thinking, leading them to become more focused and absorbed in their work. This means there is a direct correlation between employee engagement and employee performance.

How can we achieve employee engagement?

Employees are the bloodstream of any business and its most valuable asset. They are the custodians of the company’s brand value. Training is one of the vital human resource management practices that positively affects the quality of workers’ knowledge, skills and attitudes. It can make a significant impact on performance. Employees demonstrate engaged behaviour when they are given training and development opportunities.

The right training is an investment in an employee’s career because it creates higher job satisfaction, enhances performance and increases loyalty to the organisation. The end result is the creation of a positive and productive culture. When an organisation has a highly motivated set of employees, they tend to work with the least amount of supervision.

Constructive training on employee engagement is a primary role of managers. The following are a few steps managers can practise:

1.Identify specific and actionable training requirements of staff

The respective line manager should assess the current level of employee engagement and identify the gaps to be fulfilled, whether they are technical or soft skills development. Staff should never be sent for training merely for the sake of doing so or to tick a box. Every training initiative must have a constructive end in mind.

2.Offer programs tailored to meet the exact needs of staff

Design appropriate learning programmes with specific objectives that align with organisational goals and employee career aspirations. Different programmes may need to be designed and facilitated depending on the level of stakeholder interaction each employee has. Remember, no trainer is effective until he or she understands the exact requirement and current status of the trainee.

3.Obtain a realistic action plan written by the participant

After completing a training programs, the participant should immediately agree with their line manager on specific action points to implement in their current role. These should fall broadly under three areas:

(a) New initiatives – start practising new learning.

(b) Stop doing – discontinue activities realised to be of no value.

(c) Continue doing – maintain practices that continue to add value to stakeholders.

4.Demonstrate line managers’ involvement in progression

Monitor the behavioural changes of staff following their participation in the programme. Demonstrate the line manager’s willingness and involvement in any policy modifications and process improvements that facilitate smoother performance for participants. For example, empowering staff to take immediate decisions may require a policy modification. Similarly, enhancing delivery speed may require process improvements supported by staff and systems.

5.Recognise, reward and publicise best practices

Humans need recognition, and it is a powerful source of inspiration. Employees’ efforts in achieving specific tasks should be genuinely noticed and recognised. Staff must be assured of a career path and given confidence that performance alone will be considered for progression within the organisation. All achievements and best practices should be shared across the organisation.

6.Get regular feedback from staff

Managers must believe that the best ideas do not necessarily come from the top. Those closest to the fire feel the heat the most. The best source of innovation is the people who serve customers daily. They know the sticking points and hear the complaints first. Holding regular friction audits – short sessions where front-line staff identify common pain points – can reveal opportunities that management may not see. These can be treated as valuable learning opportunities.

7.Maintain work-life balance

Managers should walk the talk in emphasising the importance of work-life balance. Employees who feel overwhelmed by their workload or who lack balance may struggle to stay engaged. Training on work-life balance and stress management can help employees prioritise their responsibilities, set boundaries and maintain a healthy balance between professional and personal life.

Chandrasekhar Joseph Vijay known to the world at large as Vijay is arguably the super star of Tamil cinema today. Although stylish veteran actor Rajinikanth has been acknowledged for long as Tamil cinema’s solitary super star, that position has changed in recent times. In terms of popularity and marketability, Vijay who celebrated his 51st birthday last June, is way above Rajini who will celebrate his 75th birthday this December.

Vijay who has a huge fan following in Sri Lanka is married to a Sri Lankan Tamil woman hailing from Chuzhipuram in Jaffna named Sangeetha Sornalingam. They have two children. Vijay is the highest paid actor in Tamil cinema today reportedly earning around 200 Crore Indian rupees per film. He is also the biggest box-office draw among Tamil actors. At an all India level, Vijay is ranked third below Hindi cinema’s Shah Rukh Khan and Telugu cinema’s Allu Arjun.

Tamil Nadu has a long tradition of film personalities entering politics and forming their own parties. Some even became chief ministers. Former Chief Ministers CN Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi were renowned film script writers. Among the Tamil film actors who entered films are NS Krishnan, MR Radha, KR Ramasamy, MG Ramachandran (MGR), Sivaji Ganesan, SS Rajendran, VN Janaki, Jayalalithaa Jayaram, TR Rajendar, SV Shekhar, Napoleon, Vijayakanth, Seemaan, Sarathkumar, Radhika, Kamal Haasan and Udayanidhi Stalin. Even the current chief minister Stalin has acted in a few films and TV serials.

