Understanding Goa …by way of books

Goa, despite all its achievements,
continues to be an information-poor
region. No wonder we understand ourselves
so inadequately, writes FREDERICK NORONHA
and takes a look at some bookshops
focussing on titles published in the region.

 

At a conference last week, some visiting participants were asking around: What do we do in Goa? Where’s a good place to shop? What do we buy? When you’re hit with a lack of answers, it only reminds one how much of an information-poor region Goa can actually be.

Inspite of all our boasts about this being an affluent region, the fact of the matter is that when it comes to information, we are still doing rather poorly.

There are guidebooks which fill in the slot … to some extent. But some are drowned by advertisements, and so their information is more than a bit suspect. They highlight only those places which advertise the most. Result: you end up visiting a place described in glowing terms, but end up feeling short-changed or overcharged.

Lonely Planet is best suited for the Euro tourist (or should we say traveller) of a certain youngish, age profile. Time Out has some good information, but is fairly upmarket in a way. Other publishers of guide books want you to write about things they understand, in a format that fits their bias. So it’s a Catch 22 situation.

Books are one way through which one can understand a region. Maybe books don’t fit well into a hurried, consumerist holiday in Goa. But when one needs a deeper understanding of the region, this is what could be recommended.

Books on Goa are also not easy to come by. They’re scattered, not easy to locate, quick to go out of print. And, as we argued in an earlier column, hardly ever reviewed adequately at the time they are released here.

So finding relevant books on Goa can sometimes be a challenging job. This is even more true if you’re new to the place, and have limited time there. But it helps if you know where to start. This small region of 1.4 million has a very active book publishing sector, with varying levels of quality.

Goa’s citizens, often the small player, churn out book after book after book, on topics related to the region. Some of undeniably low standards. Others are poorly printed. Most find it difficult to become financially viable. But books on Goa offer useful insights that shouldn’t be overlooked.

Getting a grip on the subject can be difficult because Goa’s people have written in so many different languages — 13 tongues. That’s according to Prof Peter Nazareth, the Iowa-based African-born writer of Goan origin who in the 1980s compiled an extremely interesting anthology of Goan writing.

Goa has had the first European-introduced printing press in Asia. This piece of machinery landed here by accident in 1556. But the flurry of publishing in Goa isn’t due to this fact alone.

Portugal-based writer Jorge de Abreu Noronha notes that Goa’s (and Asia’s) oldest printing press was introduced in the territory in 1556. Meant to help missionary work in what is today’s Ethiopia, the press didn’t reach there due to “acts of god”, but stayed on in Goa, as history tells us.

In Panjim’s dusty and colonial-style building of the Government Printing Press (close to Azad Maidan, and the Goa Police Headquarters) you find traces of the past. It’s still just might be possible to buy a Portuguese-published book, what with its antique value, for a few rupees. That is, provided the staff is willing to oblige.

There are other options too. Enough books are being published each year which are worthy to join your bookshelf. More importantly, some of these help unravel the mysteries and mythologies of that small place many of us, one way or another, call home.

There are some essays which remain my favourite….

US anthropologist of Jewish origins, Robert S Newman’s 1983-published article (in the ‘Pacific Affairs’ academic journal) titled ‘Goa: The Transformation of an Indian Region’ offers interesting insights. Even if it is dated by now, almost a generation old!

It explains what Goa is all about, how it has morphed over the past generation, and what are the problems and potential of this small state. (It is also included in his book ‘Of umbrellas, goddesses & dreams: Essays on Goan culture and society’, Other Indian Press, Mapusa ISBN 81-85569-51-7.)

Newman’s vision doesn’t belongs to the gung-ho world created by make-believe “we’re doing great” official statistics. Nor does it belong to that doom-and-gloom version of “where is Goa going?”, created out of the embers of a class who believe they had it good during the colonial times, and who see themselves as having lost out in the subsequent transition.

Newman’s introduction to Goa — if somewhat dated now, 23 years later — continues to be a basic text for anyone wanting to get an instant understanding of Goa. If you start collecting books on Goa, you would quickly realise that there is a lot of material out there.

Librarians like the UK-based Eddie Fernandes, formerly with the University College London, have collected over 2000 Goa-related titles. Incidentally Fernandes is the hard-working editor who single-handedly puts out the ezine called Goan Voice (Africanders, does that name ring a bell?) and it’s at http://www.goanvoice.org.uk

Bangalore-based scholar of Goan origins Rochelle Pinto, who recently published her own book, is seriously concerned about the state of libraries, and the need to build more. Places like the Xavier Centre of Historical Research (at Alto Porvorim, almost half-way along the Panjim-Mapusa road) have a rich collection which is still waiting to be adequately tapped, in their excellent libraries.

* * * * *

To begin at the beginning, though: where does one start with sourcing useful Goa books?

Finding them is like searching for a pin in a haystack. You search and search, and probably can’t find a good book. Some drop out from the bookshelves, and you make do with what you get.  By the time you learn of a good book, it’s usually out of print. And, when a new title is released, our struggling-to-be-irrelevant local press usually doesn’t have the space to review it.

So where does one go to get started?

Your best chose is those few bookshops that give some prominence to Goa-related books. OIBS (Other India Book Store), the alternative space hidden atop what used to be a hospital in Mapusa’s Feira-Alta locality, may be a good starting point. They publish an often-updated “Goa books” catalogue. This outlet is located located above the Old Mapusa Clinic at Mapusa.

Hotel Mandovi’s bookshop (near the Panjim ferry jetty) is easier to locate and centrally located. Khalil Ahmed’s Broadway, at Sant Inez in Panjim (Ashirwad Building, near Caculo Island, at the western end of 18th June Road), is another suitable outlet. So could be the Golden Heart Emporium in Margao. In Panjim, near the centrally-located Azad Maidan, the friendly Bhate Brothers run their Varsha Book Stall, started by their late father.

While passing near Don Bosco’s recently, one was surprised to see new religious bookshops come up in that locality. (Another is run by my friend and ex-Britto boy Tino Nazare, a former radio officer, at the Patto locality. Jesus Bookshop 2438638, 2nd Floor, Pato Centre Bldg.) For that matter, even the Daughters of St Paul’s has an interesting but unpredictable selection of Goa-related books, at bookshop along 18th June Road (Rani Pramila Ground Flr, Ph 2432608, 2231158).

More on this next week. Let me know if you find some interesting place for Goa-related books. Feedback welcome at fred@bytesforall.org or 2409490 or 9970157402 (after 1 pm).

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Tags: books, Goa, outlets

Learning from Goan expat writing

THE PRINTED PAGE

Goan expat writing continues to help the
reader here to understand the local
reality. Two new books, one on Abbe Faria
and the other on print and politics in
Goa, have just made it to the stands.
Meanwhile, the Central Library at Panjim
has also put out an informative website,
writes FREDERICK NORONHA.

–

Writers link the past with the future, and Luis S.R. Vas’ contribution is to the memory of Abbe Faria. Vas’ 117-page hard-bound book (ISBN 978-81-905716-0-9, Rs 295, www.bbcbooks.net) is soon to be out, and focuses on the 18th century hypnotist of Goan origin from Colvale and Candolim.

Readers might know the author to be the brother of the popular Dhempe College mentor-to-a-generation and prof Isabela Santa Rita Vas. Luis has “had a life-long interest in Abbe Faria and hypnosis”, the book tells us. And he has been for decades in feature writing, publishing, corporate communications and translating.

Like many non-residents settled outside Goa, he’s also contributing to the debate here.

His book starts interestingly: “Sometime in the early 1950s, British novelist and travel writer Norman Lewis arrived in Panjim, Goa’s capital, by steamboat.” And it goes on to quote the intrepid traveller as noting that the quay-side was “presided over” by a statue not of the colony’s founder Albuquerque, but rather the Goan who “discovered the doctrine of hypnotic suggestion”.

Vas begins by making us think: Who was this enigmatic Faria? Why is he not mentioned in some textbooks on hypnosis? Who is the lady in question? And he goes on to hint that Faria is a “most colourful if half-forgotten, 18th century character, perpetrator of amazing exploits, mainly in France, some of them still shrouded in mystery.”

This book is written in a simple yet catchy style. Its chapters would ring a bell to the reader in Goa to whom the Abbe is no stranger. Titles of the chapters, for instance, are: Candolim, Colvale, Trip to Lisbon, Propaganda Fide, Priest, Pope Pius VI, Cator Re Baji and so on….

Explains Vas: “As the 250th birth centenary of Abbe Faria loomed in 2006, I thought a new biography and assessment of the pioneer hypnotist would be an appropriate and worthwhile project for the occasion. This is that book.”
     
