CANACONA
Sao Joao celebrations were held all over the taluka, where youths from other faiths also took part in the day-long revellery in Canacona on Saturday.
After a morning feast mass to honour the birth of St John Baptist, parish youths held Sao Joao celebrations in the evening while a few parishes scheduled their celebrations for Sunday.
This has however, not detered different groups of people from different villages from having their own wild Sao Joao celebrations, with rains providing the exact ambience needed for the same.
In fact, with the monsoon-in-full-swing rains starting only for a day, and the village springs or rivulets not exactly flowing, many of the groups, made arrangements for artificial rain showers and rest made merry with drinks and foods in some of the private swimming pools across the taluka.
Incidentally, Sao Joao, a traditional Goan celebration on the birth anniversary of St John Baptist, practiced by Catholic community all over had youths of other faiths also join in the celebrations at some of the places in Canacona.
Agonda parish youth organised the celebrations decorating the open ground outside the church, where people from all the 10 Somudais participated and took part in Sao Joao celebrations. Different competions were held for couples, youths, senior citizens including kopel-making, competitive games, fruits decorations, while different Somudai’s prepared and brought patoleo, sozi, shevio, folle(Leaves-Cone), besides the Somudai’s presented folk dances, fashion show, mando’, folk plays, and different games were played, to the tune of Sao Joao lyrics and songs played by Dj to mark the wild Sao Joao celebrations,
Agonda Parish priest Fr Patrick Luis and Assistant Parish Priest Fr Baltazar Fernandes took active part in mingling with their flock, well organised by the newly formed St Anne’s Parish Youth Association.
Elsewhere in the village, the youth had their own celebrations starting early afternoon with ‘Drink, Dine and Dance party’s with Carnatic music on large speakers, as some more of the village had the celebations in swimming pools.
Palolem in Canacona, however, lead the way with wild celebrations annually held by Palolem United Trust (PUT) where the youths earlier decorate the sorroundings of Palolem Youth Club House. Different competitions, and Sao Joao delicacies prepared and brought by invidual households were shared as peope in hundreds joined in the celebrations. PUT Chairman Simon Rebello said, ‘this annually celebrated Sao Joao could not be held for the past 2 years during covid time, but held in a minimal way last year.’This year the celebrations started soon after attending the feast mass, and by 10 am most of our people were out on a house to house visits for Sao Joao, before assembling her (Palolem Youth Club), where now all the dancing and performances are held’. Besides, the customary Patoleo for Sao Joao, Pinagr, Dosh, while children, women outnumbered their male counterparts in large numbers while onlookers in hundreds enjoyed the Sao Joao revelleries at the world famous Palolem beach.
However, one of the unique Sao Joao celebrations were held at Mastimoll area, where non-Catholics almost outnumbering the Catholics joined the Sao Joao celebrations. Interestingly, Councillor Dhriaj Naikagaunkar declared the celebrations-open by putting a Sao-Joao Kopel on the head of one of the villagers Moses Fernandes, setting off wild celebrations.
People carrying bananas, papaya, jackfruit, pineapple, drinking and eating dancing in the rains with hard music played around, celebrated the traditional festival of the people in Canacona. Naikgaunkar said, "We have traditionally lived together, come what may we will keep this togetherness for eternity." Drinks and Food were served irrespective of communities and all present enjoyed the same.
While wcelebrations held all over the taluka, a couple of parishes however, celebrated Sao Joao on Sunday with differents programmes and activities.
