Shyama Anandan (Sinhala:ශ්‍යාමා ආනන්දන්), popularly known as Shyama Ananda, is an actress in Sri Lankan Sinhala cinema.

Personal life

Shyama was born on 24 December 1959 in Colombo as the elder daughter. Her father M. S. Ananda was a renowned cinematographer, director and producer. Her mother Violet Ananda was also a film producer. She started her education at the Buddhist Ladies' College Colombo and joined St Bridget's Convent, Colombo and finished her higher studies at Visakha Vidyalaya. Her father died on 26 June 2016 at the age of 83. Shyama has one younger sister.

She married Saliya Perera, Captain of the Thurstan College Cricket team on 15 December 1980. They have a daughter, Mandeera Anandi (who presently lives in Australia) and a son Ritchie Rasanga who resides in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

She owns a coffee franchise Timothy's, is a partner of ManRich Logistics Canada and is owner of The Rich Cake Company.

Cinema Career

She first appeared as a 6-month-old baby in the movie Vena Swargayak Kumatada, a Robin Tampoe production in 1960. Having entered the silver screen at a very young age, she did 'child' roles in Suwaneetha Lalini, Suhada Divi Piduma, Sithaka Mahima, Satha Panaha, Athulveema Thahanam, Senehasa, Penawa Neda and was known as Baby Shyama.

In 1969 her father launched their first production Pravesam Vanna and cast her in a dual role opposite Tony Ranasinghe, Malini Fonseka and Joe Abeywickrama in her first leading role. In 1969 she won the Lanka Deepa Deepasika award for best child artists in Sri Lankan Sinhala Cinema’s 25 years history for the portrayal of twin sisters in her father’s first home production Pravesam Venna, an MSA films release.

In 1975, Anandan acted in the first of the Shyama series in Mage Nangi Shyama with Roy De Siva, H. R. Jothipala and Sumana Amarasinghe directed by her father. In 1978 she appeared in dual roles in the movie Chandi Shyama which won the J.R. Jayawardena presidential award for one of the highest collections by a movie cinema since its beginning in 1948. She did a dual role in the film with Gamini Fonseka, which was her most commercially successful film. In the third of the Shyama series Hello Shyama (1982) she was cast as a dutiful daughter who competes with her father, Gamini Fonseka to do justice for her mother.

In the same year Gehenu Lamai directed by Sumitra Peries had Shyama played as "Padmini". The film was based on novel Gehenu Lamai written by Karunasena Jayalath. He praised her acting as the same as the character he had imagined while writing the book. Ananda was the O.C.I.C. award recipient for this role.

In 1994, she appeared with her daughter and son in the blockbuster film Mama Baya Ne Shyama directed by her father. The film was based on popular Hollywood film Home Alone.