70 Years of Independence | Praviinaa Raviraj

GROUNDVIEWS-02/04/2018

What does it mean to be Sri Lankan?

70 years after independence, our identity is defined mostly along majoritarian lines, which can be traced back to the divisions created under British rule. These divisions have contributed to violence and war, in the years since 1948.

To this day, there are communities who feel that what is commonly projected and defined as the Sri Lankan identity does not reflect their reality, or themselves.

Looking at this, Groundviews produced a series of videos exploring identity and belonging in a country emerging from war, but not yet out of conflict.

Praviinaa Raviraj reflects on the importance of learning from the mistakes of the past. She talks about the extra effort that Tamil people have to make to integrate, often by learning Sinhalese. She details the struggle that her father, the late Nadarajah Raviraj, experienced due to the restrictive Sinhala Only Act of 1956.

To view the trailer from this series, click here.