A young spirit who is marking her presence in the corporate world, Senara Serandie Dharmapala, Director at Event Master Academy strives to excel in doing what she is passionate about. 

Heralding from Ladies’ College, she ventured into her work life with the completion of the ordinary levels in 2019. She had always been passionate about the field of music and dance, especially ‘Bharatanatyam’. The opportunities that were provided to her at school have allowed her to immerse herself in them and participate. “This gave me ideal scenarios to practice important aspects, such as organizing events. I never thought anything was not worth learning, and therefore I put in a lot of effort to train in event management,” said Senara remembering what exactly may have shaped her in to aspire to enter the event management field. She reserves a huge part of her gratitude towards her family who stood by and supported her through her life, “I am so thankful to my father, Oliver Lal Dharmapala, even though he is not here with me today. My sincere gratitude also goes out to my mother, Hashani Lakshika De Silva, and my sister, Upeja Mevandie Dharmapala.

Senara’s passion then led her to the ‘Academy of Design’ and enrolled in the foundation program. Around this time, she started working with a few music bands in Sri Lanka as the band manager, which she did along with her education. After the completion of the foundation, she sets her sight on the visual communication degree that she studied while balancing freelance digital marketing art work. She also had to go through a loss around this time which had a severe impact on Senara’s life, “Unfortunately, my father passed away, and this coincided with my completion of the first year of the degree program. At this time, I was only just seventeen years old.” The loss of her father had a huge impact on both Senara and her family, “My father was someone who worked relentlessly, to provide for both me and my sister. After he passed away, I did not only lose someone very special to me, but my little family also lost our breadwinner.” Due to this unforeseen circumstance and the financial issues that arose, Senara had to put her degree on hold and focus on her work.

During these challenging times, her mother and close friends were her strength to overcome the hurdles. It was around this time that she found a mentor in Thorz, who was a close friend of her father whom he met through his line of work as an investor and director. “I decided to contact him to get involved with his line of work.” It was during the time of the Lanka Premier League, that she joined Thorz’s team – Event Masters Academy gaining the experience that she needed in the field that she was interested in, “I was intensively involved in the hospitality management of the LPL matches. This included the LPL matches in Colombo, as well as Hambantota.” 

Senara managed to gain some experience in event management under the guidance of Thorz. “I would like to thank Thorz for his constant support and encouragement throughout the past few years. I would not have been the person I am today, if not for him. I appreciate everything he has done for me,” she said on a thankful note. She inherited the funds that her father left for her along with the treasure trove of advice and values he left ingrained in her principles. “Using the funds productively was my aim. I promised my father that someday I will be successful like him, and that was exactly what I was going to work towards,” said Senara. Pushing past the societal norms of self-made barriers of societal constrictions based on gender, she aims to succeed in the corporate world, “I am aware of the many challenges that women and girls alike have to face when trying to emerge in the business field. I have faced many of these restrictions, especially from some relatives on my father’s side. However, my mindset was that I can overcome all of it.”

Senara is a promising young woman with the drive to face the challenges and hurdles that come in both her personal and career life. Even as a young woman being a beneficiary in her father’s will, she is thankful to have Thorz as her mentor who helped her in making significant decisions, “I was keen to invest in some shares and identified “Event Masters Academy” as an ideal company for this purpose. With the blessing of Thorz, I bought some shares. Currently, I am a shareholder and Director of Event Masters Academy.” Around this time, they were able to conduct the ‘Road to EMF’ festival in Sri Lanka which was a well-talked-about show in the town that was held at the Port City Colombo in March. “I wanted to invest in this event, and as such, I took over  the local (Sri Lankan) investment for this event,” said Senara with pride.

This is one successful project in Senara’s career, as a director and a member of the Events Masters teams she was able to take up the coordination and assist them in making the project triumph. As a young girl in the events management industry, she had to face criticism and challenges that came with it, “My age was a major obstacle that I had to face, and being a girl was also not easy in the events industry. This demotivated me to a great extent, but I relied on Thorz and my mother for their constant motivation. I made sure not to let it get to me, and I overcame all these barriers that arose in my life.”

Senara understands the considerable amount of criticism and judgment that working women have to face on a daily basis to engrave their names right above the glass ceiling. “At almost every stage of my life, I have heard from many people that business isn’t a suitable field for women,” said Senara. In an industry that is dominated by males, it takes a persevering personality to withstand and excel rather than just surviving in the industry. It has become a necessity to give something different and wholesome, to stand out among the rest. “It is always crucial to surround yourself with a strong support system. Continue working towards fulfilling your dreams and goals, while filtering out all the judgment from society, and you will be highly successful,” advises Senara. 

She has a go-to quote that she reminds herself when she is going through a tough challenge, “A quote that always comes to my mind when I consider the obstacles I have had to face is “The only way to do great work, is to love what you do” – Steve Jobs”. If you love what you are doing, don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t do it. Work hard, and give it your best efforts.”

On a final note, Senara believes that the industry as we know requires a significant change in its inclusivity of all people, no matter their gender or race. “I think that a significant change needs to be made in the industry, is inclusivity. More women and girls need to be able to engage in these aspects, without having to face so many obstacles. I also think that more awareness is required, regarding the support that any female has, to overcome obstacles that may arise throughout her career,” states Senara with the experience of having faced these obstacles. Her journey, although short yet meaningful made it more worthwhile by the people that she came across, “The biggest thank you to Kashyapa Devinda, Warsha Gunasekara, Loshani Nikeshala, Ranali, Gihansi, Oneli, Miss Asirini De Mel, Miss Wimasha Fernando, Miss Padmini Dahanayake, event master academy students, EMF crew – especially Nehan Rajapaksha and Chamalka Dewshan, Dinindu, Kavindu, Milan, Didula Sarusara and lastly a special thanks to Lanka Fernando and everyone else who has been there for me.”