‘Thamizhaga Vettrik Kazhagam’

Vijay is therefore the latest in a long line of Tamil film actors transforming themselves into political leaders. He launched his own political party named ‘Thamizhaga Vettrik Kazhagam’ (TVK) last year. Vijay’s fan clubs numbering around 85,000 were converted into party branches. The TVK claims a party membership of several millions.

Vijay and his party though untested at the hustings have gained a lot of media coverage. Though it is too early to make a proper assessment, there is little doubt that Vijay and his TVP will have a considerable impact on the Tamil Nadu state elections due next year.

In what seems to be part of his envisaged polls campaign for next year’s elections, Vijay began conducting district-wise political meetings from September onwards. Vijay addressed meetings every Saturday in the districts of Trichy, Ariyalur, Nagapattnam, Thiruvaarur, Naamakkal and Karur. The meeting held on 27 September at Karur was a huge disaster resulting in a humanitarian tragedy.

Karur crowd crush

Karur is a municipality in Tamil Nadu about 245 miles to the south west of the State capital Chennai known earlier as Madras. The TVP political rally was held at a place in Karur named Velusamypuram alongside the Erode-Karur highway. The attendance was expected to be around 10,000 to 15,000. The final turn out estimated at around 25 to 28,000 vastly exceeded the expected number. There was a terrible crowd crush resulting in 41 deaths and 105 serious injuries. Ten of the dead were children.

The Karur tragedy has gained much media coverage nationally and internationally. Although people getting killed in stampedes and crowd crushes are nothing new in India, it is very seldom that deaths of such magnitude occur in political meetings or rallies. Hence the incident continues to remain a controversial topic of discussion. The Karur tragedy and its consequences would be discussed in detail in a forthcoming article.

Meanwhile actor Vijay’s ill-fated TVP rally and its aftermath have drawn much attention to the peculiar politics of Tamil Nadu. One is the continuous rule of Dravidian political parties. Two regional parties namely the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna-Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) have been governing the state alternately since 1967. The other is the influence of films and film personalities in the political sphere.

Dravidian party dominance

Dravidian party dominance in Tamil Nadu and the influence of cinema in Tamil Nadu politics are both inter-related issues. In a sense the rise of Dravidian politics and growing influence of cinema on politics were processes that complemented each other.

The fact that a leading actor like Vijay could launch his own political party and aspire to be the future chief minister of Tamil Nadu is mainly due to the ‘cinematic politics’ ecosystem prevailing in the state. It is against this backdrop that this column – with the aid of earlier writings – focuses on the evolution and growth of cinematic politics in ‘Dravidian’ Tamil Nadu.

Independence struggle

The involvement of popular artistes in Indian politics dates back to the struggle for Indian independence. Back then it was more a case of singers, musicians and drama artistes involving themselves at a provincial level, where explicit and implicit messages extolling the virtues of Mahatma Gandhi and independence were conveyed to the audience. Social reform was also advocated.

Congress party leader Sathiyamurthy was one who recognised the political potential of actors and singers and began utilising their services in the Tamil speaking areas of the former Madras presidency. The singer-actor KB Sundarambal and the TKS Brothers Drama troupe being glittering examples in this sphere.

The message of Swarajya was projected through song recitals, street dramas, folk theatre, stage plays and later through silent and ‘talkie’ films. Logic gave way to patriotism in many instances. For example the mythological film ‘Sathi Anasuya’ had women of the Puranic era weave ‘Khadar’ on the hand loom in keeping with Mahatma Gandhi’s tenets.

As the film industry bloomed, some films were perceived by the erstwhile British rulers as possessing seditious content. The authorities clamped down on some ‘objectionable’ films, a notable example being the Tamil film Thyaga Bhoomi (Land of Sacrifice) made in 1938. It was written originally for the screen by ‘Kalki’ Krishnamurthy and serialised in the Tamil journal Ananda Vikatan. The film directed by K. Subramanyam spoke eloquently against oppression of women as well as against British rule.

The advent of Independence and the early post-Independence years saw cinema and politics becoming intertwined in South India especially Madras state as Tamil Nadu was then called. The larger-than-life image of movie stars and film personalities dominated the political scene. Tamil film stars were not mere ornaments but valuable assets. They served as an integral component of their parties. In most cases, they were the ‘stars’ around whom their parties revolved. The rise of screen actors in the cinematic politics of Tamil Nadu was greatly due to the state’s Dravidian heritage.

