He built up a virtual empire through his astute, visionary and skilful leadership qualities

Having led a life of virtual anonymity, this trail-blazing icon, with his untimely demise, has at last put a face to a name for the whole nation to see! In spite of having seen the mega performances brought to all of Sri Lanka and beyond, on his Maharaja Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) network and the production of groundbreaking films, the general public had so far, not seen the ‘face behind the scenes’ so to speak!

A gentleman to the core, he stood tall among his peers with his decisive, honest and forthright stance in all his dealings. Known as ‘Killi’ to his close family and confidants and ‘RR’ to his many associates, beneficiaries and company executives, he was a philanthropist and businessman par excellence! A little known quality was that he was an aficionado of exquisite art and crafts - a connoisseur of classical art.

He built up a virtual business empire through his astute, visionary and skilful leadership qualities. His vision was to create a Sri Lanka sans corruption and graft! His mission; to even stake his life in exposing the many wrongdoings of those criminally inclined politicians, public servants and business leaders alike. He directed his media bravely in an attempt at ensuring justice to the public, in the face of threats to himself, his business and to his family and friends. The gargantuan task he undertook was to fight for the sovereign rights of the common man to voice their opinion, despite the shackles of political oppression, through the mandating of media freedom!

Like the proverbial ‘Phoenix’, he virtually rose from the ashes; first when his manufacturing empire was burnt down to the ground, in spite of most of his closest friends, group directors, staff and associates, being Sinhalese and secondly, when his state-of-the-art media studios were ruthlessly destroyed. He came out of both catastrophes without one word of despair, hatred or vengeance. He proved his true mettle by supporting his staff economically and with nerves of steel built up an even more formidable business empire.

Though he ran a formidable, well oiled publicity machine, he shunned publicity himself. He was never seen on a political stage or even in his mega-entertainment events. He only appeared in public when he paid tribute to his own galaxy of employees. With the rise of his business enterprises, his primary motive was to build up a nation of talented sportsmen and sportswomen, especially in the fields of cricket, netball, basketball and athletics. He helped to revolutionize the former two games, so they could bring pride to the nation. Accountability and transparency were his key words and his motto: the ‘courage to be different’!

Countless employees and beneficiaries have enjoyed his generosity and assistance in their personal distress. ‘Magnanimous’ is the word in describing the helping hand he extended to all who reached out to him. A few of them, sadly, are conspicuous by their refusal to reciprocate or even admit the step up the ladder in life, which they received from him. Numerous are those in the sports and entertainment scenes who have reached greater heights through his sponsorships and competitions. All these were done spontaneously, with the aim of providing an equal opportunity for those ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’, with exceptional talent!

He had a superior knowledge on any subject of business, political or general significance. Not a man for mincing his words when seeing injustice being done, he would steadfastly stand by his convictions and would ‘play his cards straight’, or as they say, ‘shoot from his hip’ even at the risk of drawing flack from his detractors.

He initiated the innovative ‘Sirasa Gammedda Team’ which comprised committed personnel who could identify, address and solve problems of the needy which were beyond their means or control. They were members of his own regular staff, who selflessly volunteered to dig deep into the grievances of villagers in the interior of the country, that he could not personally reach. This was a prime example of his humanity and concern for the needy!

Ever willing to entertain family and friends with open arms, his charming personality engulfed one and all! Whether entertaining diplomats, VIPs and international visitors, colleagues, friends or staff members, he was very cordial and kept everyone amused with his jokes, anecdotes, even entering into superficial arguments. This he did just to let his hair down. He was so attentive to each and every one of his guests, even to the extent of personally seeing that everyone had their ‘fill’, opening vehicle doors and seeing them settled in their seats when leaving.

He has left an indelible mark in the hearts and minds of the people. He has left behind a legacy that will enable his heirs and the Capital Maharaja Group leadership to continue following in his exemplary footsteps, boosting the economy of the nation while standing up for those deprived Sri Lankans who are voiceless.

His legend will live on. On behalf of a sad but proud family!

Desmond de Silva