Goniya Malimage Awanthi Aponsu, popularly known as Awanthi Aponsu (Sinhala: ගෝනියා මාලිමගේ අවන්ති අපොන්සු) (born June 18, 1959) is a Sri Lankan actress known for her extensive work in supporting roles of teledramas, films and stage plays.^[1] She is the younger sister of popular Sri Lankan actor Jayasekara Aponsu.^[2]

Personal life

Aponsu was born in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka,^[3] where she attended school at Gamini Central College. She lived with her mother, two younger sisters, and younger brother in Magasthota village area of Nuwara Eliya; her father, and brother Jayasekara had moved to Colombo at this time. Her uncle, Edwin Peiris, was a stageplay director in Nuwara Eliya, who was acquainted with Rohana Weerasinghe. As a child she had dreamed of acting, but thought it was out of reach due to her extreme shyness growing up. She instead wanted to become a nurse. It was not until she finished up her studies and moved to Colombo herself in 1979 that she'd pursue acting. She started her acting career in stage plays under the tutelage of her brother Jayasekara. She practiced for six months, and made her stage debut with Jayantha Ketagoda.

She is married to Yagath Jayasuriya. Many of Aponsu's brothers and sisters, including Jayasekara Aponsu, Gamini Aponsu, and Nirmada Aponsu, are famous actors as well. Aponsu is a Theravada Buddhist.

Aponsu's daughter, Kavya Jayasuriya, was born on May 22, 1992. Kavya married Pahan Thillakaratne on November 14, 2018. The wedding was attended by then-President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena.^[4] The couple now resides in Victoria, Australia.

Filmography

Awards

References