Self-Respect Movement

With a population of more than 72 million, Tamil Nadu is home to India’s original rationalist movement, started by E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker (Periyar) a century ago. Known as the Suyamariyaathai lyakkam, or Self-Respect Movement, it promoted healthy political protest against caste oppression, the imposition of Hindi as national language, oppression of women, and superstition in religion.

Periyar also founded the Dravida Kazhagham or Dravidian Party in 1943, to which both today’s ruling party DMK and chief opposition AIADMK in Tamil Nadu trace their lineage. In spite of this ‘Dravidian’ heritage of rationalism and self-respect, it is Tamil Nadu that has allowed film stars to exercise political hegemony like no other.

Aryan-Dravidian divide

The politics of Tamil Nadu for the past 85 to 90 years has been pervaded by notions of the Aryan-Dravidian divide. This concept itself is not very scientific and has been greatly mythologised. Nevertheless, this consciousness has helped politicise significant sections of the Tamil masses and has sustained whole political parties and movements.

According to Dravidian ideology proponents, the original inhabitants of India were the Dravidians and it was the invading Aryans who took over the north and pushed the Dravidians southward. In addition, the Aryans also imposed their caste structure on the Dravidians, who had until then a classless society.

This hierarchy placed the Brahmins on top. Dravidian ideologues maintained that Tamil Brahmins were not Tamil even though they spoke the language, but were alien Aryan relics. While its social reform platform was quite progressive, the Dravidian movement’s crude version of the Aryan-Dravidian interface and its venomous antipathy towards Tamil Brahmins left much to be desired.

Socio-historical reasons had enabled the Brahmins to remain the ruling elite in the state. They were better educated and dominated most fields, including the professions and arts. In addition there was the stamp of authority provided by orthodox Hinduism. The emerging non-Brahmin elites chose to adopt the Dravidian ideology to overthrow what they saw as Brahminic hegemony.

The clearly perceived position of power that the numerically inferior Brahmins enjoyed, made them vulnerable targets. The democratic process made easy the mobilisation of non-Brahmin caste groups on the basis of the Dravidian ideology.

Dravidian languages are 19 in all. Of these Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Tulu are the most prominent. Interestingly, there were few takers for the ‘Dravidian’ ideology among the other South Indian states of Andhra Pradesh (Telugu), Kerala (Malayalam) and Karnataka (Kannada). However, it took firm root in Tamil Nadu.

Dravidian state

The original political demand of the Dravidian parties was a Dravidian state comprising present-day Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. It later modified itself into a secessionist movement, focused on Tamil Nadu alone. It was only after the 1962 war with China that the DMK dropped its separatist demand in the interests of national unity and security. It now agitates for greater autonomy within the Indian union.

Periyar’s Dravidian social reform movement was opposed to participation in politics. It was also very much under his autocratic control. A group of dissidents, revolted under the leadership of Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai and formed the DMK in 1949. Starting out as a social reform movement, the DMK later decided that change was impossible without capturing political power through democratic means. Following is a brief re-run of Dravidian party politics in the post-Independence period.

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam

In 1957, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) decided to enter electoral politics and secured 15 seats in the state assembly and two in Parliament. In 1962, the figure went up to 50 in the state assembly and eight in Parliament. 1967 saw it capture power for the first time when it got 138 out of the 234 seats in the state. The DMK also won all the seats (25) it contested for the Lok Sabha. Annadurai became chief minister.

Annadurai known widely as Anna died in 1969 and was succeeded by Muttuvel Karunanidhi as chief minister. In 1971, the DMK led by Karunanidhi registered a landslide victory when it captured 184 seats in the state and 23 in Parliament. The party seemed invincible.

All India Anna-DMK

But 1972 saw a major split. The DMK’s chief vote gatherer and matinee idol Maruthoor Gopalamenon Ramachandran, or MGR, broke away from the party and floated his own party that year. He named it after Annadurai and called it Anna DMK. It was later changed to All India Anna-DMK. MGR’s party won three elections in succession, securing 125 seats in 1977, 130 in 1980 and 125 in 1984. Karunanidhi had to remain content as opposition leader for 11 years.

When MGR died in 1987 December, his wife Janaki a former actress succeeded him. But the government fell after one month due to Congress machinations. With MGR’s ex-leading lady and then propaganda secretary Jayalalitha also staking her claim to party leadership, a split resulted. In 1989, a divided ADMK contested as two factions led by Janaki and Jayalalitha.