PRINT, POLITICS

Rochelle Pinto was just one of those names I ran across in cyberspace. Sometime in March 2005, a blog entry of mine noted: “Incidentally, in an article titled A Time To Publish published in the Economic and Political Weekly (Mumbai) issue of February 26, 2005, Rochelle Pinto makes some interesting points indeed.”

This week, Bangalore-based Pinto wrote in to inform that her new book “Between Empires: Print and Politics in Goa” (Oxford University Press, 2007 ISBN 9780195690477 Rs. 645, US$ 16.54) is just out.

Government Printing Press, Panjim… legacy from colonial times.

One google search told me: “Between Empires offers the first systematic analysis of the relationship between print culture and colonial rule in Goa. Rochelle Pinto discusses the development of print culture and its implications for larger questions of nationalism, modernity, and colonial politics.”

Sounds interesting.

Apparently, the book draws “succinctly from available literature on print, reading publics, and linguistic hierarchies elsewhere in India,” for the author to offer what the book calls “a persuasive account of the possibilities opened by print media and the manner in which it reordered social, cultural, or political ties within Goan society.”

Pinto looks at print produced in Portuguese, Konkani, and Marathi, and examines the contesting claims about Goa and the terrain of its politics.

“It shows how this highly contested public realm was deeply reflected in the novels, pamphlets, and newspapers produced by the Catholic elite, Goan migrants to Bombay, and litigants in the rural districts in the nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.” Pinto is credited with discussing questions of representation, genre, publicity, and literary history followed different trajectories among the non-elite and elite writers. One site said: “This work makes an important contribution to current discussions on the emergence of print spheres in colonial India.”

In her earlier, insightful EPW article, Pinto discussed two sets of pamphlets that appeared towards the end of the 19th century in colonial Goa, in an attempt to show how precedents and norms established by European print were not exactly reproduced in the colony.

The function of print and the genre of pamphlets, in particular, were altered by class difference, caste hierarchies and the context in which rural and urban politics functioned in Goa, she says.

Quote: “Increasingly, in the early decades of the 20th century, the monopolies and usurpation of land rights by nadkarnis, kulkarnis, and other dominant castes began to be challenged across villages in Goa. In the Old Conquests of Goa, the territories conquered from 1510 on, the institution of the communidade, which administered village land through councils whose membership was hereditary, male, and usually upper caste, was particularly strong.

“Rising literacy levels among sudras had, however, resulted in their growing visibility among groups of litigants in Goa. Salaried employment outside Goa had enabled sudras to use print to supplement litigation for land-rights. Within Goa, the form of the pamphlet was considerably altered when they adopted it to challenge the monopolies of kulkarnis, nadkarnis, and their own village comunidades.”

ONLINE NOW

Carlos Fernandes is the (newish) curator of the Central Library, in Panjim. From Ponda, he was earlier (for a short spell) the librarian at the Goa University, and also at the Goa Engineering College.

Last week, we ran into each other when one went to collect some information sought under the Right to Information Act.

Fernandes mentioned that the Central Library had just put up its new website. A quick glance made it clear that this is an unglamourous site, but one filled with a whole lot of useful information.

See http://goacentrallibrary.gov.in/

nlike some government-run sites, contracted out to private parties to create, this is a website built by the GoI’s National Informatics Centre, Goa. While private parties are great at creating glitzy sites, the NIC stresses on functionality. Their sites often last and don’t simply vanish in some time into that cyber black-hole.

What’s more, the Central Library initiative is enriched with a whole lot of useful information.

Some of the links on the home page focus on their collection (of books), services offered, committees, lists of libraries (including rural) in Goa, schemes to promote libraries, the rare book sections, forms and rules for joining the library, a photo gallery, lists of staff, and useful links.

The ‘useful links’ section takes you to two dozen online links, dealing with books, careers, scientific information and more. The Central Library has done a good job in taking things beyond just their own work. After all, information is seamless in a networked world.

Let’s hope they keep updating their site often, and adding more links to it. And also that readers take an active stand in ensuring that the site itself remains active and useful.

About the site, send in your feedback to the Central Library via phone 2425730 or 2436327, or via email lib-cent.goa@nic.in And, regarding this column, your comments and brickbats are welcome at fred@bytesforall.org or 2409490 or 9970157402

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Tags: goa, printing, expat writing, central library

Where have all the reviewers gone?

How will Goa books get the attention they deserve if the media doesn’t talk about them when the titles hit the stands, asks FREDERICK NORONHA.
THE PRINTED WORD

Where are all the book reviewers gone? Apart from the monthly magazine Goa Today, very few publications here give any decent space to focus on new books published in Goa.

Yes, Sunaparant reviews books, often Konkani. For the others, book reviews means looking at books published in some distant part of the globe, or in the mass market that is the rest of India. In such a context, who cares for books from Goa itself? Are we just destined to consume the thoughts that others churn out, rather than create some of our own?

Talking about which, there was this interesting discussion on the Goa Research Net [http://groups.yahoo.com/group/goa-research-net] the other day.

Dr Pramod Kale wrote: “Books are published in all kinds of languages all over the world; but a book in Engish, backed by a million dollar contract, certainly has feet and walks all over the earth!” Well said indeed.

Dr Kale has a 1967 PhD from the University of Wisconsin Madison, and in Goa he’s probably better known for his genuinely insightful essay on the Konkani tiatr (‘Essentialist and Epochalist Elements in Goan Popular Culture : A : Case Study of Tiatre’ Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. XXI No.47, November 22, 1986). He also has worked on a Chicago project about the dynamics of social and cultural change in Roman Catholic communities in Goa. And a video film ‘Chandor, a Roman Catholic Village in Goa : Habitat and Performances’, (30 minutes, colour, English narration), 1995.

But coming back to the issue of the printed word, and Goa.

After ages, I read a fascinating review of a Goa related book, on the Net the other day. It was written by my acerbic friend (and one-time classmate) Augusto Pinto of Moira. It was about Alfredo de Mello’s just-published book ‘From Goa to Patagonia: Memoirs Spanning Times and Spaces’.

And Augusto began it thus: “If I was Alfredo de Mello’s editor, the first thing I would have told him was to rename his book: The Autobiography of a Young Goan Fidalgo, and then subtitle it: Memories of the Son of Dr. Froilano de Mello, the Great Bamon Bhatkar of Benaullim.”

With the right mix of irreverence, admiration for the author and control over his language, Augusto made light of Goan Catholic idiosyncracies. This includes even issues like caste among the Catholic community, which is otherwise such a bugbear to deal with, either way one sees it.

Augusto ends his review saying: “In spite of these carpings I think this book is an excellent read which I’d heartily recommend.And I look forward to Volume 2.” In between he goes on to touch varied topics — Goan Catholic elites, and even that bound-to-raise-eyebrows topic of how Goan writers handle the issue of sex!

You can find the review here: http://augustoreview.notlong.com

MASCI, THE MAN

Thanks to a mention in this column, I ran into author Odette Mascarenhas, a management consultant formerly with the Taj whose first book is well produced and written.

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Titled ‘Masci: The Man Behind the Legend’ is about her father-in-law, Miguel Arcanjo Mascarenhas. This is the story of how a simple man from a Goan village, Anjuna, went on to become a famed name in India’s cullinary history.

Just because her subject is her father-in-law should in no way detract from this book. It’s not just a puff piece.

‘Masci’ (an Anglicised short-hand for Mascarenhas, you guessed right) is an individual who deserves recognition. Like so many other Goans do, whose achivements across the globe just die unsung and get buried with their bodies.

Odette does a fine job in putting together a collection of photographs and clippings that portray the achievements of the man, who stares out from the neat cover in a chef’s garb.

She tells her story, as a fresher in the catering line in the Taj (in Bombay) in 1979: “My induction covered a host of areas and the most profound impact was in the kitchen… the reverence with which a single word was uttered, ‘Masci’…. I never really questioned the respect and awe that remained in the voices of some of the esteemed clients who patronized the Taj and made comments like ‘Masci would have done it like this’ or ‘No dish even left the kitchen without Masci tasting it first.’”

Unlike many hurriedly-published Goa books, this one has a classy get-up and is printed on fine paper. Its contents page gets called ‘the menu’ and apart from 131 pages on the man himself, pages 132 to 183 are devoted to recipes. Soups, entrees, breakfast, salads, the main course, the “Goan affair”, veg fair, snippets, and deserts. Fifty recipes in all.

A good book. But will it get the readership it deserves?

