A Great Queen of Local Music
HER VOICE WILL GO ON AND ON
It is with a deep sense of sadness I pen the irreparable loss of the legendary singer Latha Walpola on December 27 at the Kotte Sri Jayawardenapura Hospital.
Born Rita Genevieve Fernando on November11, 1943, and affectionately known in musical circles as Latha, she was indeed a songstress apart whose velvet voice singularly captured the hearts of Sri Lankans for the very drawling uniqueness that went on and on in a soul touching delivery that rendered her a queen in the genre of Sinhala music.
News of her passing away at the Jayawardena Pura Hospital at the age of 91 was a touching moment for me particularly having known this singing great as a child artist of 13 years when she started turning up at the then Ceylon Broadcasting Corporation since 1974. In fact I had the privilege of meeting her along with Dharmadasa Walpola whom she later married when they visited SLBC since 1974 and associated with her till her death. At the time I was attached to SLBC as the Chief Clerk.
For the record, Latha Walpola had been hobnobbing the SLBC since 1955 and continued to this very year in decorating the Sinhala radio channels with her lively soul rendering voice. In that sense where voice rendering went, Latha’s voice had no match in the art where she stamped her greatness in so much as delivery in the local song showbiz.
She was ducated at St. Anthony’s Convent, Mount Lavinia and married Dharmadasa Walpola in 1958. He predeceased her in 1983 on December 25, Christmas day. Latha, a Christian, too was called to rest in the Christmas month of December two days later than her husband on December 27th 42 years later
I must mention that Latha was fittingly felicitated by the SLBC hierarchy this year on December 14 on her 91st birthday in honor of her undying services to local music which she leaves behind..
Latha and Dharmadasa are survived by five children – four boys and a girl namely Amith Walpola, Suneth Walpola. Dhammika Walpola Bandara (daughter), Chaminda Walpola and Sumith Walpola.
During her last days, I visited her in hospital where she did recognise me in the intensive care unit.
Her remains are lying at Jayaratne Respect Home, Borella.
Her funeral ceremony will be held on the 31st December (Wednesday) and her remains are lying from 9.30 am till 1 p.m. at the Independence Square, Colombo 7 with Full State Honours and the burial will be held with a Funeral mass officiate by the Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith at the Roman Catholic Section of General Cemetery, Borella.
Latha has parted ways.
But she will live on in the minds of music loving Sri Lankans as an eternal fame – of a soothingly velvet voice of that will go on and on. Symbolic as Celine Dion’s rendering, for the Titanic shipwreck filming, ‘My heart will go on and on.’