The Janaki faction (one seat) was trounced by Jayalalitha (24 seats) but the DMK under Karunanidhi romped home the winner. After Rajiv Gandhi’s death, the Jayalalitha-Congress combine routed the DMK. Only its leader, Karunanidhi, managed to win. In 1996, the DMK was returned to power and retained it till 2001.

Jayalalithaa returned to power in 2001 and was de-throned by Karunanidhi and the DMK in 2006.The wheel turned again in 2011 and Jayalalithaa became chief minister. The AIADMK under Jayalalithaa won again in 2016. Jayalalithaa died the same year. She was succeeded by O. Pannerselvam who was soon replaced as chief minister by Edappaady Palaniswamy. Karunanidhi passed away in 2018. The 2021 elections saw the DMK led by Karunanidhi’s son MK Stalin winning polls. The next election will be in May 2026.

Annadurai

The brief account of the political power struggle and its results within Tamil Nadu outlines the vicissitudes of the Dravidian parties in the past years. Of interest in all this is the role played by films and film personalities. It was the DMK that first attempted to use cinema for political propaganda in the post-independence years. Annadurai had once said that if it takes 10,000 political meetings to convey one message, it only takes one single ‘hit’ movie to deliver the same. He and his disciple Karunanidhi set out on that venture. Films scripted by Annadurai were well-received. Their political content made great impact. But it was Karunanidhi who really hit it big as script-writer.

Karunanidhi

Karunanidhi developed a writing style that was flowery and alliterative, and it soon became very popular. Courtroom scenes, inquiries in royal courts in historical movies and short dramas introduced into films that had a modern setting, provided ample scope for Karunanidhi’s captivating prose.

His reputation had producers advertising their movies by proclaiming, ‘Story and Dialogue by ‘Kalaignar’ (Artiste) M. Karunanidhi’. When film titles were projected in the cinema halls, his name would be shown ahead of the stars and greeted with applause. There were others to follow Karunanidhi in both content and style – Aasaithamby, Krishnaswamy, Maaran and Kannadasan. The DMK also spawned a school of actors who could effectively pronounce the lines of the scriptwriters.

Sivaji Ganesan

When the DMK began using actors for political propaganda, the Congress leader Kamaraj dismissed them derisively as Koothaadigal (performers). This was contrary to the views held by Kamaraj’s political mentor Sathiyamurthy who encouraged artistes in politics. Congress stalwarts argued that those wearing ‘aridhaaram’ (make-up) should not enter ‘arasiyal’ (politics). But the Congress had to soon change roles and rely on people like Sivaji Ganesan and lyricist-script writer Kannadasan. Both had crossed over from the DMK.

M.G. Ramachandran

Even as filmstars were used for political propaganda, the actors in turn were using politics for their personal advancement. M.G. Ramachandran himself was constructing and consolidating a personal political base. Even when he starred in films not written by DMK ideologues, the lines he got carried hidden political meaning. An example was the constant reference to the rising sun, the DMK symbol. In colour productions, he would wear the party colours, black and red.

Gradually, MGR’s screen persona started reflecting the DMK’s image. The difference between reality and make-believe blurred, while he continued to pull crowds. As Annadurai once said of MGR, ‘Avar Sollukku pathu latcham. Avar Mugathukkiu muppathu latcham.’ (One million votes for his speech. Three million for his face.)

In his roles, MGR always spoke up for the underdog, fighting oppression and injustice. He took special care to project a social message in most songs, and took care to act in different roles so that different segments of the population could relate to and identify with him.

Fan clubs

A unique feature of the relationship between the movie stars of the Indian south and their fans was the proliferation of fan clubs. M.G. Ramachandran encouraged the phenomenon of fan clubs from late 1940s onwards, and the clubs ended up as a well-knit federation that counted its membership in the millions. The clubs held annual conventions and also participated in social service projects.

When MGR entered active politics, his fan clubs were in turn politicised and soon became an indispensable component of the DMK propaganda machine. Both spheres mutually reinforced each other -film popularity providing political mileage and political positions strengthening film popularity. Currently actor Vijay too has turned his network of fan clubs into TVK party branches.

The MGR phenomenon was no doubt unique, and his mystique continues its hold over Tamil psyche even today. Before his death, he had come to personify the aspirations of the common people but as more than just a symbol. As political leader, he was also seen as a vehicle for realising their dreams.