PANCHAYATI ISSUES

Madkai-based Peaceful Society, a Gandhian group, has been working at the grassroots for some time now. Often, they stay away from the publicity and hype that non-governmental organisations sometimes bask in. And they’ve done quite some work on panchayati raj issues.

Their newly published book ‘Panchayati Raj in India: Post 73rd Constitutional Amendment Scenario’ is an English-language edition of a national publication.

Its 13 chapters looks at various issues of ‘panchayati raj’, albeit from a national perspective. Hard-bound and 460 pages thick, this is a useful guide if you’re interested in issues related to panchayats.It was self-published by Peaceful Society, Kundai, Goa in a printrun of 500 copies (no price mentioned) and printed in Ahmedabad.

Talking about this organisation, their tiny booklets related to gram sabhas of panchayats and other matters (priced at a nominal Rs 5) have been very useful in spreading awareness at the grassroots level in Goa. That these publications are available for a free download from the Net only makes them more popular. For details email Kumar Kalanand Mani at peaceful_goa@sancharnet.in

This much for this week now. Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org or 2409490 or 9970157402

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Tags: goa, books, cullinary, augusto pinto, reviews, peaceful society

Getting the young… into reading and writing

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My former journalist colleague Cosme I Dias came calling the other day. He had in his hands the manuscript (including cover design) of a book he planned to come out with.

In no time, Cosme had his book for children ready. It’s called ‘The Prince of Camels: Magic in the Desert’. It’s a story set in the Middle East. A friend looking at the book was impressed by its cover design. It also promises to be a good read.

What’s the story about? This is how it markets itself: “Any child deserves a home and loving parents! Yousuf, the infant Arab boy lost all that in a storm. Mossid, his father’s favourite camel, is the only creature left alive, to protect him from the harsh Arabian desert.”

Priced at Rs 199 in India (US$13.50 overseas), the book ISBN 978-81-904805-0-5 is 171 pages thick, and well produced. It’s both artistic and neat.

With book publishing becoming more accessible, thanks to technology and economics, many more are entering this field. Cosme’s Gogol-Margao based initiative is called Word Ventures, a nice name with a nice website too [diasdais.com].

Writes Cosme: “In a world where magic is often made out to be a substitute to human virtues, this story emphasizes the positive energy present in all living beings, who revere God as their merciful Creator.”

It’s interesting to see a Goan writer and publisher bring out fiction for children, that too with a setting in the Gulf. Would it be too much to expect some market to open up there? Or are Goans globalised enough to open young minds to wider worlds?

Incidentally, Cosme Dias is quick to acknowledge that his entry into writing was due to the encouragement he got at a young age. It came after his writing was published in the juniors’ section of a local newspaper (Herald).

Sometimes, it’s just important to encourage young people to venture into fields like writing. Newspaper sections that have promoted writing for the young have done a good job, and deserve credit. In particular, Melanie Ruth Sequeira, who wrote in local papers under the pseudonym of Aunty Mel, has encouraged a generation of young people from Goa to enter the writing field. And one never knows where it ends up.

FROM BOOKWORM

Talking about children and reading, the Sant Inez (Panjim)-based reading room and activity centre Bookworm has come out with April, June and August issues of The Bookworm Magazine.

These booklets are aimed at extending “the Bookworm library mission of encouraging a love for reading and learning while nurturing children’s capacity to think skillfully and critically through engaging and stimulating language activities”.

Each issue promises a mix of stories, craft, poems, science, “mindbogglers” and puzzlers. Design, by Umesh and Gulnar, is artistic and eye-catching.

On another note: obviously, plush new private schools are the ones that can easily afford to advertise. But we also need to accept that such institutions could be destroying social capital and the network of rural schools built over the decades, by taking away the more-affluent (and often brighter) students to already-crowded city areas! But that’s another issue ….

Priced at Rs 10 (with a few ads to subsidise its publication), this all-colour 32-page magazine is definitely good value for money. Subscriptions cost Rs 60 per year (six issues) and you can get in touch via bookworm.goa@yahoo.com or mobile 98232 22665 or 99233 22665.

Bookworm “where children learn to love books” is lcoated at

NO NUMBERS

Goa has been struggling without an updated telephone directory for the past 3, 5 or 7 years (the answer varies on whom one asks!) This obviously keeps everyone’s productivity low. You can ring 197 to enquire about a number; but that’s a waste of time, and they tell you only a few numbers for each call you make!

In the meanwhile, there are some non-BSNL diretories emerging.

The Department of Information, according to Director Menino Peres, is working to finalise its useful listing of officials in the State. Likewise, the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman has come out with their 2007-2008 directory.

This (‘Directory 2007-2008, Archdiocese of Goa and Daman, 148 pp, price Rs 30) has links to the various parishes of Goa, religious institutions, associations and “movements” linked to the Church, educational institutions and the like.

A book like this gives a hint of the large machinery called the Church, and also probably the manner in which it is still seriously under-utilised when it could do much more for social development of this small place called Goa.

Priced at only Rs 30, this book, available at the Daughters of St Paul’, could offer some useful links.

In today’s e-connected world, it makes no sense not to have publications like these — the DI forthcoming directory, and also the Archdiocese one — available online. Hopefully, the publishers will agree to convert them into PDF formats and make them more widely available to anyone who can download the same.

WITHOUT MALICE

Daniel F. De Souza’s book is titled ‘Koslich Malis Nastana’, and reminds one of Khushwant Singh’s column “With Malice Towards One And All”.

Getting a copy of his book seemed a tough job, till one ran into a copy at the St Paul’s Publications. It’s sad that books on Goa are so tough to find in Goa itself. Blame it on the poor distribution networks we have here, for books.

This 99-page Romi Konkani book is reasonably priced at Rs 60. It was published in March 2007, with a cover illustration by multi-talented journalist Pio Esteves. Its a book of Romi Konkani essays with titles like “Vell”, “Ixttagot”, “Tujem E-Mail Address Kitem?” and “Take Things For Granted”.

Author Daniel can be contacted at C3 Maria Elvira Apts, Near Vasco’s St Andrew’s Church or email dannyboy04@rediffmail.com

LISBON’S BOOK FAIR

And here’s a comment from reader Natasha Fernandes, published without further comment: “You mentioned the book fair in Portugal. I had the opportunity to go this year to the Feira dos Livros in Parque Eduardo VII in Lisbon. It had over a hundred stalls with Portuguese publishers and a whole lot of books. I think this was the 77th Feira dos Livros. Yes, I do feel we too can have such a fair in Goa. The Old Secretariat or Old GMC Complex will make a great venue.”

UNIVERSITY PRESS

Where are the publishers in Goa? If it wasn’t for a handful of initiatives — bascially small ones run by people who love books — Goa would have had none. Shouldn’t institutions like the Goa University be setting up its own “university press” and running it in a way that makes the varsity more relevant to our own society’s needs?

Recently, one came across this: “ANU E Press collects, disseminates, brands and makes available on a global electronic basis selected scholarly research undertaken at the ANU. ANU E Press facilitates communication among scholars….” https://dspace.anu.edu.au:8443/handle/1885/42748

Some food for thought about what’s possible. But who’s thinking about it?

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Tags: books, Gulf

All about Cuncolim

A new book tells everything about
the village of Cuncolim, and is
impressive in the amount of
ground it covers, writes
Frederick Noronha

PRINTED WORD

When I ran into this book, I immediately didn’t think twice before investing Rs 500 in its 576 pages. This is a book about that prominent village from Salcete, Cuncolim, and the 2006-published title contains a wealth of information about varied aspects of the place.

[PHOTO: Neenad Desai's panoramic shot of today's Cuncolim]

It contains an amazing amount of information on Cuncolim. Though I have no links with the village whatsoever, I found it fascinating to scan through it.

From the past to the current, it looks at a range of information that anyone interested in understanding Goa would like to at least wade through. Ancient temples of Cuncolim, Veroda and Talvorda; the Comunidades of the region; the Portuguese arrival and insurrections; village life; the influence of the Marathas in Cuncolim and much more ground is covered.

Son of the village, priest Planton Faria, does a good job in given wide coverage to everything Cuncoliana. He gets down to issues like the killing of the Jesuits, the church and clergy, Hindu temples (including the fascinating and much-studied Festival of the Umbrellas), the Socidade Agricola, and current-day persons from the area including artisans and judges and journalists!

While the book strikes you as not being critical of the facts included, and sometimes lacking in analysis, it is undeniably encyclopaedic in the amount of information it collates about just one village in Goa!

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One of the unconvincing parts of the book, to this columnist, was Faria’s treatment of the recent caste-based conflict in the Cuncolim church.

