BHARATI PAWASKAR
Child is the father of man’, goes the proverb and if we educate our children to be good Samaritans, the future of the world will be in safe hands. To be connected deeply to the roots of our socio-cultural history is a privilege which few get a chance to do. Believing in the thought that it is our moral duty to educate our children about our past, a little island Divar, which is upriver 10 km from the capital city of Goa, Panaji - has come out with an innovative concept - of celebrating Burgeanchem Fest or children’s festival in association with ‘Uzwaad - The Rays of Hope’.
It is for the first time in the cultural history of Goa that a festival dedicated to the children is happening with the sole aim to introduce GenNext to the rich culture and ethos of the state. Hosted by Our Lady of Divar High School, with the support of the headmaster Fr Mario Moraes and the manager Fr Jose Dias, the three-day fun-filled bonanza ‘Burgeanchem Fest’ (children’s festival) that kick-started on May 7 at Divar has a lot to offer on its platter - the first being an insightful talk by guest speaker Prajal Sakhardande on the combined and colourful history of Divar and Goa. Artist Savio Goudinho’s painting workshop was an attraction. So was the tiatr workshop by Michael Jude Gracious and Valency D’Souza. Goa United Football Academy player Augustin Dias, Fabian D’Souza conducted a football workshop too.
Open for all, the festival offers an array of activities on all three days including workshops in dance, art, street play, music, football, painting, gardening, media and publicity, singing, painting, quizzes, live demonstrations and stage performances. Guest speaker and plant lover Miguel Braganza will give a talk on plants and home gardening on May 8. One of the daughters of Divar, Sangeeta Naik will give a talk on the effective use of mobiles/internet to aid academic studies on May 9. Old games of Goa would be played too. There’s a street play on awareness on art. Children will sing old Konkani songs. Divar is a place where many of the Mandos (traditional Goan folk songs) were composed. The popular Konkani kantar ‘Luisine Mhajya Luisine’ too is the gift of Divar.
‘Uzwaad’ volunteers Sandra Pereira and Arati Sardesai Rane have shouldered the responsibility of organising workshops which are open for all. There would be singing of Konkani songs from 12 noon to 1 pm. The registration for the camp starts at 8.30 to 9 am and the fest will close by 1 pm. The festival venue is the campus of Our Lady of Divar HS and many of the ex-students are contributing their bit to the festival in their own way. Marius Fernandes, and his son Ashley Fernandes, both of who were ex-students of the very same school in different times, are extending their support to this educational institute by crowdfunding. “We wish to raise funds to support the extra-curricular activities like sports and music in the school, wherein teachers would engage students in training after school hours,” briefs Ashley who believes more ex-students must step forward for similar contributions to their own schools. “The schools impart so much knowledge to us, it is time we give back in whatever way we can,” expresses ‘festakar’ Marius who has initiated the village celebrations of feasts in Goa.
The fest will have no prizes, no sponsors, no chief guest, no competition, no plastic and no alcohol. The campus will be kept free of plastic. Banning the use of plastic straws, the fest will have a demo on paper straw making. An added attraction would be the Goan pottery, rangoli and the display of different varieties of locally grown mangoes, wild fruits and local vegetables. Francisco Fernandes will demonstrate broom making from coconut leaves. The festival will adopt the neglected medicinal plant ‘Rui’ and narrate its uses. Indeed, the fest has something for each one attending.
