A letter from Kishani's husband

Dear Friends,
Thank you deeply for your tremendous support for Kishani in response to the highly politicized criticisms of her operatic rendition of Danno Budunge.
Kishani is a Buddhist; this is not something which she keeps on her head to show others, but follows with her heart, respecting all religions. So those who say that she Christianized a traditional Sinhala song, despite singing it in the same melody with the exact original lyrics written by John De Silva, who happens to be related to her, is ingenuous. As for her political beliefs, unlike me she's very private about them, other than advocating for greater female representation in the Sri Lankan parliament, which currently is less than 5%.
Singing a song in opera does not make it Western or Christian, if that was so everything written or said in English or Italian should be considered as such. Singing a Sinhala song in opera is not an insult to the Sinhala language, yet some people seem to think so. I have seen many asking why this is so, but failed to see a proper response. Apparently to some Sinhala music should be restricted to lower voice registries.
People who try to find fault, say that Danno Budunge should only be sung in its original form. However, there is plethora of evidence shared by those willing to actually check facts before making a statement, that this song has metamorphosed since it was first sung back in 1903. Pandit Amaradeva's version is far different from Hurbet Rajapaksa's version, and yet again different from Rukmani Devi's version. Kishani's version has only breathed new life to this beloved Sinhala song. Google trends shows that the search for 'Danno Budunge' is at its highest ever since she sang it.
Some say that it should not have been sung at Independence Day, for the Independence Day is a time to showcase Sri Lankan talent. Yet, here we have, a Sinhala Buddhist woman, the former Head Prefect of Sri Lanka's leading Buddhist Girls' school Viskha Vidyalaya, who has mastered a revered and exalted form of singing - Opera, who has gained international fame and recognition, who sang a beloved Sinhala song in opera, wearing a traditional saree, in gold and maroon nonetheless, in dignified demeanor, meaningfully and respectfully, is vilified by a segment of her very same people, for petty political reasons, which has nothing to do with her.
One has to wonder, are we truly independent? When will our mental shackles be finally removed?
With all this focus on her rendition of Danno Budunge, many are perhaps unaware that Kishani sang 6 songs that evening; Danno Budunge, Matara Gange, Doiya Baba, Badagini Wela, Namo Mariane, and her composition in English set to the music of Puccini's Nessum Dorma, which she ended with the words 'It's time to soar, time to soar, time to soar!', and soar she will, thanks to all of you.
with love
Kaveenga (husband of Kishani)
PS. As you may have realized, Kishani has been silent about this whole incident. All the posts on this page [Kaveenga's Facebook page], including this, have been solely mine. She is never one to self promote herself. Even when I ask her as to how she feels, her response has been 'as performing artists we are always creating and learning, trying new things, blame and fame are part of our life, this is the 'ashta loka dhamma' the Buddha taught.'

From the facebook page