Arguments such as “the caste factor is a prominent factor in all Goan villages, particularly in the South” didn’t strike one as being very convincing. What does one make of the view that non-ganvkars excluded were not just ‘sudras’ but also Catholic Kshatriyas from other villages settled in Cuncolim? Pointing to the “exclusive membership” of Hindu institutions and devasthans is no justification either. To exclude others because, in turn, they excluded someone else, doesn’t come across as a valid argument too.

This book reminds one of Dr Olivinho Gomes’ book done earlier — of similar size, even if that was hard-bound — on Chandor, another village from Salcete. There are also books, if slimmer, on villages like Benaulim and Saligao (published way back in 1973), possibly among others.

Printed in Belgaum at St Jude’s, it is published by the Govavani Media Centre at Culvaddo in Cuncolim. Its price overseas is US$25 or Euros 20. Copies are available at the Daughters of St Paul’s outlet on 18th June Road.

ANOTHER DYANESHWARI

The Vishayanurup Dyaneshwari by retired judge Dhananjay Dehspande is a 224-page lavishly-printed, hard-bound and large sized book published by the Goa government’s Department of Information. Unpriced, it’s in Marathi, making it await a more qualified reviewer to judge its worth and readability.

At the time of its release in early August, there were some pearls of wisdom that emerged during the official function. The chief minister naturally said that the society should benefit largely from such books.

Going by the official report of the event, Speaker Pratapsing Rane suggested that the author “should come out with a simpler edition of the Dyaneshwari so as to benefit the common man.” Whatever that implies… Information director Menino Peres believed the book “would be of great help to the scholars and researchers of Dyaneshwari.” And Justice Ferdino Rebello argued that a “Secular state does not mean a society devoid of morals.” Now, whoever suggested that it did? Or is the judge and former prominent campaigner-politician from Goa a victim of poor reporting?

It’s hard to understand the logic behind which books the State chooses to support. At the Information Department, one ran into a circular offering time-off duty to staffers who went for that book release function, to make it a grand success. Or words to that effect.

NO CLEAR HINT

Leroy Veloso, a reader from Moira, was critical and found this column not specific enough in terms of recommending which books are worth buying or not.

Leroy is right. But one could argue that the decision of buying a book or not depends on a range of issues. A book that’s worth it for one person, might not be suitable for another. What was that saying about one man’s meat being another’s poison?

So avoiding a clear suggestion over the ‘worth’ of a book might be the only fair way to leave an open-ended decision to anyone reading this. As far as the coverage of each book not been “elaborate” enough, the rate at which people are publishing books in Goa clearly makes it essential to cover a number of tomes in each column. Of course, I’m not complaining… it’s nice to see so many books emerge.

Cecil Pinto, another reader and fellow-columnist in GT, felt that the last column’s mention on a how-to book on writing books was misplaced. It had nothing to do with Goa, he pointed out. Cecil was referring to Michael Oke’s “Writing Your Life Story” (Jaico, Rs 150, 2006).

Well, without jumping to one’s own defence, let me reiterate that the range of books published in Goa’s own book publishing sector seems to be shaping up nicely these days.

Even if we don’t have enough readers for every book — and certainly not enough reviewers or sales outlets — at least we have a sufficient number of writers. Books are increasingly seeing light of day.

This being the case, shouldn’t Goa be encouraging more of its potential writers to get converted into published authors? Anything that could give a nudge in this direction does seem helpful. At least to me.

BOOK FAIR IN PORTUGAL

Lisbon-based historian and author Dr Teotonio R de Souza, in Goa recently when he released the book ‘From Goa to Patagonia’, was mentioning about the one-month long book fair in the Portuguese capital held before summer each year.

Booksellers put on display their books, from 4 pm till midnight, each day for an entire month. It’s a nice open-air venue. They hand out free catalogues of books available. While discussing the issue, someone wondered: do we have enough readers in Goa?

Well, it does seem a good enough idea. Supply of good and relevant books could create its own demand. Visibility helps too. Is anyone willing to take the initiatives for bringing book vendors under one roof? Do we have a suitable venture for such an event, preferably outdoors, so the books actually reach to their readers? With venues like the Old GMC and even the Old Secretariat available, surely something could be done for the book in Goa.

Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org, 2409490 or 9970157402

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Top ten bestsellers at the Museum of Christian Art, Old Goa
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Below is a list of top-ten Goa-related sellers available at the Museum of Christian Art, Old Goa. Profits from the sale of the books and other items at the museum shop goes towards the conservation and maintenance of the Museum. See http://christianartmuseum.goa-india.org/

* Museum Souvenir, Rs.400 1993

* Old Goa the complete guide. Oscar de Noronha. Plus Publications. 160 pp. Rs.125. 2004.

* Book of Confidence Fr. Thomas de Saint Laurent. Third Millennium. 93 pp. Rs.50. 2003.

* In and around Old Goa. Heta Pandit. Marg Publications. 131pp. Rs. 695. 2004.

* Houses of Goa. Foreword by Gerard da Cunha. Gerard da Cunha and Architecture Autonomous. 185 pp. Rs.1900. 3rd edition 2006.

* De Goa A Ceilao: Saga de um Caminheiro Infatigavel. Pedro Correia Afonso. Third Millennium. 216 pp. Rs. 250. 2006.

* Inside Goa. Manohar Malgonkar. Architecture Autonomous. 199 pp. Rs.695. Revised edition 2004.

* Walking in and around Panaji, Goa Heritage Action Group and the Corporation for the City of Panjim. 304pp. Rs.600. 2005.

* Parmal (magazine). Volume 4. Goa Heritage Action Group. 130pp. Rs.100. 2005.

* Dust and other short stories from Goa. Heta Pandit. The Heritage Network. 231pp. Rs.250. 2002.

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Tags: Cuncolim, books, new, DI, dnaneshwari

Patagonia, where’s that?

Frederick Noronha takes a look at the growing number of memoirs by Goans, a compiliation of editorials, and a book on the monsoons. This weekly column on books in Goa also focuses on a photocopied, self-published model, and looks at a book that unravels what goes into creating a book!

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Biblophile-friend Dr Nandkumar Kamat reminded me about the upcoming release of a new book ‘From Goa to Patagonia’ slated for August 24, 2007 at 4.15 pm at the Kala Academy’s meeting hall. This not only sent me scurring to my cluttered email in-box, but it also saw me go off in a hurry to the Wikipedia to understand what this was all about.

Patagonia?

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This was how that amazing online encyclopedia, the Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org), explained it: “Patagonia is the southernmost portion of South America. Mostly located in Argentina and partly in Chile, it comprises the Andes mountains to the west and south, and plateaux and low plains to the east. The name Patagonia comes from the word patagon used by Magellan to describe the native people who his expedition thought to be giants. It is now believed the Patagons were actually Tehuelches and Aonikenk with an average height of 1.80 m compared to the 1.55 average for Spaniards of the time.”

This book is by Alfredo Bachmann de Mello, the Uruguay-based Goan-bon son of renowned doctor-scientist Dr. Froilano de Mello and his Swiss wife. Some years back, I ran into Alfredo “Fred” via cyberspace, and we had many an interesting exchange till (I think) we disagreed in our perspectives and lost touch. He had then also drawn my attention to a book he published, explaining who the ‘real Columbus’ was. (Frankly, history not being one of my favourite subjects, I found that text a bit too complex to adequately follow.  That book of his is called “El Verdadero Colón” in Spanish, and in English it’s “The Real Colon: Columbus is a misnomer”.)

Head of the Lisbon-based Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias history department Dr Teotonio R de Souza, while welcome the growing number of Goan memoirs and autobiographies, gives a preview of the book’s content. He also refers to De Mello’s father’s possibly misunderstood role in representing colonial Goa in Lisbon.

Of the book, de Souza writes: “Despite some unpleasant memories, Alfredo de Mello does not display any hangover of colonial past. He revealed very early in life his conviction that all empires had their end! This understanding of history and his joie de vivre pervade his memoirs, giving them a seriousness and without making them dull.

“In between some colourful descriptions of his deft control of a pony galloping downhill at Matheran while still a child; a confrontation which ended badly for a cobra in his home compound at Altinho in Panjim; a rub of the ring of the Archbishop-Patriarch that left him with bleeding nose; and his first experience of the pleasures of Eden with a young British eve while a boarder at Bishop Cotton’s in Bangalore, there is much we can learn about social life in the capital city of Goa as well as about the wild-life in rural Goa of those years.”

