LONDON
The Piedade Youth Association (PYA) at Divar-Goa has decried the use of the name ‘Bonderam’ during the Goan UK Bonderam festival at the Cranford Community Hall, Hounslow-London, on October 3.
In a notice issued to fellow Goenkars on social media shortly before the event, the PYA stated that the notice is being put out “with great disappointment” to inform them about the event “in the name of ‘UK Bonderam’ against the will and sentiments of the people of Divar and Piedade Youth Association.”
“We have made multiple requests to the organisers in the UK to understand and respect the sentiments of the festival and the island of Divar to which the festival Bonderam and its essence belongs,” stated the notice.
“Our requests have been ignored, hence we have to put out this notice to inform you that we are in no way associated nor approve of any other event in the name of Bonderam happening in the UK or anywhere else.”
“It is a humble request to all Goans to help protect our centuries-old Goan traditions and respect the sentiments of the people of Divar and Goa,” the notice added.
When contacted, PYA President Clarence Fernandes clarified that the PYA had no issues with people celebrating festivals abroad.
“The people of Divar have requested to follow the essence of the festival. The essence of celebrating Bonderam is the harvest festival, which is always celebrated in August; the blessing of the crop of the year and offering to God; the demarcation of the fields of Divar; and flags parading on the Xim of Divar. None of these essential elements can be replicated anywhere else besides the island of Divar. The people of Divar have given value to this festival,” said Fernandes.
“For example, there are multiple variations of a chicken curry, but there is only one Xacuti. A true Goenkar knows that you need the coconut (chun) and Xacuti masala. Only then does it become a Xacuti, and different from a normal chicken curry. Without the basic essence, the name makes no sense, and we need to respect that.”
“In the same way, we request people to understand and respect the thoughts and sentiments of our heritage and to understand why the essence is important. We truly believe a true Goenkar will always be able to differentiate between a normal chicken curry and an authentic Chicken Xacuti.”
Stating that the UK festival name was changed to ‘Bhavtte’ last year, Fernandes added: “If the purpose is to celebrate the culture, it could be celebrated in that name while respecting the sentiments of the people of Divar.”
Stating that the PYA has the copyright for ‘Bonderam’ in India, Fernandes said, “We hope this provides clarity on the essence and sentiments of our people of Divar.”
