Sri Lanka Drummer, Teacher, and Sri Lankan dancing song writer Uthpala Eroshan Jayakodiarachchi sat with us to share his story.

What inspired you to pursue your dream, and how did it all begin?

I didn't have such a big dream when I was young. I wanted to spend time with my friends. I had many good and very talented friends since childhood. I did almost everything my friends did. That's how I was inspired to learn the local dance and drumming of our country when I was a child. Also, I am a child who excelled in many sports.

I started dancing when we had to pick the art subject starting from sixth grade at school. I went to Nalanda College in Colombo in Sri lanka. I did Kandyan dancing for about four years. My Gurus were Asanka prasad thilaka rathna and Rasika wedagedara, I had my Kandyan dancing graduation in the year 2000. After that I started Kandyan drumming. I learned drumming from my guru Ravibandu Vidyapathi in the year 2003. I feel like I learned the correct way to play from him and it's after learning from him that my drumming went off on a career path.

Can you share a defining moment in your journey that shaped your perspective and fueled your passion?

I have been very fond of playing the Indian tabla since my childhood. My friend Viraj Dhananjaya was a big reason for that. We used to listen to world famous Zakir Hussain and his father's tabla playing since childhood. Also, we got used to playing Indian dolak for Sinhala songs in our country. In the meantime, I visited a relative's house with our family and saw Zakirhusen playing tabla in a television program. That's when I came to know that he had come to Sri Lanka. Another Sri Lankan drummer played the gatabera with him on that show. That was the first time I saw a Sri Lankan drummer and an Indian drummer having a friendly conversation through drumming. That day I realized that drumming is another beautiful language for people to speak and a way to share beautiful ideas with others. On that day Ravibandhu Vidyapati played the drum with Sakir Hussain. Years later I went to his school and learned Sri Lankan drumming. I think that was my defining moment in my journey that shaped my perspective and fueled my passion.

How do you handle setbacks and keep pushing forward in the pursuit of your dreams?

To be honest, I didn't have many needs in my life. I am a happy person who beats a drum many times. But as time goes by, when things like responsibilities and duties are added to life, when time is spent to earn money for it, there is no time to do art. To make the kind of art that we think of, a free mind and the time spent on it are definitely needed. All the creations I have made so far have been made in the middle of these difficulties. I think it's not just me, but many people have less time and mental freedom. When I do any task, I put my mind to it. It came naturally to me when making art. And I made time for art. I learned that anything we do in haste does not last. I always did the art that was in my mind. It always made me happy. I think that people should find their own way to spend life happily no matter what hardships come.

Are there specific individuals who have inspired you along the journey?

Yes, there are some people who I cannot forget in this journey of my life.. Jeevan Samaravikrama, Viraj Dhananjaya, Nalinda Dilupama, Ravibandhu Vidyapathy, Rakita Ruwan Nupathi Nilambara.. All these people are the main turning points in my life. I am living today because of my friends and my efforts. I have many friends in my life who cannot be forgotten. I love them all so much.

How do you maintain a balance between pursuing your dreams and handling everyday responsibilities?

I am a man who works hard and earns money. Working to make our dreams come true with daily chores is a war. But if we think about it, nothing is impossible in this world. That is the nature of the mind. We may have a lot of dreams, but if we make those dreams come true one at a time, we will be happy with them, We can achieve our dreams while living a busy life and maintain that balance.

How do you overcome self-doubt and stay confident in your abilities?

I think you have to believe in yourself first before doing anything. Because I believe that all these things exist in the mind. This world, the universe, the soul, all things are created in the mind. If the mind is the basis of this world, how can we do work without trusting ourselves.. Therefore, before doing any work, believe in yourself. Practice every time you can, it will make you perfect.. Learn to look at everything independently without dividing things by thinking that I like this and I don't like that. As independent as your mind is. Your confidence in yourself will strengthen your confidence in your creations.

Can you share a memorable success story or achievement that resulted from your determination?

When I was in high school, I started writing poetry, but after leaving school, I forgot the art of writing poetry. After a while I got an idea worth writing again. I was living in America at that time. I had no time to write poetry. I started thinking a lot. Then I decided that I would write these poems. I have used all possible time for it. I searched for the related data and finished writing those poems. At this time, you can watch those poems as a song in my own concert. This is a great achievement in my life.

In what ways do you stay motivated during challenging times?

I think there are many challenges to face in life as artists. Because when a country's economy collapses, in disease situations like epidemics, the artist is the first to lose his job.. and the artist will be without a job until the country's economy recovers. Regardless of these difficulties, if you can give a good message to the society through your art, it is very valuable. As far as I remember, during the Corona epidemic. We called a large number of people through a zoom call and performed a pacification in Sri Lankan dance to remove the fear of the epidemic. It was very successful. I think we have answers to all difficulties and problems.. Let's think about it.

What dream are you living right now?

My biggest dream is to preserve Sri Lankan traditional dance, music and singing. I took several steps for that. First, I opened a web page for this. Second, I began translating our country's art into English. The reason for this was that no child outside of Sri Lanka would lose the opportunity to learn our art if our art was only in Sinhala language. Through the program that I have started now, everyone in the world will have an opportunity to learn the art of Lankan dance, music and singing. This is a very big project. I will do this step by step. Thea's biggest dream is to successfully complete this program one day. I have a big smile that I will find someone to help me. www.yakkhanadha.com

What advice would you give to someone with a dream?

Life should have dreams and hopes, then life is beautiful, and live knowing that dreams can be broken and hopes can be lost. We add things to life step by step. Then we will have a good understanding about it. When we understand about time, we only understand what life has to offer. Make the dream you see your own because only you can make that dream come true. What you do now will result in the next moment. Think about what you are spending your time on.

Connect

Website: http://www.yakkhanadha.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ero_shan?igsh=cnh3MWpjdmI4Zmt3&utm_source=qr

Facebook.com: https://www.facebook.com/share/j5MPcdqLF5qofVp2/?mibextid=LQQJ4d

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@uthpala_eja?_t=8pICr7DHnRe&_r=1

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