Jayalalithaa

Jayalalitha symbolised the transition from the MGR era to the future. It was MGR who had, as chief minister, introduced his former leading lady into politics. She was hailed as MGR’s political heir. As propaganda secretary of the party and Rajya Sabha member, she soon established her power base within the party and emerged as an extra-constitutional authority in the state.

Jayalalitha went on to become chief minister and ruled the state from 1991 to 1996, 2001-2006 and 2011 to 2016. She too set up a fan club network called the Jayalalitha Peravai (Federation). Jayalalitha became a key player on the national scene and enjoyed immense power.

The ascendancy of Jayalalithaa in the Tamil Nadu political milieu can be viewed as an ironic contradiction. The dominant political ideology in the state is that of Dravidianism. This is based on archaic concepts of the Aryan-Dravidian divide where the Brahmin community is seen as Aryans and other Tamils as Dravidians. Anti-Brahminism is a core element of Dravidian discourse. Jayalalithaa was a Brahmin.

Thus one could see that the Jayalalithaa phenomenon went against the grain of a hitherto dominant political concept in Tamil Nadu. She was a ‘Paapaathi’ (Brahmin woman) ruling the Tamil Nadu anti-Brahminist roost. The success of this embodiment in the socio-political realm of Tamil Nadu was a contradiction. Jayalalithaa in a way was an exception or aberration.

Vijay’s political entry

It could be seen therefore that the rise of Dravidian political parties in Tamil Nadu greatly helped enhance the influence of cinema in the State’s political sphere. Actor Vijay’s political entry is in keeping with this tradition. However Vijay and his TVP regard the DMK as their political opponent and the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) as their ideological adversary. The political prospects of Vijay and his TVP would be analysed in a future article.

People’s Insurance PLC has announced the appointment of Thushari Hewawasam to its Board as a Non-Executive Non-Independent Director.

Hewawasam serves as Deputy General Manager – Commercial Credit of People’s Bank.

Prior to that, she served as DGM – International Banking at People’s Bank. Commencing her career as a Management Trainee with the bank in 2002, she has over 23 years of experience across diverse banking domains, including Credit, Branch Banking, Corporate Banking, and International Banking.

Her specialised proficiency in Corporate and Business lending spans two decades.

Hewawasam holds a Bachelor of Science Special Degree in Agriculture with second upper class honours from the University of Peradeniya and has furthered her education with an MBA from the Open University of Sri Lanka.

Additionally, she is recognised as an Associate Member of the Institute of Bankers of Sri Lanka. Demonstrating her commitment to continuous professional development, she holds esteemed memberships, including being an Associate member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) (UK) and an Associate member of the Chartered Global Management Accountants (CGMA) (UK).

Hewawasam holds esteemed positions in several prestigious professional associations. She serves as a Council Member of the Association of Professional Bankers and is a Board Member of the International Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka, where she also contributes as a member of the Banking Committee. Additionally, she holds a directorship at People’s Leasing Fleet Management Ltd., Lanka Financial Services Bureau Ltd., and International Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday emphasised the importance of continued progress on energy sector reforms, particularly the unbundling of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and maintaining cost-reflective pricing, as part of Sri Lanka’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program.

IMF Mission Chief Evan Papageorgiou told reporters in Colombo: ‘We are paying close attention to the developments around the unbundling of CEB and the evolution that the energy sector is going to undergo in 2026 and beyond.’

‘The reform is a very crucial step meant to bring more transparency and a more efficient function of the energy sector. However, with any reform and any change, there are a lot of details to be ironed out and to be clarified,’ he added.

Papageorgiou stressed that maintaining cost-recovery electricity pricing remains a continuous structural benchmark under the IMF program, forming one of the building blocks of the EFF.

‘This ensures that, on a forward-looking basis, CEB or a successor company is not incurring financial losses,’ he said. ‘By that, we also mean that this does not become a liability to the taxpayer and to the State.’

He said cost-reflective pricing is essential for containing fiscal risks and supporting long-term economic stability. ‘It ensures that the electricity company operates on commercial grounds, much like any private company would, and makes sound and operationally good financial decisions,’ he added.

Papageorgiou also noted that stable and predictable electricity tariffs and the appropriate setting of these processes are very important, because they pave the way toward lowering electricity prices for everybody and benefiting the economy as a whole.

As part of the ongoing fifth review of the IMF program, the Fund is evaluating the CEB’s tariff submission to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) this month.

