However, when done right, the 18+ rating allows Sinhala cinema to mature. It allows a director to show the brutality of the civil war ( Ira Madiyama ) or the raw intimacy of a marriage ( August Sun ) without watering down reality.

During this period, the "18" rating became a double-edged sword. For the audience, it promised a more "realistic" or "forbidden" experience. For filmmakers, it was a curse—reducing potential viewership but increasing cult status.

– Another Handagama masterpiece, focusing on gender identity and the struggles of a woman living as a man in a conservative society. Sulanga Enu Pinisa The Forsaken Land)