PANAJI
Noted Goan tiatrist John Claro Fernandes has been conferred with a one-time ‘Sangeet Natak Akademi Award’ for playwrighting which was announced on Friday.
Writer, director and actor John is among the 75 artists across India and the only artist from Goa who has been selected by the national academy of music, dance and drama for this prestigious award. The award is to honour those artists above 75 years of age and who have not been accorded any national honour in their career.
The awardees represent the nation, and belong to different states and Union Territories. Besides, these artists cover the different genres of the performing arts of India, said the ministry of art and culture, government of India in a statement.
The award carries a purse of Rs 1 lakh, besides a ‘Tamrapatra’ and ‘Angavastram’.
It was John who carried out research of the history of tiatr and discovered that the first tiatr, ‘Italian Bhurgo’, was staged on April 17, 1892 in new Alfred Theatre, Bombay where the Police Commissioner headquarters now stands. On December 25, 1953, John penned his first tiatr, ‘Camil Bottler’, and simultaneously acted in it for the first time.
“Being a prominent tiatr artiste from Goa, John Claro Fernandes deserved to get this award much before,” exclaimed Tomazinho Cardozo playwright, writer and former president of Tiatr Academy of Goa, adding further, “He has done lot of work on the tiatr stage and is one of the first to stage 100 shows of his tiatr in Goa ‘Purtugez Kolvont’. John’s writings are historically rich and always focussed on societal problems.”
John who hails from Cotombi-Quepem, is the first to document the lives of tiatrists of yesteryears, and has recently released a book on the same titled ‘Stalwarts of the Tiatr Stage’, shared Tomazinho. “John has contributed in improving the standard of tiatr and taking note of his contributions to the tiatr stage Sangeet Natak Akademi should have honoured him long ago. But better late than never. We, the tiatr fraternity from Goa congratulate him and acknowledge his precious service to tiatr stage,” said the former Speaker of Goa Assembly lauding his colleague’s achievement.
