Deshamanya Matharage Rita Genevieve Fernando,[2] better known by her stage name Latha Walpola (Sinhala: ලතා වල්පොල), is a Sri Lankan singer.
Her fans refer to her as "The Nightingale of Sri Lanka"[3] Walpola was born on 11 November 1934[4] in Mount-Lavinia to Joseph Fernando and Elizabeth Muriel.
[3][6] Walpola received her primary education at St. Anthony College in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, where she led a church choir.
In 1947, Walpola sang her first solo song, "Kandulu Denethe Vehena", which had lyrics by Sarath Wimalaweera and music composed by Vincent de Alwis, the resident violinist at Radio Ceylon.
In 2021, she received a lifetime achievement award during a ceremony held for 21 artists who made contributions to Sinhala cinema in its early decades.