He was stubborn as a mule, ate what he pleased, refused to see a doctor, take meds and get a medical checkup when it was necessary. He always said, “You’ll know what’s wrong with you only if you get a checkup, not if you don’t.” Prasad chose to be blissfully oblivious until he passed away at the age of 61 on March 30.
Prasad Gunewardene started his illustrious career in journalism that span nearly 40 years, in 1978 at Sun Newspaper and subsequently Dawasa, both now defunct. From then on he worked at a number of newspapers. He was the Parliamentary lobby correspondent and News Editor at The Island, former Asian Tribune Colombo Correspondent, Senior Associate Editor of both Sunday Observer and Daily News, Editor of now defunct Friday magazine, Acting Editor of Lanka Puwath News Agency, Associate Editor of Ceylon Today and Senior Deputy Editor at The Nation.
He was one of the last products of the golden age of journalism, the caliber of Ajith Samaranayake and DBS Jeyaraj. Prasad was a capable journalist who did not fear controversy. He had almost an encyclopedic knowledge on parliamentary matters. Prasad had a nose for news, was a go-getter and as a section head, a taskmaster. Being an Old Boy of S. Thomas' College, Prasad had an excellent command of English. He often proudly announced that he attended S. Thomas’ during Warden SJ Anandanayagam’s time.
He sported a moustache and his bass voice complemented the rugged looks. But was friendly and jovial and did not pull his weight around rukie journalists. Consequently he ended up making friends of all ages from several different generations. But he was also a formidable enemy if you rubbed him the wrong way. He was a permanent fixture at the Nation editorial, the last newspaper he worked for, often working six days a week, late into the evening.
A beloved nephew of veteran actor late Gamini Fonseka, Prasad Gunewardene is survived by wife Soundari Gunewardene and daughters Shavindrani and Suwendrini and son Dilshan. Cortege leaves residence 190/5B, Gunesekara Mawatha, Mahabage, Ragama at 3.00 pm, on Sunday the 3rd April for burial at Gal Udupita Cemetery, Catholic section.