‘We will also assess in the next few weeks the end-November structural benchmark we had set at the time of the fourth review, with respect to reviewing the electricity tariff methodology,’ he said.

The IMF Mission Chief reiterated that energy sector reform and cost-recovery pricing are paramount to ensuring fiscal discipline and to preventing future losses that could weigh on the public finances.

Jason Thayaparan with his acrobatic defensive play enabled Sri Lanka to notch up a close 1-0 win over mighty Turkmenistan in a key Asian Cup Championship 2027 (Saudi Arabia) group stage game played at Racecourse Stadium yesterday.

Even though the solitary goal was scored by a teammate, Thayaparan became the cynosure of all eyes when he headed away two certain kicks at goal to save his team from defeat and keep their hopes alive in the tournament.

The 138 ranked Turkmenistan had never tasted defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka, but this time around, they were given a torrid time until the last 20 minutes of the game, where they made some teasing moves looking for the equaliser which was foiled by the Lankan defence spearheaded by Thayaparan, who put a swashbuckling performance.

After a barren first half which had some anxious moments of play by both sides, yet no side was able to break the deadlock. After the short whistle it was the hosts who put pressure on the rival camp and took control of the game. In the 68th minute, Manimeldura Leon sneaked through the defence to score a well-executed goal. From there, the game turned out be a ding-dong battle for supremacy as both sides fought hard looking for scoring opportunities, and when referee Tam Ping Wun blew the full time whistle, it was the Lankan camp who walked away with a well-deserved victory.

This is the first instance that Sri Lanka was able to notch up a win over Turkmenistan, who were undefeated until this game. They will travel to Turkmenistan to play the second leg on 14 October.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) releasing its Financial Stability Review 2025 report yesterday said that despite the strong momentum in recent private sector credit growth, a widening private sector credit-to-GDP gap points to potential emerging risks in the financial system.

The gap, which turned positive in mid-2024, has continued to widen through 2025 amid sustained credit growth.

‘This suggests a potential accumulation of systemic risk within the sector,’ the CBSL said. ‘However, higher GDP growth in tandem with credit expansion would support a healthy expansionary phase conducive to financial stability.’

Credit-to-deposit ratios across the banking sector began to recover after remaining weak earlier in the year. The CBSL attributed this to a gradual improvement in bank lending and a stronger appetite for loans among businesses and households.

Survey data showed that banks’ willingness to lend and borrower demand both increased in the second quarter, supported by low interest rates, stable liquidity, and improved confidence in the economic outlook.

The CBSL said continued correction in the allocation of credit away from Government borrowing and toward productive private sector activity would be key to sustaining recovery and ensuring balanced financial intermediation.

The bank said that private sector credit remains below pre-crisis levels despite increasing banking sector loans and a steady slowdown in Government borrowing.

Total credit extended by regulated financial institutions, including banks and finance companies, grew by 14% year-on-year by the end of the second quarter of 2025.

The CBSL said this reflected an improvement in lending conditions and the impact of its accommodative monetary policy stance. Finance companies recorded a sharp 35.1% expansion in lending, while the banking sector grew by 11.4% during the same period.

The CBSL said credit to the private sector continued to expand, supported by lower lending rates and broad-based demand across key economic sectors. Household borrowing also increased, driven by gold- and vehicle-backed loans and stronger consumer activity.

However, private sector credit-to-GDP was still below pre-crisis levels.

‘Private sector Credit-to-GDP, which stood at 28.6% at end H1 of 2025, remained well below pre-crisis levels, indicating room for further expansion,’ the CBSL said.

It observed that the moderation in credit to the Government and public corporations has created space for private sector borrowing, but the recovery remains incomplete.

Exposure to the Government sector declined to 46.5% of total credit by end-June 2025, continuing a correction that began in 2024 when fiscal consolidation gathered pace.

‘The tilt in exposure towards the Government and public corporations continued to decline, though there remains scope for further enhancement of private sector credit,’ the CBSL said. It added that expanding private sector credit could support strengthening production capacity and contribute towards sustained economic growth.

Slack, a Salesforce company, has unveiled major enhancements to its platform that enable partners and developers to build secure, context-aware AI apps and agents powered by customer-owned conversational data.

The launch introduces a real-time search (RTS) API and a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, giving flexible, permission-aware access to the latest messages, files, and channels in Slack-so AI can act with the right context while meeting enterprise governance and control requirements.

