FRIDAY, APRIL 26, 2024
The 54th edition of the All Goa State Mando Festival will be held on December 9-10. It will be held at the Menezes Braganza Hall. This year due to the circumstances caused by the virus, only 150 people have been invited to be present on the occasion. This year the focus will only be on the seniors. The children and the teenagers will not be present to present their skill. As far as the seniors are concerned 13 groups had already registered. The festival will be shown live on Facebook and Youtube. Mando is one such folk art which is a musical form that evolved during the 19th and 20th century among Goan Catholics of Goa, India. It represents the meeting point of Indian and western musical traditions. The music has elements of both Indian and western culture. The males wear formal coats, showing Portuguese influence, while females wear a unique Indian costume (bazu torop or pano baju). The ceremonial torhop-baz worn during the mando dance was of velvet or silk, red, blue or green in colour, embroidered with gold (rarely with silver) threads. A white or blue shawl was worn. The socks had to be white and the slippers ornamented. This was all graced with a fan, which enhanced the lady’s mood with a secret charm during the dance.Now adays mandos are highlighted with their dance respective of their song. The plural of manddo in Konkani is mande.The major theme of mandos is love, the minor ones being historical narratives, grievance against exploitation and social injustice, and political resistance during the Portuguese presence in Goa. With grace in voice charm in costumes the performances are enhanced.
The mando is mostly a monologue, in the first person singular or plural, except for the historical narratives. In some mandos, however, one person addresses another, who in turn replies. Singing is accompanied by gentle turning sideways to the rhythm, thus creating both a visual and auditory performance. The first mando is thought to have been written down around 1840. However this beautiful form of singing has a tradition which can be traced back much further than that. Although the mando cannot strictly be classified as a traditional folk song form; it has been established in Goa for many years.
