සොහාන් වීරසිංහ
4 songs performed
Sohan Weerasinghe (සොහාන් වීරසිංහ), also written Sohan Weerasingha, is a Sri Lankan singer, bandleader, and entertainer whose blend of Western pop arrangements with Sinhala songcraft made him one of the most recognisable stage performers of the post-1970s Colombo music scene. He is known both for romantic Sinhala hits and for his English-language work, and he leads the long-running band Sohan & The X’Periments.
Trained originally for the law and qualifying as an attorney, Sohan Weerasinghe chose performance over a legal practice. He came to wider notice after winning the Observer Talent contest in the mid-1970s, then formed his own band, Sohan & The X’Periments, which became a fixture of Colombo’s hotel and nightclub circuit. Early on his singing drew on the international crooners of the era, an influence audible in his phrasing and in the showband sound the group built around him.
Sohan Weerasinghe’s best-loved Sinhala recording is the ballad Oba Mulinma Dutuwa Dina Ma, popularly titled Adare, a staple of wedding and request playlists for the diaspora. He also recorded the duet Ochchara Balagathu (Podi Nono) alongside Mariazelle Goonetilleke, pairing two strong stage voices in a light, upbeat number. In 2020 he was among the artists featured on Nagitimu Sri Lanka, the theme song for the Gammadda community programme, a collaborative recording that also brought together voices such as Sunil Perera.
Beyond his Sinhala catalogue, Sohan Weerasingha built a parallel English-language career. His original composition “Whispers in the Sand” won Song of the Year at the 1993 Island Music Awards, and he was named Showbiz Personality of the Year at the same awards a year earlier. A long residency at a hotel in Oman and touring across Australia, Canada, and the United States kept him in front of Sri Lankan audiences abroad for decades. Today he remains an active live performer, and his romantic ballads continue to circulate among Sinhala listeners worldwide.
Every Sinhala lyric, composition, and song credit by Sohan Weerasinghe.