Popular actor bows out of Kopi Kade on principle

“I cannot abide by the way an episode in the series was used as a method of character assassination of teachers and their struggle

Popular actor and presenter Thilak Kumara Rathnayake has left the famous teledrama “Kopi Kade” telecast on staterun Independent Television Network (ITN) in protest over a recent episode in the teledrama that mocked teachers who were protesting against their salary anomaly issue.

The actor played the role of “Somadasa” in Kopi Kade for 35 years and had become a household name due to his role in the drama series; known as South Asia’s longest running drama series. He had also acted as a scriptwriter for about 400 episodes of the popular drama.

In a video posted on social media, Mr Rathnayake said he was leaving the Kopi Kade as he could not stay on in the series after the episode that mocked the teachers, in which he did not act. He said he respected teachers and their right to protest, though he had never met any of the prominent trade unionists engaged in the struggle. “I cannot abide by the way an episode in the series was used as a method of character assassination of teachers and their struggle,” he stressed.