AN EDITOR’S WORDS

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On his sixtieth birthday, Rajan Narayan’s wife Tara compiled some 60 editorials he wrote over the years. These are from his Stray Thoughts series, and go back right to the 1980s.  This column incidentally featured in the Herald for some two decades each Sunday, before shifting to a two-page spread in his ‘Goan Observer’ tabloid, started in 2003.

Some read strangely familiar. These are all related to events that happened in Goa, or Narayan’s interpretation of them.

Stray Thoughts, as his readers know, is a gossipy mix of comment, interpretation, misinterpretation and typos. It also gives a different perspective on Goa, and is also usually bold in saying what the other sections of the press wouldn’t dare to.

This is a very personalised story of a changing Goa. It includes the travails of finding medicine on a Sunday. MGP politics of the 1980s. A dog-shaped tabletop mascot being stolen from the editor’s office. His ire at a non-Catholic not being able to become the god-father of a Catholic child. A complaint that Mario Miranda wasn’t taking him (the editor) on a “guided tour of Loutolim”. And much, much more.

’60 Stray Thoughts 1983-2007′ is a 400-page book, reasonably priced at Rs 200, and published by the Rajan Narayan Felicitation Committee of La Campala Colony. It’s available in major bookshops here, including Broadway’s. Whether one is a fan of Narayan’s writing or not, it’s an interesting read.

It’s not just trivia though. There’s a mix of tongue-in-cheek writing, ire directed at politicians, and a record of events in Goa from a particularly Rajanesque point of view.

Builder and chairman of the Rajan Narayan Felicitation Committee 2007, Anil Counto has this to write: “Rajan, though a non-Goan (“bhailo”, as he is called) has always fought throughout his life for social issues concerning Goans.”

Well, that’s a different debate. But this is an interesting book.

MONSOON SCIENCE

Physical oceanographer turned meteorologist Dr M J Varkey of the Goa-based NIO has authored and self-published his ‘Science of the Asian Monsoon’ (pp 162, Rs 150, May 2007). What’s interesting is that some 5000 copies of this book have been published.

It offers an introduction to the monsoons, looks at the Goa case, and then shifts to themes like monsoon clouds and mosoon rains and monsoon disturbances (cyclones and floods).

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Did you know that the Asian monsoon covers 23 million sq. km. of land, or that almost all Asian countries can be included in the core Asian monsoon sector? And check this: Panjim gets about 277 cms rain each year. But near the foothills of Goa, it rains over 400 cms per year!

Don’t get intimidated by the diagrams this book contains; it has a lot of useful information too.

GAUNKARS AND DEMANDS

My one-time classmate Savio Herman D’Souza from Porvorim comes out with these interesting booklets, mainly focussed on comunidade issues. One he handed over to me is ‘The Charter of Demands of The Gaunkars of Goa’ (April 2007, http://www.geocities.com/newagegoa)

I’m not sure about the soundness of the attempt by the comunidade campaigners to compare gaunkars with the aboriginals of Australia. But these publications throw up interesting issues and concerns. Of course, comunidades need to be democratised and made more gender-sensitive. But their shortcoming is clearly no excuse for them to become victims of landgrabbers in a political or other garb.

Check out these books, actually booklets, or contact New Age Society, 1140 Maina Socorro, Porvorim phone 2416573.

YOU CAN WRITE

Recently, I picked up a copy of Michael Oke’s “Writing Your Life Story” from Broadway’s at Sant Inez. This title (Jaico, Rs 150, 2006) explains “how to record and present your memories for friends and families to enjoy”.

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It offers tips on how to plan your project, and get working on it; how to deploy writing techniques; and even the reasons for writing your life story. As the biographer-author says very encouragingly, “If you can write a letter, you really can write a book.” You might think this is an exaggeration; but after seeing the writing process for long, one can’t feel that it’s largely a confidence trick.

Why not check it out if you have your doubts?

Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org, 2409490 or 9970157402

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XCHR’s OLDEST BOOKS   ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
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Xavier Centre of Historical Research, the Alto Porvorim Jesuit-run institution headed by Dr Délio Mendonca sj, recently put together for the GOMANTAK TIMES this list of some of the oldest books available at their library.

Says the XCHR: “All books are in good condition. The Library is open from 9.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 2 to 5 p.m. On Saturdays, the library closes at 1 p.m.

• Miranda, Jacintho Caetano Barrteo, Quadros históricos de Goa, Margao, Typographia do Ultramar, 1863-1865, vols.3. (Portuguese).
• Gracias, J. A. Ismael, Apontamentos para a história da representação provincial no Esatdo da India, Nova Goa, Imprensa Nacional, 1891, 49p. (Portuguese)
• Gracias, J. A. Ismael, Agulha fixa da invenção de Jeronymo Osóri da Fonseca no século XVII, Nova Goa, Imprensa Nacional, 1882, 135p. (Portuguese)
• Gunjikar, Ramchandra Bhikaji, Sarasvati Mandala, or A Descripation of the Maratha Brahmans, Bombay, Nirnyasagar, 1884, 172p. (Marathi)
• Xavier, Felippe Nery, Collecço de bandos, e outras differentes providencias que servem de leis regulamentares para o governo economica e judicial das provincias denominads das Novas Conquistas, Panjim, Imprensa Nacional, 1840-50, vols.2, 600p. (Portuguese)
• Danaita, Yashavant Fondaba Naika & Wagle, Ramchandra Govinda, The history of Goa, ancient & modern, Bombay, Asiatic Printing Press, 1873, 111p. (Marathi)
• Gomes, F.L., A liberdade da terra e a economia rural da India Portugueza, Lisboa, Typographia Universal, 1862, 102p.. (Portuguese)
• Xavier, Felippe Nery, Defensa dos diretios das gaõcarias, e gaõcares, dos seus privilegios, contra a proposta de sua dissolucao, e diviso das sus terras, offerecide ao ex. Governo geral do Estado da India, Nova Goa, Imprensa Nacional, 1856, xvi, 104p. (Portuguese)
• Pinto, Christovam, Politica Colonial Internacional Estados Unidos da India, Lisboa, Antiga Casa Bertrand Jose Bastos, 1898, 284p. (Portuguese)
• Costa, Antonio Anastasio Bruto da, Goa sob a dominação portugeza, 2nd ed., Margao Typographia do Ultramar, 1897, 305p.. (Portuguese)

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Words, from the alumni networks

Words, from the alumni networks

In the days we grew up, students of our school, St Britto’s in Mapusa, saw their institution as being a major rival of St Anthony’s at Guirim. Both have been prominent schools in Bardez, particularly in the ‘sixties and ‘seventies and later. Currently, there are a number of past-pupils scattered across the globe from institutions such as these. And there have been some alumni publications coming out too.

In part, one suspects, this might be driven by the expat interest in the ‘old boys networks’ from this region. You simply get more nostalgic about the region, the further away you are from Goa!

‘Yesterdays at Monte: Jogging Down Memory Lane’ (Aug 2006, pp 78, Rs 100, Vikram Publications Limavaddo, Porvorim, phone 241 3573) is Edward de Lima’s book on St Anthony’s at Monte Guirim. Many readers might know Lima from his long teaching association with what used to be the DMC College in Mapusa/Assagao. He was also a long-time NCC instructor, and has done has PhD not too long ago on the work of the Hubli-based intellectual, writer and educator Prof Armando Menezes.

As he puts it: “Life those days was simple and hard, but we enjoyed ourselves in different innocent ways.”

This book focuses on, among other things, lunch at school, annual concerts, Mocidade Portuguesa (there was recently an interesting debate in cyberspace over how one could interpret this organisation and its politics), corporal punishments, the school’s debating society, the “brown hair episode”, retreats, and the author’s teachers and classmates.

There are other ‘old boy’ initiatives that have come up too.

“Those Good Ol’ Days!” (pp 82, Rs 150, published by BMX, the Britto’s-St Mary’s-Xavier’s alumni network) is the 2006 compilation of tributes from ex-students of students from three of the best known institutions at Mapusa. It shares some articles in common with ‘Britto’s Retro’ (pp 208, Rs 50), which focuses almost entirely on St Britto’s.

Since this columnist has been involved with the latter two publications, it would be unfair to comment on their quality or lack of it. One can however say that it was great fun working on them; it was amazing to see how readily alumni from these institutions were ready and willing to share their memories. Cyberspace, and the internet, helped to bring them all together.

Publishing these as copylefted (free-to-copy) books also make sure that the content remains in the public domain, roughly speaking. That’s a very exciting idea, and gives hope that these thoughts and words can get life of their own, keep on getting quoted and even reproduced in toto when needed to.

