Who I am ... 

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Home for me is now Linlithgow (Edinburgh, Scotland), but I was born more than 5000 miles away, growing up in a small village called Matale, near Kandy, in Sri Lanka. Coming to the UK was one of many dreams that fuelled my long hours of studying as a child and an adult. I was fascinated by the English language: this is mainly because of my father’s influence. He has been educated in the English medium, being a child growing up during the British colonial era. When my father’s family gathered, they spoke only in English. I was fascinated by this. My mother who represented a different generation and circumstances, however, did not speak English. Probably for this reason, my father did not speak to us in English at home, instead, he always convinced the importance of learning the English language and that it was the only way to join the world. This initial familial influence necessarily has fuelled by enthusiasm, commitment and interest in learning English which subsequently opened up many opportunities and avenues for me. Also, I have understood very early in my life, that I was different, always needed to do something different and creative, different to others who were around me. I was very inquisitive about the world around me: this probably made me a good reader. I always carried a book with me everywhere I went. I kept dreaming. I managed to study hard, managed to pass all the structural exams that was the norm where I grew up, if one needed to be successful.

My biggest dream came true in 2008 when I won a scholarship for a PhD in management in Heriot Watt University on the meaning of work in post - colonial Sri Lanka, completed in June 2015. I currently work as an Assistant Professor in the Edinburgh Business School, painting in my spare time and the small hours of the day.

… And, I keep dreaming (about simple but unique things)!

And ‘The Migrant Academic’ is my blog, that I pen my life! I sincerely hope many individuals like me, all over the world will benefit reading this biographical account about my life!