අනුලා බුලත්සිංහල
4 songs performed
Anula Bulathsinhala (අනුලා බුලත්සිංහල), born Anula Mendis on 21 September 1947, was a Sri Lankan actress and singer best remembered for her work on the Sinhala stage and for popular songs such as “Deekiri Deekiri” and the drama song “Neinage Suduwa”. She trained as a classical vocalist and became an A-grade singer at the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation before theatre made her a household name.
She was born in Madampe and learned to sing from her father in childhood. She went on to study North Indian classical music (Ragadhari) at Bhatkhande University in Lucknow, India, returning to Sri Lanka with a formal grounding in raga-based singing. That training earned her A-grade radio singer status at the SLBC, the standard credential for a serious Sinhala vocalist of her generation.
Anula Bulathsinhala built her reputation in Sinhala theatre, often alongside her husband, the dramatist Lucien Bulathsinhala, whom she married in 1970. Her best-known song, “Deekiri Deekiri”, came from the stage play Rathu Hettakari and remains a folk-flavoured favourite decades later. She also sang in dramas including Tharawo Igilethi and the play that gave the site its recording of “Neinage Suduwa” from Madhura Jawanika, performed with Jackson Anthony.
Anula Bulathsinhala remained active across stage, television, and cinema throughout her life. In September 2020 she received the Natya Keerthi Award at the State Drama Awards, shortly before her death in Colombo on 16 October 2020 at the age of 73. Her recordings, particularly “Deekiri Deekiri” and “Neinage Suduwa”, keep her voice in circulation among Sri Lankan listeners and the diaspora who grew up with her stage work.
Every Sinhala lyric, composition, and song credit by Anula Bulathsinhala.