Tiatr has long been a platform that mirrors society and the people’s thoughts and views. It became a staging ground for revolutions, a way to educate people on issues and an unofficial crusader during agitations and serious problems. Over the decades, tiatr has been championed, both by the government and the Tiatr Academy of Goa, as well as independent directors who prefer to function on their own steam and not under the aegis of the government, where they would be subjected to restrictions.
But never has there been an all-out brawl on the tiatr stage. There’s a first for everything though. The record was broken on Saturday evening, as tiatrist Conception de Tuem was badly beaten by a group of people, led by Jennifer Fernandes, wife of Francis de Tuem. Fernandes apparently was offended by lyrics sung by Conception and led a group of supporters on stage to beat up the tiatrist before he was even halfway through his song.
A melee ensued, as many from the audience jumped on stage to help the fallen and bruised tiatrist, while others attempted to push those who were assaulting him. Then there was a group of people who had formed a cordon around Fernandes, ushering towards the exit. Tiatr, as a medium, has never before been plunged into such murky waters. Pai Agostinho and others who held the tiatr flag high would have been turning in their graves.
Fernandes and her husband allege that Conception de Tuem was singing songs about them, hence the violence. Conception claims that his song was about politicians and tiatrists. Many would recall the incident a few years ago when Francis de Tuem went head to head with Mickky Pacheco, after the MLA took offence to comments made about him and his personal life by Francis. The police were called in and Francis de Tuem were arrested and taken in for questioning. Back then in 2013, the tiatrist called out Pacheco for involving the police and claimed ‘freedom of expression’. If that was the case back then, what leg does Francis de Tuem have to stand on now?
If there was anything offensive about the song, there were legal ways in which Francis could have taken this forward. But his wife’s presence there at the tiatr, along with supporters, only shows that the assault was planned in advance. Two verses of a song are not enough to get anyone so incensed that they beat up the singer. Their actions are condemnable. Violence was uncalled for during the tiatr on Saturday night. Francis de Tuem, his wife Jennifer Fernandes, and others who helped, have to face the consequences of bringing violence into tiatr. There is no way to justify their actions. They have to pay the price for this.
