To mark the 75th anniversary of the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation’s (SLBC) Asia Hindi Service, the Consul General of Sri Lanka in Mumbai, Priyanga Wickramasinghe, issued a special message highlighting the profound cultural and diplomatic impact of the historic broadcaster.
In her address from Mumbai—the heart of India’s film and media industry—Consul General Wickramasinghe reflected on the unique bond formed in the 1950s when Radio Ceylon (now SLBC) became the primary vehicle for Bollywood music across South Asia.
The Consul General characterized the Asia Hindi Service, which began in 1951, as a “bridge of melodies.” She noted that at a time when domestic airwaves in India were restricted for popular songs from Bollywood movies, Radio Ceylon opened its doors to the magic of Indian cinema, broadcasting the legendary voices of Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar and others into homes of a wide spectrum of the population.
“The Asia Hindi Service didn't simply play the music of Mumbai or India,” said Consul General Wickramasinghe, noting “instead, it helped curate the soundtrack of countless lives across borders. It showed how a small radio station from a small country can have considerable international reach when there is vision.”
The message paid tribute to the iconic program Binaca Geetmala and the legendary broadcaster Ameen Sayani. The Consul General observed that this partnership created an unprecedented avenue for cultural exchange, making Radio Ceylon’s broadcasters household names in India and popularizing Hindi music within Sri Lankan culture, despite Hindi not being a language spoken in the island.
As the Asia Hindi Service of SLBC marks its Diamond Jubilee, the Consul General emphasized that the “emotional frequency” of the broadcast remains unchanged, even as technology shifts from shortwave to digital streams. She called for a creative revival of this shared history to strengthen diplomatic and commercial ties.
“We aren't just celebrating 75 years of broadcasting; we are celebrating 75 years of listening to one another,” she stated. She expressed hope that the Asia Hindi Service and SLBC can leverage this vast soft power diplomacy and nostalgia for a bygone era to recreate the service’s historic success for the rest of this century.”
Consulate General of Sri Lanka
Mumbai
30 January 2026
