Arisen Ahubudu

Who was Arisen Ahubudu?

Kalasuri Arisen Ahubudu was a writer, orator, scholar, playwright, teacher, Sinhala lyricist, author and poet in Sri Lanka, born in Mudiyallagahawatta in Malalaga, Koggala. He is a member of the Hela Havula. He has received three government awards for literary works, the title of Kalasuri from the Government of Sri Lanka, and the Sarasavi Award film award for best composer.

He had his early education at the Kataluwa government school and joined the Nittambuwa Teacher Training College. It was after his close association with Hela stalwarts Vellala Jayamaha and Cumaratunga Munidasa in the thirties and forties that he sharpened his language skills. The name change to Arisen Ahubudu was also the result of this association.

Ahubudu served 42 years as a teacher. Having first taught at Holy Trinity College in Nuwara Eliya, he moved to Mahinda College, Galle and later to Maha Bodhi College, Maradana. His longest stint came even later at St Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia from 1952 until 1979 where together with Sandadas Coperehewa and GL Jinadasa supported by D.S. Jayasekera he was a leader in the post independence renaissance in teaching of the Sinhala language and literary activities. To promote the use of Sinhala at a time when prominence was given to English, he began a free correspondence course for students whom he had never met or seen.