Thani Thatuwen Piyambanna

This is a more of an explanation and an opinion rather than a reply to a comment made by a user comparing this movie to a different version of boys don't cry. well this is my personal opinion on this movie based on facts that i am aware of.

Just like Boys Don't Cry "flying with one wing" was based on a true story. A girl who grew up in a rural area of Sri Lanka who had to hide her sexual identity in order to impersonate herself as a male after coming of age. She fell in love with another girl and started living with her, while a gay young man continuously trying to win her heart while he was under the impression that she was a boy. That's the partial synopsis i was exposed to regarding the storyline. But speaking of "Thani Tatuwen Piyambanna", even though I haven't seen the movie, I became aware of the story line. I have to tell you that I have also seen "Boys Don't Cry" by Kimberly Pierce, a true story about a girl name Brandon Teena who grew up in state of Nebraska and finally got brutally murdered.

Please do not even fathom the fact that I am trying to call the director a counterfeiter or in plain slang this film is a rip off. No absolutely not; I was proud of Asoka Handagama as a Sri Lankan when he made this movie and stood by his creation. the release of this movie created havoc among society and it hit the society like kamikaze. Director stood firm in the middle of the perfect storm and defended his creation.

Similar story lines can happen all around the world. And even if it is a remake by any chance, as long as the movie itself is done with great ingenuity, it deserves the same respect just as the original version. When Sergio Leone made all those spaghetti westerns, remakes of Kurosawa's Samurai movies, starring Clint Eastwood, the different between him and Toshiro Mifune was the Winchester gun instead of samurai sword. Akira Kurosawa's, great samurai movies were remade in western in a different cultural set up , but the end result was a series of good movies not far from the greatness of Kurosawa's work. And Kurosawa has often mentioned how he was inspired by John Ford and his movie hero John Wayne. That is what inspired him to create the movies he made in his kind. He went to greater extent not just to appreciate John Ford as a filmmaker but to impersonate him by dressing just like him while he was on movie set. Among the other Japanese technical staff working on his movie, Kurosawa was distinguished not just because of his height which was unusual for an average Japanese native, but for his outfit as well.

The point I was trying to make with the above references was, that inspiration can travel across the globe, transfer to continents and people with the capacity to recreate good forms of art by upholding or even may be surpassing the original should be highly appreciated. And regarding "Thani Thatuwen Piyambanna", all I could say is bravo to the director for his efforts for making a movie which followed serious fallout and having the courage to face dreadful consequences. I am still looking forward to watch it whenever I get an opportunity. And yet again I applaud and support his audacity for creating a cinematic piece of unconventional nature.

Manju is a boyish car mechanic who plays the macho role indicative of his profession with ease. He returns home after work to the friendly, family-oriented neighborhood where he lives with his young wife, Kusum. Seemingly happily married, Manju maintains a deep secret by concealing from his wife his original female biology.

Manju's secret is discovered when he's taken to a clinic following a car accident. The chauvinistic doctor who treats him becomes obsessed with Manju. He even begins harassing Manju, which sets in motion a chain of events that could threaten his identity. And to further complicate things, Manju's best friend confides his own romantic feelings for him, suggesting they share their love secretly as closeted gay men to escape ruining either of their lives.

A life of guarded secrecy is painfully assaulted, and Manju is forced to confront the sexism, homophobia, and confusion exhibited by those he had previously trusted.

Devaka Jayasuriya . 90. Old Kesbawa Road Nugegoda

I first saw this obscure film on Channel 4 late at night. The film was part of a double-bill with Thai film 'The Iron Ladies'.

The film is about Manju, a transgender woman who works as a mechanic in a garage and even has a wife. We see Manju use the male toilets which have a painted on phallus on the door, wear masculine clothes and chain smoke. The film was criticised for its tobacco smoking scenes for some reason.

The film is considered groundbreaking due to Sri Lanka having much more traditional gender roles than Western countries and even parts of Asia, such as the aforementioned Thailand. The film has been compared to 1999's 'Boys Don't Cry' with Hilary Swank. It was definitely made before the trend of a lot of TV Series and Hollywood films having TG characters; often for the sake of it.

The film goes for a realistic approach looking almost like a documentary. If it was made in the UK it would probably be called "social realist". The acting is convincing and there are a lot of believable scenarios. Manju hiding his sexuality from his wife or swearing at people at the garage to appear like "one of the boys".

This is a good and rare film. As you can guess from the review I'm not an expert on gender politics or Sri Lanka, but this is an intriguing well-crafted film which makes an impact.

This film follows the life of a woman who has decided to masquerade as a man so she can earn more money as a mechanic. No-one knows her secret and she spends her days trying her best to hide it, which includes having to avoid the communal showers at work.

Surprisingly, she has a wife, who seems to be completely unaware of her secret, but things are about to change when she's involved in an accident.

There's not a great deal of dialogue in the film, but the way it has been filmed means you can still pick up what's going on.

There are some funny bits and some sad bits in the film and the lead actor plays the part of the mechanic very well.

This film is well worth watching as the acting is great and the storyline is different to a lot of mainstream films.

The often harsh life of women in an intolerant community comes under the spotlight in 'Flying with One Wing', a low budget, Sri Lankan, companion piece to 'Boys Don't Cry'. Driector Handagama certainly examines all aspects of the sexuality of the situation he depicts (the life a woman who disguises herself as a man); we see the heroine fancied by people who see through her disguise, and who don't, of both sexes. Some aspects of the film seem amateurish: there are some risible fight scenes, and the synching of the dialogue with the images is also poor. But the collection of quirky characters, the matter-of-fact cutting between scenes, and the smart use of a sly soundtrack are all much better, and at times even reminiscent of the work of Mike Leigh. The consistent absence of tracking shots also gives the film a distinctive visual feel. 'Flying with one Wing' is hardly a classic; but it is a distinctive and thought-provoking movie from a part of the world known to most westerners only as tourists. Worth watching.