20 Jun 2015 | 11:39pm IST
A masterful career
Master Vaz is one of the most popular singers of
yesteryears. While his contribution in the field of
songs is immense, his involvement in several
tiatrs staged by noted tiatrists in Mumbai also
deserve a mention
PIO ESTEVES
Jose Lawrence Vaz, originally
presently residing in Utorda, his
wife Marianin’s home village, was
born on September 6, 1927. Though
born in Goa, Jose was brought up at
Jose is the only son of late Benjamin
and Maria Aurora Vaz, both tiatrists of
unique calibre who showcased their
theatrical skills in tiatrs staged across
Mumbai. “In 1934, when tiatrist
Saluzin from Bardez decided to stage
his tiatr ‘Bomboichi Ixttinn’ in
Mumbai, my parents acted in the said
drama as Mr and Mrs Vaz. At the tender
age of 7, when the director
introduced me in his tiatr, he described
same name clicked thereafter on the
Konkani stage,” he informs.
During that period, Pako, Ernest
Rebello and Saluzin would compose
songs and Jose would sing them with
nostalgia. As his elder sister
Josephine was also a good singer,
she too joined her brother in singing
duets for almost two years. His
brother-in-law Sebastian D’Souza,
popularly known as S D Punewala,
also joined the fray and composed
songs for this versatile singer.
At the age of 12, Jose tried his hand
at penning tiatr scripts and staged his
first tiatr, ‘Jack and Mack, Tarvar
Zalem Pack’ at St Martin’s Hall,
Bandra. “It wasn’t a full-fledged tiatr,
but more of a concert, and the audience
appreciated it,” he reveals. His
next two tiatrs were ‘Addecho Dotor’
When Minguel Rod came to Mumbai
with his tiatr, he welcomed Vaz in his
tiatr. After regular rehearsals, Vaz and
Kid Boxer would settle for a drink at
Mahim. “One fine day while waiting
for the bus, Kid Boxer saw a board at
Metro Cinema. It read ‘Metro-
Goldwyn-Mayer’ and he instantly
suggested the name ‘Kid Young Rod’
for his troupe. It would take Minguel
Rod just one night to pen a tiatr
which he would then pass on to Kid
Boxer for rectification of dialogues.
But all songs, including the cantos,
would be penned by Minguel Rod,”
reminisces this tiatrist.
“For the first time, Paulo Marcel
Pereira from Goa Velha brought
Minguel Rod’s tiatrs ‘Ghorchem
Kestanv’ and ‘Bapul Bhav’ to Goa
from Mumbai. During that period, the
entire troupe would reside at Paulo’s
residence at Goa Velha,” informs
Thereafter, contractors from Verna
and Cansaulim, Caetan Bev/Kontu
and Sakratis/Paru respectively, followed
track and started staging
Minguel Rod’s tiatrs in several villages,
Cansaulim. “From November to
January, we would be in Goa to stage
a tiatr and reside at Minguel Rod’s
residence at Cortalim. On the feast of
Three Kings (January 3) we would
conclude our final performance at
Cansaulim and return to Mumbai,”
When in Minguel Rod’s troupe, Jose
picked up the skill of penning and
singing songs, besides scripting tiatrs.
He also showcased his talent in tiatrs
staged by Prem Kumar, C Alvares, J P
Souzalin and Aleixin de Candolim.
Blessed with 9 children (three daughters
and six sons), Vaz is today
enjoying the sunset years of his life in
the company of his children and
grandchildren. His daughters, Felez
and Maxie and son, Marcus Vaz, have
acted in khell tiatrs staged by Vitorin
“As a singer, my son Marcus has excelled
appreciation from all. When he was in
Kuwait, and he staged his tiatr
‘Almachea Disa’; he took me to perform
Antonette de Calangute and Marcelin
de Betim for the show,” says Jose,
with pride. “I have appealed to my
son to share his compositions with
other singers who sometimes cannot
compose their own songs,” he adds.
Focusing on the present palette of
songs in several tiatrs, he states:
“Each of the singers presents merely
their solos on stage and walks away.
Variety in the form of duos, duets,
trios and quartets fail to make its appearance
disheartened. Absence of varied
songs is precisely because singers
don’t meet more often to share ideas
and consequently creation of duets,
trios and choral takes a backseat.”
