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Vibu talks about Andare

24 Jan 2021

By Kusumanjalee Thilakarathna Today on Little Star’s cover is 11-year-old Vibu Pinidiya who is a drama enthusiast. He loves to learn more about drama and acting and dreams to become an engineer one day. He is a huge fan of Andare, the court jester, and believes that pranks are only entertaining if they pose no harm to another person. Here’s what Vibu has to share with our readers. Tell us about yourself. My name is Vibu Thiloka Pinidiya. I am 11 years old. This year I will be in Grade Seven. My favourite subject in school is mathematics. I attend the Mallaththawala National College and I reside in Weerasekaragama, Wellawaya. I have a young brother and a younger sister. My brother is still five years old and my sister is eight. We all live with my mother and father. Sadly, we don’t have any pets. Do you have any hobbies? Yes, I have many. I love to ride the bicycle. I like to draw and read books when I am free. Most of all, I love to do dramas and read about them. I also like watching cartoons in the evening. You said you love to do dramas. Do you study the subject? Yes, I have been studying drama as a subject since Grade Six. I really like learning about it and I am trying out different characters. When I am free, I try to imitate things and people I see – try to copy the exact same. Have you acted in any stage plays? Not in any big productions. I have taken part in many school-level dramas and concerts. I hope to act in a major drama one day. I have confidence that I will be able to do it perfectly. What storybooks do you read? Who is your favourite character? I read many storybooks, mostly anything I get a hold of. From all the characters, my favourite character is “Andare”. What can you tell us about Andare? Andare's character is based on a true person who lived during King Kirthi Sri Rajasinha’s time. Andare was born in the south of Sri Lanka in a village in the Matara District. Folklore has many stories about Andare and the pranks he played on the King, his ministers, and even the Queen. Andare used to be a poet who could instantly compose verses to suit any ongoing situation. We call that hitiwana kavi. Andare’s true talent was his ability to get away with pranks directed even at the King. The King sometimes tried to get better than Andare but failed. People took no offence for his light-hearted jokes and pranks. After centuries, his stories are still amusing for us. Do you think it's okay to prank people like Andare did? It's a difficult question to answer. If the pranks hurt someone physically or mentally, I don't think it is okay to go ahead with that prank. If you hurt a person with pranks, that might even be bullying. There can be pranks which are innocent and harmless, like what Andare carried out. Those types of pranks help to make people smile. I think you have to carefully consider the consequences before you do any prank. Mathematics is your favourite subject. Do you have any tips for those who think maths is a difficult subject? Well, mathematics was not an easy subject for me at the beginning too. I used to be very bad at getting my maths exercises done. My marks were low too. When I came to Grade Five, I had a goal to pass the Grade Five Scholarship exam. So I put a little extra effort in understanding mathematics. I did all my exercises several times to make sure I understand how to do it right.  My advice for anyone who dislikes maths is that not to be discouraged. Always start with a positive note and concentrate on what you are doing. If you keep your mind clear and do practice exercises, you will definitely improve. You got through your scholarship exam with flying colours, but you did not apply to go for a better school. Usually, this is what other kids do. Why did you decide to not do that? Well, I like the school that I am currently attending, and all my friends are there too. Most importantly, I can go there from home and I believe that if I work really hard, that will be enough. It's not a matter of the school, but about your hard work. You are attending dhamma school too. Tell us about that. I attend the Kotaveheragala Sri Aloka Dhamma School. I think it's important to go there because of the discipline. We're also able to learn about dhamma more deeply than in school. What is your future ambition? I want to become an engineer – the type who constructs buildings, something which really fascinates me. Do you have any message to give to our readers? Yes, I want to make a wish. I wish that this year, everyone will be happy and safe without having to worry about catching any diseases.


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