අමිතා වැදිසිංහ
14 songs performed
Amitha Wadisinghe (also spelled Amitha Wedisinghe, අමිතා වැදිසිංහ; 22 March 1942 to 19 February 2025) was a Sri Lankan singer and music teacher associated with the golden era of Sinhala song. She was a top-grade artist of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation and a playback voice in Sinhala cinema, remembered for devotional and patriotic songs such as Senkadagala Pura Dalada Budu Res and Ran Dorin.
Amitha Wadisinghe began performing as a child, taking part in a Radio Ceylon amateur programme in 1954 at the age of eight, where she sang her first broadcast song. She trained formally over the following decades, earning her Visharada qualification and a music degree, and built the kind of classical grounding that defined singers of her generation.
Wadisinghe rose through the ranks of the SLBC to become one of its highest-graded vocalists. She lent her voice to Sinhala films of the 1960s and after, contributing to productions across the era. Alongside her broadcasting and film work she joined the teaching profession in 1977, working as a music teacher and later in education administration, so that her influence reached a generation of students as well as listeners.
Her recordings drew on the leading composers and lyricists of the period. She is associated with the work of composer Sunil Santha, and several of her songs carry lyrics by writers including Arisen Ahubudu.
Amitha Wedisinghe is best known for a small, durable set of recordings that diaspora listeners still return to. Anothaptha Wila and Adara Charika remain among her most requested, while the devotional Senkadagala Pura Dalada Budu Res ties her voice to the Kandy Dalada tradition. Her catalogue also includes the gentle lullaby Onna Babo Athinniya and the seasonal favourite Kanda Udin.
Amitha Wadisinghe was regarded as a careful guardian of the artistic standards of mid-century Sinhala music, both as a performer and as an educator. She died on 19 February 2025 at the age of 82. For Sri Lankan and diaspora listeners, songs like Ran Dorin and Adara Charika keep the unhurried, melody-first style of Amitha Wedisinghe in steady circulation.
Every Sinhala lyric, composition, and song credit by Amitha Wadisinghe.