"Master Sir" is a Sinhala pop song written by Sri Lankan singer/songwriter Nimal Mendis for the film Kalu Diya Dhahara ("A column of black water"), in which it was performed over the title sequence by Neela Wickramasinghe.
Contents
History
First played in the early 1970s on Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia, the song was recorded both in English (by Mendis and Sandra Edema) and Sinhala (by Neville Fernando of Los Caballeros; lyrics translated to Sinhala by Karunaratne Abeysekera), with both versions released on the Lotus label and distributed by Lotus Entertainment. It has remained a hit in Sri Lanka for over thirty years, mostly as a result of Neela Wickramasinghe's later version based on the 4/4 time signature arrangement and riffs of the original English version. An authorized cover of the song was performed live and recorded by popular Sri Lankan duo Bathiya and Santhush. It has been covered by several other Sri Lankan musicians, and still receives extensive airplay on the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation and other commercial radio stations in Colombo.
The song reached new audiences in London when the Sri Lankan broadcaster Vernon Corea featured it on his BBC Radio London program, London Sounds Eastern.
Characteristics
"Master Sir" is set in colonial Sri Lanka; the lyrics tell a story about the dignity of labour and social justice. The song is a musical ballad in Sinhala with a traditional outlook. The rhythm is very traditional, hence its popularity at home and around the world among expatriate Sri Lankan communities. The song is still being featured in international concerts sung by Sri Lankan artists.