Check out the same at Carvalho’s Petrol Pump at Mapusa (the Britto book) or Broadways at Sant Inez (the BMX book) if interested. They’re priced at Rs 50 and Rs 150 respectively, with some interesting photos of the yesteryears.

Maybe alumni networks could play a more active role in building links and encouraging the growth of institutions that gave generations a quality education at a pittance. It’s nice to see so many — occasionally or consistently — active alumni groups, including from institutions like the Goa Medical College, People’s High School, Don Bosco’s in Panjim, Loyola’s in Margao, the old Lyceum, and others.

COLONIAL ISSUES

With a long and formal-sounding name comes the book ‘Readings in Indo-Portuguese Literature: Episodio Oriental’, edited by Maria Ines Figueira and Oscar de Noronha. It was published recently (2007) by Fundacao Oriente and Third Millennium of Pato (Rs 225, ISBN 978-71-904389-1-9, pp176).

Between its covers, this book has some interesting essays — on Goan writers of colonial times, the Konkani flavour in Goa’s spoken Portuguese, and more. For those of us not adequately aware of the pre-1961 writing of Goa, in all its diversity and complexities, this is a nice place to start of.

This book’s jacket explains: “Four and a half centuries of the Portuguese presence in Goa were bound to percolate through to all walks of life, from politics to economics, from demographics to lifestyles, from religion to gender relations. Culture as a whole and literature in particular soon became productive fields for the exchanges that were taking place between Portugal and Goa. The present book reminds us of the ‘Oriental Episode’.”

Well, that’s all well said. On the one hand, we really need to do more to understand our past. Without any knee-jerk or defensive responses. On the other hand, the problem also starts the moment we try to define “our” past.

Much of Goa’s todays problems stem from the fact that we lack a common understanding of our history. As someone has pointed out, the “Goa” that underwent a Portuguese experience for four centuries or more is restricted to less than 600 kms of the current area (even if it encompassed a significant part of the overall population).

So when we fight about our language, our culture, our history, our religion, our geography and more, perhaps we need to remind ourselves that we are very different in our “similarities”. Such an approach might help us all better understand why tolerance, diversity and acknowledging the differences might work better.

PARMAL: FRAGRANCE

Prava Rai, the Chorao-based editor of Parmal, mentioned plans to publish the journal of the Goa Heritage Action Group twice (instead of once, at present) each year.

Parmal is an interesting and thought-provoking publication. It always comes up with some insights that help us better understand this complex place known as Goa. One might wish though that the definition of “heritage” could be more broad-based, to go beyond elite and middle-class concerns.

GOANS IN BURMA

Another interesting attempt that’s coming along is Yvonne Vaz-Ezdani’s proposed book that tells the story of Goan expats in Burma (now Myanmar). It is one more chapter — or should we say, book — about the lives of people from this emigration-prone region, just waiting to be told.

Yvonne can be contacted at 2409519 or raynon@vsnl.net. If you know someone who has a story to tell from this period, do get in touch.

Reena Martins, The Telegraph’s feature writer in Mumbai and a journo who traces her own roots to Pune, Mumbai and Velim, is meanwhile working — still in an early stage — on the stories of Goans in Mumbai between the 1930s and 1970s.  Reena is contactable via reenamartins@hotmail.com and do share your ideas and suggestions with her.

So, keep reading Goa-related books… and think of writing some too. It’s increasingly becoming possible to do so, as entry barriers get lower.

LIST OF BOOKSHOPS

Check this online list of bookshops in Goa: http://goanairport.com/php/showContent.php?linkid=848

Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org, 2409490 or 9970157402

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Ten Goa books by, and for, children

• The Bridge At Borim | By Surekha Panandikar | Price: Rs. 14 | Pp 79 /(1999) | A fascinating tale of the exploits of a young boy, Joze, during the struggle for Goa’s liberation from Portuguese rule. (Available from: OIBS, Mapusa)
• Alfie Alphonso: The search for the mystical Crystal | By Odette Mascarenhas | Price: Rs. 175 | Pp337 (2006) | Ever since Harry Potter became a phenomenon, more and more writers are trying their hand at the imaginary. Odette Mascarenhas has penned a story of a fairy godmother who enters the desolate world of a young Goan lad from Aldona village and transports him to the World of Magic where he tries to outwit the Dark Lord of Magic and his cohorts who are hell bent on preventing him from finding the Mystical Crystal. Will this book capture the imagination as did Potter? Recently published, it is too soon to tell. (OIBS)
• The Sea Bird | By Mangala Anaveker | Price: Rs. 100 | Pp 84 (2001) | A tale set in Goa, this book offers reflections on life interspersed in a fairly interesting narrative
• Free From School | By Rahul Alvares | Price: Rs. 100 | Pp.112 (1999) | 16-year-old snake-loving Goan, Rahul Alvares, opted out of school for a year, to unravel for himself the mysteries of nature’s wonders reptiles, crocodiles, spiders, earthworms and turtles. This book reports Rahul’s thrilling real-life learning, which students and teachers will find enormously engrossing.
• The Portrait | By Frederika Menezes | Price: Rs. 100 | Pp.81 (1998) | Sensitive thoughts, ideas and oodles of humour by a young, bubbly spastic. She translates them in poems, which show a remarkable maturity as she shares with the reader her pain, dreams and cheer.
• The Pepperns & Wars of the Mind | By Frederika Menezes | Price: Rs. 200 | Pp 173 (2003) | A whimsical tale of a world wholly of the imagination authored by a young Goan girl.
• Rebecca’s Inheritance | By Sushila Fonseca | Price: Rs. 55 | Pp 189 (2002) | An adventure story set in Goa.
• Elocution Pieces For Students | By Anita Pinto | Price: Rs. 25 | Book 1: Pp. 102 (1995) | Poems and speeches for students of all ages to recite and declaim
• Mathematics Manual For Children | By Pratap Naik | Price: Rs. 25 | Pp.43 (1996) | Learn arithmetic in Konkani with English translations. Simple steps.
• Aquaworld: The environment and ecosystems of coastal Goa | By Theresa Almeida | Price: Rs. 270 |Pp.267 (1998) LF | A resource book and activity guide. Source: http://www.otherindiabookstore.com/index.jsp

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From the screen, to the page… the story of Goa and films

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When one tried to pick up a copy of ‘Location Goa’, it took me a couple of visits and more to actually get it. To be fair to Director of Information Menino Peres, he promptly handed over a copy when we actually managed to meet.

But one still doubts that this book — about the strange relationship between Goa and films (mostly Bollywood) — has reached the hands of too many readers. In Goa or beyond.

That’s sad. Like any government-published book, once the money is spent, there isn’t any great pressures to make sure that the book is actually read, leave alone sold. The 257-page hard-bound large-size book has a lot of interesting information, which makes it even more unfortunate that it doesn’t get — or at least hasn’t yet got — the audience it deserves.

Edited by journalist and author Mario Cabral e Sa, the book is obviously aimed at shoring up Goa’s case for continuing as the permanent home of the annual International Film Festival of India (IFFI). While the mela that accompanies the IFFI should definitely go and only adds to the overall irritation of the average citizen, the IFFI itself could surely add value to the overall package that goes into making Goa an interesting and attractive place. Provided that it is better organised, of course.

Building a link between the big and glamorous world of films and tiny Goa is no mean task. Given the flak the IFFI has got — from a section of the outstation filmi-industry, politicians who want to point to flaws, media-persons who fail to see the big-picture, and also locals upset by the added pressures in their lives — it only becomes all that tougher.

But this book’s editor, Mario Cabral e Sa, does it in style. He attains a readable book by choosing an interesting set of contributors. ‘Location Goa’ also has some critical voices, enough to retain credibility but obviously not too much to upset the government authorities that paid the bill for ensuring that it came out before IFFI 2006.

This tome throws up some little-known-facts about the film world’s links with Goa. Did you know, for instance, that since the 1950s, some 90+ films were shot in Goa? Or, we are told, that the legendary Prithviraj Kapoor was introduced to films by an illiterate Goan girl called Ermelinda Cardozo of Divar? Before finishing for the ‘day’ at dawn, I ended up reading Mumbai-based journo Jerry Pinto’s chapter on the
uneasy relationship between Goans and Bollywood — in terms of how they get projected, that is.

This book continues to get peppered with unusual facts.

Whether it will convince the film-makers of the south or eastern India that Goa is a good venue for IFFI (they seem to be in a tug-of-war with the Bollywood lobby) is anyone’s guess. Would it convince locals that they need to take their own, little-noticed film links more seriously? Or, do cinematographic accidents of history make up for the lack of a film-viewing culture in a Goa where the total number of
film-clubs, for instance, could be easily counted on the fingers of one hand?

