Chittampalam Abraham Gardiner

Senator
Sir Chittampalam A. Gardiner
Kt KSS KSG
Member of the Senate of Ceylon
Personal details
Born(1899-01-06)6 January 1899
DiedDecember 1960 (aged 60–61)
OccupationBusinessman
EthnicityCeylon Tamil

Sir Chittampalam Abraham Gardiner (6 January 1899 – December 1960) was a Ceylon Tamil businessman and member of the Senate of Ceylon.

Early life and family

Gardiner was born on 6 January 1899.[1] He was the son of Samuel Vairamuttu Gardiner and Salomapillai Bastiampillai.[1] The Gardiner family were originally from Achchuvely and Manipay in northern Ceylon but later moved to Colombo.[2]

Gardiner married Angeline Casie Chetty, daughter of Aloysius Mount Carmel Casie Chetty. They had an adopted son, Cyril Aloysius.

Career

Gardiner studied law before entering business.[2] He pioneered the cinema business in Ceylon and established The Ceylon Theatres Limited, which is now one of Sri Lanka's largest conglomerates, on 29 September 1928.[2][3][4] He controlled several leading businesses in Colombo and had interests in others including Cargills and Millers.[2]

Gardiner was made a Knight of St. Sylvester in 1947 for his services to the Roman Catholic Church.[2] He was also a Knight of St. Gregory.[1] He was appointed to the Senate of Ceylon in 1947.[2] He was knighted in the 1951 New Year Honours.[5]

Gardiner was a Rotarian and made a number of large charitable endowments.[2] He was a keen horse owner, his horse won the Governor's Cup in 1947.[2] He died in December 1960.[3]

Parson's Road, the site of Regal Theatre, Ceylon Theatres' first cinema, was renamed Sir Chittampalam A. Gardiner Mawatha.[2][3][4]

References

  1. ^ a b c Burnand, Francis Cowley (1952). The Catholic Who's Who - Volume 35. Burns & Oates. p. 167.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Arumugam, S. (1997). Dictionary of Biography of the Tamils of Ceylon. p. 54.
  3. ^ a b c Jayanetti, Lalith (4 October 2003). "Ceylon Theatres marks 75 years". The Island (Sri Lanka).
  4. ^ a b Ranatunga, D. C. (30 November 2003). "Reeling under 75 years". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
  5. ^ "Fourth Supplement". The London Gazette (39107): 43. 29 December 1950.