Thousands of companies are racing to deploy agents, but most stumble on the same hurdle: usefulness in the day-to-day flow of work. Agents run on data, and the most powerful signal is conversation. Slack unlocks this previously unstructured, hard-to-reach corpus so apps and agents can move beyond generic output to deliver user-specific, context-rich assistance that drives productivity.

An ecosystem of leading innovators-including Anthropic, Google, Perplexity, Writer, Dropbox, Notion, Cognition Labs, Vercel, and Cursor-is already building on these capabilities, with new AI Slack apps and agents available in the Slack marketplace. By securely tapping Slack’s conversational data, these partners are bringing intelligence directly into the flow of work, reducing app-switching and turning discussion into action.

Slack CEO Denise Dresser said: ‘The future of work is undeniably agentic, and the success of AI depends on its seamless integration into human workflows. Our latest Slack platform innovations create the secure, data-rich environment necessary for AI agents to become trusted companions. We make it simple for customers and partners to build their AI solutions directly into Slack so that work is more connected, intelligent, and productive than ever before.’

Built for the agentic enterprise, the expanded platform delivers:

Secure data access with context:

1.RTS API surfaces the most current discussions, files, and channels in real time without bulk exporting or duplicate storage, always honouring user and channel permissions.

2.MCP server standardises how LLMs, apps, and agents discover context and execute tasks in Slack, replacing fragmented integrations with a single, consistent protocol.

Tangible productivity gains:

Organisations can unlock unstructured knowledge and save users an average of 97 minutes per week; accelerate decision-making by 37% and customer responses by 36% by connecting app data (e.g., Agentforce Sales, Workday) to conversations; and increase productivity by eliminating context switching.

Distribution where work happens:

With 1.7 million+ apps used weekly in Slack, and 95% of users saying apps are more valuable inside Slack, developers overcome the adoption gap by delivering tools directly in the workspace.

Enterprise-grade trust:

Slack’s security, privacy features, and granular permissions provide a robust foundation for compliant, agentic collaboration.

Slack also introduced Work Objects-standardised, rich previews that connect third-party data (details, images, documents) directly to conversations-and new agentic developer tools, including AI best practices, prebuilt Block Kit Tables, and updated CLI resources for Bolt apps, streamlining the entire build lifecycle.

The RTS API and MCP server are in closed beta with general availability expected early 2026. Third-party AI agents using these capabilities are available now in the Slack Marketplace. Work Objects will reach general availability in late October, and the new developer tools are currently available.

Nadine de Klerk played an incredible knock for the ages to get South Africa over the line in their Women’s Cricket World Cup match against host India at Visakhapatnam yesterday.

de Klerk struck 8 fours and 5 sixes in her career best innings of 84* off 54 balls, as South Africa chased down a target of 252 to win by three wickets with seven balls to spare. As soon as the winning hit for six was made, every member of the South African squad, even the senior members, ran out to congratulate her. South Africa were down but not out of it, and it needed something special to register the win and de Klerk produced that. She eclipsed Richa Ghosh’s knock earlier in the day. It was India’s first defeat of the tournament in three matches.

The chase for South Africa started with Kranti Gaud pulling off a blinder in her own bowling to dismiss Tazmin Brits for nought. Sune Luus did not last long and Laura Wolvaardt held one end up as wickets tumbled from the other. South Africa were 81-5 when Chloe Tryon joined her skipper, and they started to get South Africa back into the game, slowly knocking it around and building a partnership of 61 off 97 balls. From there, on it was de Klerk as she added 69 off 60 with Tryon (49 off 66 balls, 5 fours) and a match winning 41* off 18 balls with Ayabonga Khaka (1*) to take the Player of the Match award.

India continued their way of bouncing back from tricky positions to post a more than competitive total of 251. They recovered from 124-6 to 269-8 against Sri Lanka, 159-5 to 247 against Pakistan, and 102-6 to 251 yesterday. That splendid recovery was possible due to Richa Ghosh, who hit the highest score while batting at No. 8 or lower in a Women’s ODI – 94 off 77 balls, surpassing Chloe Tryon’s 74 against Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa Stadium in May this year.

Ghosh walked in with her team in a spot of bother and opted for an approach, which none of her teammates took. She batted positively and scored at a brisk rate, even while Amanjot Kaur was batting at a snail’s pace. The duo stitched a fifty partnership (51 off 84 balls) before Amanjot (13 off 44 balls) fell to Tryon. Sneh Rana came out with a positive intent and Ghosh was at her power-hitting best as they shared an eighth wicket stand of 88 off 53 balls. The Indian wicketkeeper batter smashed 11 fours and 4 sixes to take her team’s total over 250, which looked almost impossible when she came in to bat. 98 runs came off the last 9.5 overs and India once again found a way to bounce back when their backs were against the wall.