Cabral e Sa himself starts off with his chapter to the lady the book is dedicated to — Ermelinda Cardoso (Sudhabala), “the Goan star of the silent movie era….”

Chapter 1 is titled “what’s so great about Goa?” and makes a claim for talking about the nice parts of this region. Next, director Shyam Benegal — who shot ‘Trikaal’ and ‘Bhumika’ in Goa — narrates his experiences. (“I visited Goa for the first time in 1967, a few years after its liberation from Portuguese rule. It was an extraordinary experience. Goa was both a part and apart from the rest of India.”)

Poet and editor Manohar Shetty writes about Goa’s first two IFFIs. Among other essays of direct relevance to Goa are critic Deepa Gahlot’s “selection of the 20 best films shot in gorgeous Goa”.

What Gahlot says almost in passing of the film ‘Bobby’ (1973) gives a hint of the unflattering manner in which Goans feel they’ve been portrayed in Bollywood. She writes: “The film had terrific music, and was a trend-setter in its time. Bobby dresses, blouses, pins, everything became a rage. And this updated Romeo-Juliet tale spawned many rip-offs. It was a huge hit, and one of the few popular films that did not turn Goans into caricatures. Bobby must surely go down as the most stunning Goan girl seen in films for all time.”

Shama Zaidi, who wrote ‘Trikaal’ and ‘Bhumika’, recalls her experiences in Goa, in another chapter. Gahlot comes in again with a chapter on “some of the biggest stars who pranced and danced on the sets in Goa”.

Jerry Pinto argues that Hindi cinema represents Goans as people “on the margins of society”. (“It is no accident that Goa surfaces often in the imagination of Mumbai. Since the arrival of the hippies in the late 1960s and early 1970s, it has always been seen as the place where one might see nude women on the beach. That myth may have faded somewhat — though a repressed city with a skewed sex ratio in a
repressed nation is always reluctant to abandon such mythologies — but it is still seen as ‘different’, just as Roman Catholics are seen as ‘different’.”)

In another interesting piece, the late ad-man Frank Simoes writes about the making of The Sea Wolves, based on a World War II episode in Goa. Time-Out (Mumbai) editor Naresh Fernandes writes on Anthony Gonsalves and other Goan musicians in the Hindi film industry.

Andrew Greno Viegas, that great fan of Konkani film who died so early on in life just a few weeks back, has his take on Konkani cinema, a subject he had written an entire book on. Renu Iyer’s listing of 90+ films shot in Goa seems comprehensive.

All in all, a book with lots of interesting content — if you’re interested in films, in Goa, or in both.

One only wishes that after spending so much of resources to put together a fairly decent product, the Goa government would make sure it is visible, readable and buy-able in bookshops around Goa. Better still it would be if a PDF version could be made available for free download via the Net. Governments spending taxpayer money need to look beyond an all-rights-reserved copyrighted model for their
publications. With alternative approaches, the goal of collating and disseminating this information would be surely better met!

MONTE GUIRIM

Talking about alumni publications, there seem to be quite a few coming out from Bardez. In part, one suspects, this might be driven by the expat interest in the ‘old boys networks’ from this region. You simply get more nostalgic the further you are from Goa!

‘Yesterdays at Monte: Jogging Down Memory Lane’ (Aug 2006, pp 78, Rs 100, Vikram Publications Limavaddo, Porvorim) is Edward de Lima’s book on St Anthony’s at Monte Guirim.

As he puts it: “Life those days was simple and hard, but we enjoyed ourselves in different innocent ways.” This book focuses on, among other things, lunch at school, annual concerts, Mocidade Portuguesa (there was recently an interesting debate in cyberspace over how one could interpret this organisation and its politics), corporal punishments, the school’s debating society, the “brown hair episode”, retreats, and the author’s teachers and classmates.

“Those Good Ol’ Days!” (pp 82, Rs 150) is the 2006 compilation of tributes from ex-students of students from St Britto’s, St Mary’s, and St Xavier’s College at Mapusa. It shares some articles in common with ‘Britto’s Retro’ (pp 208, Rs 50), which focuses almost entirely on St Britto’s.

Maybe alumni networks could play a more active role in building links and encouraging the growth of institutions that gave generations a quality education at a pittance. It’s nice to see so many active alumni groups, including from institutions like the Goa Medical College, People’s High School, Don Bosco’s in Panjim, Loyola’s in Margao, the old Lyceum, and others.

TSKK WORK

The Porvorim-based Thomas Stevens Konknni Kendra keeps on quietly and actively publishing. Recently, one came across two, slim inexpensive publications from there.

‘Dor Mhoineachi Rotti’ is a decades-old monthly (once even published from Karachi, Pakistan) in Konkani that focuses on religious and social issues. It is now out in a new format, and priced at Rs 10 for a single issue. Details from afonsoave@yahoo.co.in or tthwalmeida@yahoo.co.in

‘Hansat Gayat Nachat: Bhurgeanchim Gitam’ (Pratap Naik sj, pp 52, Rs 20) is a tiny, pocketbook-sized compilation of poems in Konkani in the Roman script.

DON’T SELL?

Books published in Goa don’t sell. That seems to be the lament of those in the trade — specially writers and publishers. Or, some of them at least.

If we keep repeating this argument often enough, we might soon start believing that it’s true.

Miguel Braganza, a columnist for GT, commented recently: “We have few bookshops in Goa that let you browse through books before you buy one. Broadways at St. Inez, The Reading Habit at Campal and Golden Heart Emporium at Margao are the exceptions rather than the rule. Book exhibitions are still a treat in Goa.” Maybe one could add Varsha’s too.

Braganza pointed to some recent alumni publications — of Mapusa-based schools and a college — and said these gave “different perspectives of school and boarding life in Goa from 1946 (the Mocidade Portuguesa days) to the 1990s (Boy Scout camps and NCC days) that any person will enjoy reading.”

But he lamented that nobody seemed to be buying these. Even if books were being sold, was Goa reading them, he suggested?

Prominent never-say-die writer from Goa based in the US Victor Rangel-Ribeiro (vrangelrib@yahoo.com) joined the online-debate: “I agree that, with a few exceptions, even highly literate Goans do not count among the world’s great book buyers. That said, the books you cited might sell better if they are placed in more outlets than just one.”

George Pinto, a San Jose-based supporter of many a Goan cause, came up with another perspective: “Inspite of quality work, it seems to me three problems account for poor book sales: Goan apathy. Under appreciation of the humanities, arts, literature in the Goan community. No distributions network in the Goan Diaspora.”

He added: “I wonder how this can be solved.”

There are other problems too, one would argue. Goa-related books are hardly visible when published. They don’t get the reviews they deserve, in most of the local or outstation media. The market is small and scattered over a huge geographical area (the Diaspora could be a vital part of that market too, but reaching it can be tough).

Overall, the reading habit needs to be encouraged in Goa; and we have a long way to go here. But, then, we here too should be reporting a spurt in reading (like much of the rest of India, take the case of Hindi newspapers in north India) if Goa’s claims about the growth in literacy in recent years tally with reality.

But, greater visibility for the books is crucial. How will people buy one if they don’t even know it exists, or where they can pick it up from? Incidentally, one believes that Goa books should also become more affordable; nobody will pick up a copy at whatever price just because it relates to Goa.

Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org, 2409490 or 9970157402

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Goa books, best-sellers

List as per Golden Heart Emporium, Abade Faria Road, Margao-Goa. Ph.: 2732450/ 2725208 Email: goldenbookstore@hotmail.com

• GOA: The Land and the People.  Olivinho JF Gomes, National Book Trust Rs. 110
• 100 Goan Experiences Pantaleao Fernandes The World Publications Rs. 395
• GOA Romesh Bhandari Roli Books Pvt. Ltd. Rs. 225
• A Guide to the Flora and Fauna of Goa P. Killips Orient Longman Rs. 195
• Goa: A select Compilation on Goa’s Genesis Luis De Assis Correia Maureen Publishers Pvt. Ltd. Rs. 395
• Goa’s Struggle for Freedom Dr. P. P. Shirodkar Sulabha P. Shirodkar Rs. 395
• Farar Far- Local Resistance to Colonial Hegemony in Goa 1510-1912 Dr Pratima Kamat Institute Menezes Braganza Rs 200
• Goa Indica: A Critical Portrait of Postcolonial Goa Arun Sinha Bibliophile South Asia in associate with Promilla & Co., Publishers Rs. 495
• Goa With Love Mario Miranda M & M Associates Rs. 350
• House of Goa Gerard Da Cunha Architecture Autonomous Rs 1900

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Memoirs … of a voice from the airwaves

By Frederick Noronha
PRINTED WORD / On books in and about Goa
First published in Gomantak Times

This is about the most bizarre thing to do while encountering a book: try to read it from the ending! That’s just what I
did with the autobiography of someone you might know, a lady called Imelda Dias. So one is still trying to put the pieces of the jigsaw together; but it was an interesting read.

