For me it is just like yesterday though it was 25 years ago that I joined Upali Newspapers and gained very valuable and useful experience to meet and interview leading social, political and financial leaders, both here and abroad.

Journalism is a profession which holds one spellbound as I discovered. I was one among the few other women journalists who joined the Upali Newspaper Group from inception. I worked at the Davasa Group where I was employed after graduation from the University of Peradeniya. Former editor Vijitha Yapa of the Sunday Island rang me up one day and asked me whether I would like to join the Upali Group. I accepted the offer though with the intention of leaving the moment I got another job.

But once I joined Upali Newspapers on October 4th 1981, I changed my perceptions and I am still here today, working happily. It is one of those rare instances as many who joined along with me have either left the shores of Sri Lanka in search of greener pastures or have found positions of work elsewhere.

When I joined Upali Newspapers Thilaka Pancharatnam from the Times Group was the first woman to have joined, followed by Fahima Jameel, Maryanne, Mr. Yapa’s secretary and myself. Tilaka myself and a few others contributed immensely towards the progress of the paper.

Thilaka was a friend to all of us. First thing she told me when I was introduced myself to her was that "There are no toilets for women".

How do you manage I queried "We use the toilets when we go on assignments."

Upali Wijeyawardena being a man of action, and not of words, quickly provided us with all our basic facilities. That was the beginning,which spurred us to giving of our best at work.

It was a challenge to make the paper grow and to contribute towards making it reach the hearts of the readers. Day and night we worked hard with dedication and devotion to meet deadlines.

Many a time all of us would have shed a tear of course as we all had at times when we made mistakes.

Mr. Yapa the editor was a tough task master, expecting from us quality work and times were many we were asked to rewrite our story or articles or redo our pages but his guidance and leadership moulded me to what I am today to be in charge of two magazines of the Sunday Island.

I worked both for the Daily and Sunday papers covering many fields which ranged from local news, foreign news, business, women and entertainment pages.

I contacted and worked with people of many walks of life, among them freelance journalists and many leading fashion designers one of them columnist Kirthi Sri Karunaratne.

Kirthi’s column every Sunday in the Sunday Island is always looked forward to by the fashion conscious women here and abroad.

When I worked late nights I used to see the towering personality of the late Mr. Upali Wijewardena in the office. He visited late every evening to discuss matters with the editor Mr. Vijitha Yapa and with Mr. Gamini Weerakoon the then news editor.

He would always give us a warm smile and occasionally exchange a few kind words like "are you OK with your transport? are you all comfortable working late etc. His concern for his workers touched our hearts.

We enjoyed our work because we knew we were working for a newspaper that should hit the stands as the best newspaper.

Of course we had teething problems which were shared and tackled by all of us as members of one family, so much so very soon "The Island" and the "Divaina" became trend setters. That was our happiness.

Some of us are still here, to mention a few Mr. Munsoor and Suresh, the pioneers, soon followed by Shamindra Ferdinando, Prabath Sahabandu from the editorial.

What made me stay put while my colleagues left one by one?. The answer to which is difficult to comprehend but it is an unseen hand another force that prompting me not to quit.

I have seen through my career, many journalists who came and went while the paper continued to go from strength to strength and today I am proud that I work for an independent newspaper which is revered as a harbringer of hope in a crisis ridden country to its citizen who have for long been indoctrinated by a subservient media.

I got immense support from the production sector whom I worked closely to get the pages out.