From a cultural melee that saw the Goan community presentmingle with their Portuguese counterparts to broaden horizons between the twoplaces, to a complete fracas on foreign soil when the goenkars got together fora night out on the town, it all went down in Lisbon last week.
Over the course of the week long time slot, prominentbusinessmen got together in an attempt to boost trade links, and put the bestfoot forward in the name of commerce. The same can be said aboutrepresentatives in the sector of travel and tourism that both Goa and Portugal arefamous for. However, it was the cultural aspect of the week that really stoodout and completely stole the limelight. Fomento Resources’ involvement in thisyear’s Semana da Cultura Indo Portuguesa ensured that the Goan delegationconsisting of the states finest artists, dancers, photographers, filmmakers,and musicians were able (for the most part) to travel across to perform, or atleast have their work sent overseas to be put on display.
Semana Da Cultura Indo-Portuguesa organisational groupconsisted of key members Anil Counto, Chairman of the Executive Committee, JoseElmano Coelho Pereira, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Committee and DrAntonio Sabido Costa, Consul General of Portugal in Goa and Convenor of theCommittee. The event was also locally supported by Club Vasco-da-Gama, ClubNational, Club Harmonia, Indo-Portuguese Friendship Society, Fundacao Oriente,Institute Camoes, CII and GCCI.
Celebrated Goan Fadista Sonia Shirsat is a household namethat is known far and wide as an exponent of the art form, yet she brought withher renowned classical musician Pravin Gaonkar who inadvertently wowedaudiences with something completely alien to their culture. The same can besaid of Kanta Gaude’s folk troupe. Their depiction of typically native Goandance forms is vibrant, and the form of musical accompaniment it brings with itis generally unheard of. As such, it is nothing short of a very pleasantculture shock to the Portuguese population by and large. Yet the audiences werewowed by the overall contribution of these same artists.
The Semana Da Cultura Indo-Portuguesa committee in Portugalwas led by the President of Casa De Goa at Portugal, Naraina Coissoró. Theirinvolvement, among other things, ensured the inclusion of a breath-takingexhibition of photographs by celebrated Goan photographers Pantaleao Fernandes,Assavri Kulkarni and Sanjeev Sardessai, that was organised at the FundacaoChampalimaud. Several images of Goa’s scenic landscapes were showcased to theguests present, an introduced the general public to a sometimes unseen side ofGoa. The Ambassador of India to Portugal, Brij Tyagi hosted the scenic eveningon Avenida Brasilia.
The screening of Rajendra Talak’s much acclaimed film OMaria, along with its fellow screen counterparts Jagor and Pultandcho Munis bysaw many a Portuguese cinephile step out of its linguistic comfort zone topartake in an unprecedented experience. Filmmaker Talak was present at theevent and overwhelmed by the response of the public at the Museu de Oriente andCinemateca, a prestigious film institute in the country. An interaction wasscheduled at Cinemateca where film makers from Portugal and Goa were able tointeract with each other.
The showstopper however, was an evening of gastronomicdelight, as three of Goa’s celebrated chefs from Cidade de Goa as well as O Coqueiro gottogether in order to prepare a sumptuous meal that was of Goan origin. Bringingtheir experience that spans countries and boasts of award winning feats, thetrio catered to mammoth crowd of over 600 people, and had peoples plates wipedclean.
But it was not all work with no fun involved. The weeklongexpedition held a lot in store for members of the Goan contingent. From toursof the city, to an outing to the religious landmark that is Fatima, the entiretroupe underwent an experience that broadened their view on all things to dowith Portugal, just as their art forms highlighted to Goa’s Portuguesebrethren, what the little state is all about.