Inserted to bat, India got off to a solid start as they scored 55-0 in the powerplay. They lost seven wickets to left-arm spin in two matches in this tournament. So, there was a lot of focus on how they would fare against the two South African left-arm spinners. Nonkululeku Mlaba was introduced in the 11th over and she struck with her second ball by removing Smriti Mandhana as the latter tried to play a big shot. Post that, the Proteas squeezed the flow of runs and pressure got to India. The home team slipped from 83-1 to 102-6. While Mlaba and Tryon picked two wickets apiece, Sekhukhune and Kapp picked a wicket each. Eventually, it was a whirlwind last 10 overs that brought India firmly back into this game.

Scores:

India Women 251 (49.5) (Pratika Rawal 37, Smriti Mandhana 23, Richa Ghosh 94, Sneh Rana 33, Marizanne Kapp 2/45, Nadine de Klerk 2/52, Nonkululeku Mlaba 2/46, Chloe Tryon 3/32)

South Africa Women 252-7 (48.5) (Laura Wolvaardt 70, Marizanne Kapp 20, Chloe Tryon 49, Nadine de Klerk 84*, Kranti Gaud 2/59, Sneh Rana 2/47)

The Geoffrey Bawa Trust has announced the much anticipated opening of the Bawa Design Store on Saturday, 11 October. After significant merchandise expansion inspired by the Trust’s collection, the flagship store will open its doors to the public at 41/1 Horton Place in Colombo 07. The new design store is located in the Geoffrey Bawa Space, home to the Geoffrey Bawa Trust offices, archives, and public gallery, allowing visitors the chance to check out the current exhibition alongside some unique retail therapy.

Established by the late architect in 1982, The Geoffrey Bawa Trust works to advance the fields of art, architecture, and ecology in Sri Lanka, and the Design Store is proud to continue this mandate. Community-based craftsmanship and locally sourced materials were central to Geoffrey Bawa’s practice. As the architect once said, ‘the contribution of the makers, particularly the older carpenters and masons who are passionate about what they do, is equal to or more . than ours.’

Continuing Bawa’s preference for working with local artisans, the Trust collaborates closely with small and medium-sized enterprises to create customised items inspired by Bawa’s practice and design ethos. All retail products are designed and made in Sri Lanka, through ethical partnerships that promote craftsmanship and support local livelihoods.

The Trust launched the first collection of merchandise in 2019 as part of the Bawa 100 centennial celebrations. Expanding on the original t-shirts and tote bags, offerings now include a variety of artisanal products that reflect Geoffrey Bawa’s prolific career and diverse artistic interests and collaborations.

The product range includes, but are certainly not limited to, cast brass gongs reminiscent of those hanging in Bawa’s Lunuganga garden, re-prints of hand-drawn maps, the gorgeously petit nil veralu shaped candles, funky black and white checkered soaps, and notebooks bound in fabric custom designed for Geoffrey Bawa by his friend, collaborator, artist, and Barefoot founder Barbara Sansoni. Also on offer is the Trust’s retrospective of Geoffrey Bawa career, Drawing from the Archives, an in-depth exploration of the architect’s work and official record of his lasting legacy.

For those outside of Colombo, the Trust maintains an online store. First opening in 2020, the online store has proved a popular outlet for items such as limited edition Bawa postcards, customised stationary, and miniature reproductions of Geoffrey Bawa designed chairs, including a tiny Next-door Cafe Chair in the original red and tan design.

The Trust will also be launching two new Design Stores later in the month at Geoffrey Bawa’s Residence (Number 11) in Colombo 03, and the Lunuganaga garden in Bentota. Each store will have its own selection of products for sale unique to that location. Visitors to the Number 11 Store, for example, will be able to purchase reproductions of the Sunburst batik made for Geoffrey Bawa by his friend and renowned artist Ena de Silva, and which hangs in the entryway to his Colombo residence.

The Lunuganga Design Store will include bespoke products crafted from materials found in the garden, such as reeds and wood grown and harvested on the property. There are also plans to develop a line of custom plush animals made by local artisans.

The Bawa Design Store is open Thursday through Sunday from 11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.