Emerging Cultural Leaders 2014

Sajeewa Gayan Amaraseela, Anthigngna Marakkala (A.K.A Saj)

Sajeewa was born in Sri Lanka and has had a great passion for music since he was a child, learning music and keyboards from 5 years old. He studied Indian classical music and developed his skills as a guitarist and a drummer at the Nugegoda Music Academy in 2000.

In 2008 Sajeewa studied sound engineering in Australia, graduating in 2009 with an
Advanced Diploma in Sound Engineering. He also have knowledge and experience
about light controlling and laser show programming. Currently Sajeewa is a member of Asylum Seekers Resource Centre (ASRC) Music Group through which he has performed
at events for the Medical Association for the Prevention of War, Victorian Red
Cross Sports4Change Football Festival, 2014 Federation Square Light-in Winter Festival, Refugee Week at the Royal Dental Hospital, Wyndham Multicultural Arts Festival and Spring Fling in North Melbourne.

Sajeewa’s ambition is to bring entertainment to people who have come from different parts of the world and connect different cultures.

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Saj’s 2014 ECL Project:
My project involves asylum seekers from different back grounds showing their musical talents to this nation. The project aims to demonstrate that by different cultures coming together we can share our culture and learn from each other and show respect to other cultures. Building up relationships between different nationalities via music is one of my main aim
of the project because, I believe music is a universal language and also it speaks a lot to peoples heart.