• Altru Circle founder Jessica Fernando on the standup show ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’

Among the events taking place in Colombo this weekend, ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ stands out for giving the stage to a type of performer that isn't often in the spotlight in the country. With a lineup that includes comedians Isira, Tharusha, and Lulu, ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ is produced by Reihan Stephen and hosted by Dominic Kellar. Taking place tomorrow (3) at Elevate by Jetwing, the event also marks the soft launch of Altru Circle and stands as its first fundraising initiative as a commercial venture.

Speaking to The Daily Morning Brunch, Altru Circle founder Jessica Fernando shared that the initiative is a social enterprise developed from the Kindness Collective, an organisation rooted in volunteer-driven rapid crisis response and co-founded by Fernando.

“Altru Circle picked up the mantle and evolved those efforts into promoting sustainable community growth and equal opportunities via innovative fundraising efforts. While the public donor funds can be unpredictable, commercial ventures will provide Altru Circle with the opportunity to plan projects, while compensating the imperative human and material resources required to accomplish these objectives,” Fernando said.

She added that the team consists of creative minds and industry leaders committed to tackling socioeconomic inequalities and fostering communities that are economically independent by connecting them with resourceful partners.

Fernando is backed by Altru Circle Director and Growth Officer Mahesh Dharmadasa, Director and Social Media and Content Lead Melissa Dharmadasa, Board Member and Project Lead Kanishkha Salpitikorala, Director Alvin Van Gramberg, and Festival Director Sukhith Mendis.

Following are excerpts from the interview:

What are Altru Circle’s objectives? What kind of programmes have been carried out since the organisation was founded?

Altru Circle’s objectives are centred on supporting economically challenged communities through a comprehensive social enterprise model. Altru Circle focuses on providing both immediate relief and long-term empowerment by addressing initial essential needs such as food, healthcare, and shelter, whilst offering educational and vocational training to enable economic independence.

Committed to fostering socioeconomic equality and sustainability by mitigating dependency, enhancing social cohesion, and promoting justice, Altru Circle employs innovative fundraising and resource allocation strategies. Additionally, they prioritise forming local partnerships and encouraging community participation to ensure that solutions are tailored to the unique challenges faced by each community.

This year, Altru Circle’s pilot project supported 110 families in the Kosgama Avissawella area by providing essential resources. Phase 2 is currently underway with the collection of daily necessities including daily meals for these families. Our collection boxes have been set up at multiple locations around central Colombo and distributions will happen soon. Phase 3 of our project will see these families receiving the necessary training required to broaden their employability, to help curb the country’s ever-increasing brain drain.

Further, during the flood crisis this year, with the help of partners like Anim8.lk, Round Table of Sri Lanka, Asia Pacific Alliance of Disaster Management (A-PAD), and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) of the British School in Colombo, Altru Circle managed to help provide nearly 300 families affected by the floods with dry ration packs standardised by the Disaster Management Centre (DMC).

Altru Circle is holding a fundraising event on 3 August. What is the event and what can attendees expect?

Altru Circle is set to host a uniquely conceptualised fundraising event on 3 August, known as ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ and fondly referred to as ‘PG-Y’ by our team. Drawing inspiration from Galle’s historical performer and artist gathering place for community dreamers and doers, ‘PG-Y’ promises an evening of tongue-in-cheek humour that is relatable and funny anecdotes with candour.

Attendees can look forward to an experience of hearty laughter, facilitated by an atmosphere that encourages both social and professional interaction.

The ‘PG-Y’ event will also feature a carefully curated food and beverage service, offering a range of free drinks designed around the performers themselves, and free canapés that pair with these drinks perfectly. However, this gathering is not just about entertainment; it serves as a vital platform for Altru Circle to showcase our commitment to ongoing and upcoming projects, through fostering community partnerships while giving Sri Lankan talent a platform unlike any other.

This event marks Altru Circle’s soft launch and stands as its first fundraising initiative as a commercial venture since we commenced our operations in July 2023.

What made you choose standup as the focus of the event? Who will be performing at ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’?

Choosing standup comedy as the focal point for the event ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ came about after much debate, consideration, and research. High-end comedy shows are few and far between here in Sri Lanka which deeply contrasts the fact that comedy is so entrenched in Sri Lankan culture – Sri Lankans are known for their humour. Thus, we stumbled into a unique niche that we as a team of creatives wanted to tap into, especially to attract distinguished and discerning audiences looking for premium entertainment options that also serve a philanthropic purpose.

With all of our own experiences with the arts, and having come across the concept of performing under the ‘Pacha Gaha’ (Fibber’s Tree), a spark of creative thought processes was ignited to revive and modernise this traditional cultural community gathering known for its performances and banter. By integrating this cultural element into a modern fundraising context, the event not only aims to entertain but also to resonate.

Designed to be a professionally produced and well-organised affair, delivering to support community development and showcase local artistic talent, ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ will present a lineup of talented local comedians, including Isira, Tharusha, and Lulu, produced by Reihan Stephen and hosted by Dominic Kellar.

This selection of performers promises to deliver a variety of comedic styles, from sarcastic and anecdotal to dark humour, enhancing the appeal to a diverse audience.

What kind of programmes will the event support?

‘PG-Y’ is conceptualised as the first of many fundraisers Altru Circle hopes to set up through the year to maintain a sustainable fund dedicated to empowering economically challenged communities.

Proceeds from ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ will support programmes that provide equal access to resources and expanded opportunities for underserved communities. This includes programmes that help break the cycles of dependency by offering more than just aid but will also include growth opportunities and training programmes to broaden employment scopes in Sri Lanka. To maintain our commitment to transparency, we aim to ensure that these programmes and growth opportunities are monitored by our on-ground stakeholders.

How has the response been so far for the event? Did you face any challenges in organising it and spreading the word?

While Sri Lankans remain one of the funniest people out there, our region hasn’t had a strong comedy club or dinner theatre culture, so we are setting a new standard and pioneering a new cultural scene and with that comes its challenges, and in terms of organisation and promotion, it’s been a learning curve for us all.

Although introducing standup comedy as a high-end leisure activity proved nothing similar to selling concert tickets, the response to ‘Pacha Gaha Yata’ has been growing and has become more enthusiastic than we initially anticipated.

Comedy can often be a tough sell, but ‘PG-Y’ departs from the more diluted comedic content generally available. We’ve focused on selecting artists who are not just naturally funny but are seasoned performers committed to honing their craft. We humbly took a page from pioneers such as Stage Light and Magic and Workshop Players, who pay attention to detail with such performances. This means preparing and rehearsing their acts thoroughly to ensure a professional level of performance – bridging the gap between the casual humour of a funny uncle at a dinner party and a well-rehearsed comedian fully engaged to entertain.

Spreading the word and getting people to appreciate this level of professional comedy has been part of the challenge, but it’s a challenge that has gradually begun to snowball into greater interest and appreciation.

Do you plan on doing more standup comedy events? What kind of programmes and events do you have planned?

Yes, we definitely plan to do more standup comedy events! We hope that this event will help grow Sri Lanka’s standup comedy culture, allowing us to someday become a hub where tourists come to visit this isle to watch, and even perform comedy here. We would also love to be able to expand and bring down some of the extremely talented Sri Lankan comedians currently making a name for themselves on a global platform.