It a time for song and celebration as the busy months spent working in the paddy fields draw to a close and Sinhalese Tamil New Year is ushered in.

Celebrations, which began in earnest yesterday, will continue today and tomorrow. Sri Lanka's two main ethnic groups - the Sinhalese and the Tamils - celebrate a common traditional New Year, marking the passage of the Sun from Pisces to Aries.

It is during this time of year when the larders are full. The harvest has just been collected, the trees are laden with flowers, homes are freshly painted and it is time for festivity.

The key features of the celebrations are marked with the playing of traditional games, observing customs, wearing new clothes in auspicious colour and preparing special food and sweetmeats.


Shantilal Vikramatika
Everything during this time must be performed at a precise time (nakatha), and in a prescribed manner. The lighting of the first fire in the hearth, start of work, first transaction, first application of oil to the hair, first meal, to name a few, all have a precise time that must be followed.

Despite being far away from their homeland, Sri Lankan expatriates in the UAE mark their New Year with the same zest as millions of their countrymen do in Sri Lanka.

The community had organised social and cultural events for two days in this connection, in various emirates.

Gulf News spoke to a cross section of Sri Lankans in Dubai and the Northern Emirates who were eagerly awaiting the festival, which is considered the most important in the Sri Lanka calendar, since it involves two major sections of society – the Tamilians and the Sinhalese.

Extending his wishes to the community, Bandula Somasiri, the consul general of Sri Lanka, said the festival is a national celebration and binds the people from all sections of society.

"This festival falls in the month of April. It is unique for both the major communities of Sri Lanka. The celebrations which involve a lot of Sri Lankan tradition and values, reaffirm our beliefs in our culture. The festival is also seen as an occasion which brings peace and hope, irrespective of the economic strata of society. It binds the entire nation in one."

Highlighting the importance of the festival, Shantilal Vikramatika, who has been living in the UAE for the past 12 years, said: "We follow the traditions as exactly as we would have done in our country.

The most important feature of the festival is the lighting of the cooking fire, which is carried out at an auspicious time. We usually get the correct times from the Sri Lankan calendar. What follows next is the preparation of milk rice which is the key cuisine of the celebrations."

For Jagat Priyanta, who is living alone in the UAE, the festival will bring back memories of the manner in which he used to celebrate with his family at home in Sri Lanka.


Jagat Priyanta
"It is a big festival for us. I will miss my parents and relatives on this day, but of course I will be talking to them. I have made no plans to mark the occasion, but will be calling on some of my friends and take it from there as the day unfolds. I also plan to take part in the community celebrations which are organised at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on April 26. There is no fun celebrating without your own family around. It is not the same anymore, but yes I will try to maintain the religious aspect of the festival."

Says Dilani Pereira, who follows the Christian faith: "I am a Christian but my husband is a Buddhist. This is a festival which binds all faiths together with one thread. I will be visiting the temple in Bur Dubai and offering my prayers for peace and prosperity for my family. It brings special cheer to the women folk in the family as it involves a lot of tradition, such as cooking a special dish of rice in milk.

Women folk oil their hair with special scented oil, deck themselves in flowers and indulge in traditional games. Although it is not the same as celebrating the occasion in Sri Lanka, we try our best to keep the essence of the occasion by inviting a few friends at home and sharing the memories of the day.


Dilani Pereira
Each of the three days of the festival has its own significance. The first day involves preparing food; the second day is with invited guests; and the third is the day of the traditional bath."

H.V. Jeyasena, who works in a Sri Lankan food store, says he will unfortunately not be getting time off on these days and will, therefore, be missing out on all the fun and festivity.

"Ours is an exclusive Sri Lankan food outlet," he said, "so we are flooded with people ordering milk rice. These people are usually the busy ones and cannot do all the preparations on their own.

I will, however, be ringing my parents back home to wish them on the occasion, because this is the most important event in Sri Lanka. This year, I am sure my fellow men will be celebrating the occasion in a very relaxed manner, as a result of the cease fire and the ensuing peace, although one doesn't know how long this will last. This will make the festival all the more special for Sri Lankans in Sri Lanka, and here, of course."

Roshan Tilakaratna, a long time worker in the UAE, spoke of how he and his wife try to instill in their children the traditions and the concepts of the festival.

"This is to ensure that when we pass on, the next generation will make sure that things go on exactly the way we used to celebrate," he said.

"We have already called back home and ascertained the auspicious times for various rituals. Even though there is a two-hour time difference between my country and the UAE, I will ensure that I observe these auspicious times as closely as I am able to."