PANAJI
Khell tiatrists and stage artists have kept their fingers crossed on the issue of imposing of hefty fees by the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) for shows at the upcoming Carnival festivities.
In its recent decision, GSPCB had announced that the khell tiatrists would have to pay Rs 3,000 per show to the board as fees. Most khell tiatrists had called this decision arbitrary and claimed that it is unfair to slap such a steep fee on this traditional form of community entertainment that has been continued for decades in Goa.
According to tiatrist Arnaldo Costa who led the delegation of the khell tiatrists to approach the Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira, a resolution is being worked out. The delegation had appealed for either exempting from the payment of fees or imposing a nominal fee.
Speaking on the latest development in the matter, Arnaldo stated, “The environment minister has assured us that the issue will be resolved, and that the khell tiatrists will not have to pay any charges. He added that the minister assured to speak to the Chief Minister and the Deputy Collector.
Tiatrist Michael Gracias explained that during the Carnival three plays are staged, of 30-45 minutes each and one can consider two hours duration for one show. “The government should not tax us as the shows are free and there is no income generated out of them. The onus of paying the artists, musicians is on the director. This tradition is centuries old and we are promoting it. What was the intention of the government? Was it trying to kill the tradition by imposing tax?” he questioned.
Menino de Bandar, a veteran tiatrist who began his career directing khell tiatrs argued saying, “During the day there is no noise pollution, more so, because most of the times there is no sound system used. The use of a mike is only required if the crowd is large or if there are songs. Since the shows are usually during the day, the rule of noise pollution should only apply if the show continues after 10 pm.”
According to Menino charging fees for sound pollution from the khell tiatrists is unfair. “The tiatrists who do khell tiatr during the three-day Carnival festivities do so not for any commercial gains. They continue the traditional folk art for pure entertainment purpose. If heavy fees are charged for staging such free shows, they would stop taking the effort of travelling to places to do the shows. If that happens, this art form would be endangered,” said Menino.
Another seasoned actor-director Socorro de Santa Cruz agreed that sometimes the show ends at 11 pm or beyond that. “The issue of the decibel comes in picture after 10 pm or if the crowd is more than 50. Generally, mike is used as the show should be audible to all, even the people at the back. Khell tiatr is seasonal, once in a year during the Carnival. This is not a yearlong activity and the government should give us free hand,” he opined.
Khell tiatr and art lover Marius Fernandes reasoned that “the government should be thankful to khell tiatr groups for preserving the rich cultural heritage that the State is known for, and instead of imposing a charge on them, should fund them.
Marius pointed out that with no financial backing from anywhere it is difficult to run the shows, “There is huge expenditure, and since the shows are free, there’s no income. The directors have to pay the musicians and the artists, and also bear the cost of travelling, infrastructure and food. Still, they have continued to do khell tiatr year after year just to preserve the art form that is born out of this land.”