Most of Goa of a particular generation — those around here in the 1960s and 1970s — would probably remember the name “Imelda” (or even Imelda Tavora). She then was the most popular announcer in the State, at a time when radio was the unquestioned king of all the mass media. (Forget about TV, which didn’t exist here yet, and newspapers were far smaller.)

So I began reading her book with the Epilogue. This chapter took me to my schoolboy days in the 1970s, and the music that Imelda played for all of us via the radio. It came through loud and clear on Sunday afternoons. It came on Friday nights. It came in the afternoon siesta time on weekdays.

All the names of the programmes sounded so very fresh — ‘Your Choice’, ‘Latin Rhythm’, ‘Your Favourites’ and more. Many readers would probably even recall the sign-off name “Yours truly, Imelda”.

This book is about the Goa that was, touching a bit on colonial Goa and the period just after 1961. Those were times of change and uncertainty. But they were nice times too, in a way. Imelda’s book tells the story of the Catholic elite of
the times, the nostalgia with which it looks back, and life in the “good old days”.

Subtitled “An Autobiography of a Woman Ahead of Her Times”, this is also a story of a woman going against the trend, settling for a divorce in the 1960s, and facing the patriarchy of Catholic Goa of the times.

It’s a book edited by Margaret Mascarenhas, editor of ‘Skin’. Spiced with the gossipy details of Panjim’s life in the
1970s, parts of the book are very engrossing. But one couldn’t believe all one read, even if this only incited one’s curiosity to learn more of those times.

Besides her boarding years in Pune (then still Poona), this story talks about life in All India Radio, what it meant to
be a political refugee of sorts in Salazar’s Lisbon post-1961, and stories of love and romance from another era.

It’s a good read for anyone who grew up in the Goa of those years, and one would not hesitate recommending it (2006, Rs 250, printed and published by Imelda Dias, pp 189, hb).

With an catchy title like ‘How Long Is Forever’ and a covered mostly in black-and-white cover, this is a book that would
catch your attention. Strangely, it isn’t very well displayed in most bookshops. Friends I mentioned it to, had all not
come across it either!

Learn Konkani

How do you sell a book in a scattered market like Goa, complicated by the fact that, despite our literacy, we are
not quite a heavy-reading population?

Jesuit linguist-priest Dr Pratap Naik recently announced that the TSKK Konknni Course Book in the Roman script will be released in the last week of September 2007.

At a special pre-publication price of Rs 175, this book is available — via post — from the Thomas Stephens Konknni
Kendr, B.B.Borkar Road, Alto Porvorim, Goa – 403 521.

Publishing travails

I ran into Odette Mascarenhas via cyberspace, thanks to a brief mention of one of her books in last week’s column.

Writes Odette: “I would definitely help in any way I can to encourage Goan writers to reach their goal. I know how
difficult it can be.” She is herself the author of two books. Besides the one mentioned last week, there’s “Masci: The Man Behind The Legend” on the famed chef Miguel Arcanjo Mascarenhas.

Rashmi Uday Singh wrote about the latter in businesstravellerindia.com: “It’s fascinating how a Goan kitchen boy whose job was plucking 200 chickens a day rose to become world’s celebrated chef who catered to the kings and
queens and viceroys of the world. Not only does his story come alive, you can actually recreate his food and have a
taste of this legend too.”

But Odette Mascarenhas, from her experience with two books, has another less glamorous story to narrate. The first major hurdle in her work was finding the right publisher. Says she: “We have been running helter skelter to all the big names for over three years. Tata Press, Wilco, Rupa, Penguin, Jaico. While they all liked the idea, the question was: is it a viable investment. Very few Goans are known in this field.”

After publishing the book on their own, getting the book stocked and distributed — even in Goa itself — proved another challenge.

Says she: “Moreover… though space is expensive, it would be nice, if they (book outlets in Goa) could keep a small ‘Goan corner’ for writers to promote their skills (in local bookstores). After all if a fellow Goan will not help another, who will? Its happening for art, with exhibitions to promote local artists, but writing has taken a back seat.”

She adds: “The idea of having a read-out session (to promote Goa-based books) seems brilliant. They do it abroad. Maybe some shop could buy the idea?”

Online text

What the print world finds it difficult to do, the online world manages. A statement put out in cyberspace says that
the entire Konkani Bible is now available online in Kannada script. See http://www.konkanibible.org/

Career books

In these days of competitiveness, when the world throws open a range of opportunities, are students in Goa geared up to seize them? At times when parents are willing to pay upto Rs 35,000 as annual fees for primary school, we could do with a better range of career opportunities at the adolescent level.

Two Goa books on careers made it to the bookshops recently. One was ex-Gomantak Times journalist Ilidio de Noronha’s “Careers: The Complete Guide” (Pp 178, Rs 150, Plus Publications, 2464687) and the other is “Choose Your Very Own Career: A Guide for Students, Parents and Teachers” (Pp 617, Rs 65, Basil D’Cunha).

The latter is an English-Konkani book. Both carry advertisements, making their prices more affordable to the young, who would obviously be their main target audience.

Question is: will such books, which contain a whole lot of useful information, reach to the educators, students, parents, and school libraries — that can make better use of them?

While everyone gets worked out about “non-Goans” entering the State, and the buy-out of Goa’s land resources, we don’t seem as concerned about ensuring that our kids are competitive enough to take on the bigger world. Books like these are a welcome addition to those published in Goa.

Feedback welcome: fred@bytesforall.org, 832-2409490 or +91-9970157402

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Some new books from Goa…covers and more

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Looking at another side of Goa

Goa is often subsumed in media-driven clichés of being a beach-sun-and-fun place. The dominant image we are left with is of a State on permanent holiday, urbanised and inhabited by a Westernised middle-class. This reality too does exist in pockets, but its dominant project sidetracks a range of other issues. Social activist Kalanand Mani and journalist Frederick Noronha focus on concerns emerging from the farm and field, and tell the story of a Goa often overlooked. For this task, they lean on the work of the Madkai (Ponda)-based Peaceful Society, which completes a quarter century of encountering rural Goa. They track other work focussing on the concerns of the poor, in a way that seeks to build a closer understanding of Goa’s heartland.

Table of Contents

PREFACE
Into the forests, issues of the people
Poor health, rural Goa’s hidden enemy
Liquor is quicker, a way to fast death
No protein, vanishing fish, wasted subsidies
Caste, an old story seldom told
Mining, Goa’s `backbone’, extracts a high price
Goa years: re-learning the politics of activism
Revisiting Baina: a forgotten chapter
It pours, it rains… water still a neglected issue
From the grassroots, it’s more than politics
Goa women: still a long way away
Infrastructure: beyond dry numbers

ISBN 978-81-905682-8-9

Goa 1556 is an alternative publishing venture, named after the accidental arrival of Asia’s first Gutenberg-inspired printing press here. Today, more than ever, Goa needs a voice to help understand itself and articulate its own priorities. Other publications of Goa1556: Songs of the Survivors (stories about Goans in Burma, edited by Yvonne Vaz-Ezdani, 2007), In Black And ite: Insiders’ Stories About the Press in Goa (2008), and Girls In Green (alumni writings from St Mary’s, Mapusa, 2008). See http://goa1556books.notlong.com

——————————————-

Price: Rs. 150 in India.  Pp 126 + iv
Overseas US$ 10 or Euro 8 or UKP 6.50

Published in November 2008 by Goa
1556, 784, Sonarbhat, Saligao 403511 Bardez Goa, India. 

http://goa1556.goa-india.org or goa1556@gmail.com +91-832-2409490.
Cover design by Bina Nayak http://www.binanayak.com
Photo credits: FN and  Peaceful Society peacefulsociety.org archives
Distributor: Broadway Book Centre, Ashirwad, 18th June Rd, Panjim  403001. Ph/fax 6647038. http://broadwaybooksgoa.com
Printed and bound in India by Rama Harmalkar, 9326102225

Typeset using LyX, http://www.lyx.org
Text set in Computer Modern Roman, 11 point.

Licence: Creative Commons 3.0, non-commercial,  attribution. May be reproduced for non-commercial purposes, with attribution. This is a beyond-copyrights book.