PANJIM: Ophelia Cabral, tragedy queen of the Konkani stage, passed away in the wee hours of February 19 in Mumbai. Incidentally, the day coincided with the death anniversary of her husband late Bab Peter.
Born to Albert and Leena Cabral and hailing from Socorro, Porvorim, Ophelia spent most of her life and career in Mumbai. She was one of the most versatile actresses and singers of her time and mesmerized the audience with her acting and singing abilities.
Ophelia first acted in A F Rod’s tiatr ‘Opurbayechi Sun’ in 1954. Her portrayal of a wicked daughter-in-law impressed the audience as well as other tiatr directors.
She established herself as a talented actress in the tiatr ‘Avoicho Xirap’, written and directed by C Alvares. Since then, she went on to perform different roles very effectively with depth and maturity in numerous tiatrs.
She acted with almost all tiatr stalwarts, including Master Vaz, Dr Simon Fernandes, C Alvares, Souzalino and M Boyer.
Ophelia also wrote and directed her own tiatrs, like ‘Mhojim Bhurgim’ and ‘Bailanchi Sobai’. She and her husband jointly produced and directed eight tiatrs, which were acclaimed by the people.
She was a good singer and some of her songs have become immortal. She has displayed her talents of acting and singing not only in Goa and Bombay, but also in Bahrain, Muscat, Dubai, and Beirut.
Ophelia was the recipient of Tiatr Academy’s Lifetime Contribution to Tiatr Award in 2009 and Goa State Cultural Award in 2010-11 for her contribution towards tiatr. She gave outstanding performances in Konkani films like ‘Amchem Noxib’, ‘Nirmonn’, ‘Boglantt’, ‘Bhuyerantlo Monis’ and ‘Mogachi Faxi’.
She leaves behind a daughter Babli, who also turned out to be a good singer. Ophelia was the sister of another great star of the Konkani stage, late Miss Mohana.
On behalf of the tiatr fraternity and tiatr lovers, Tiatr Academy of Goa (TAG) has condoled Ophelia’s bereaved family.
