A pillar of Konkani tiatr

John Claro Fernandes was born on December 5, 1930 and for the past 60 years he has played an important part in the development of Goan tiatr. It was John Claro who carried out research of the history of tiatr and discovered that the first tiatr, ‘Italian Bhurgo’, was staged on April 17, 1892 in new Alfred Theatre, Bombay where the Police Commissioner headquarters now stands.

A liking for theatre and local art began when John Claro was in school and he would actively participate in the annual social gatherings. Soon after completing his primary education, he stepped on the professional stage in Roque Afonso’s tiatr ‘Eke Oklek Teg Novre’ wherein he was one of the bridegrooms along with Kamat de Asolna and Saluzinho while Lucas Fernandes was portrayed as the bride.

Gradually, this tiatrist came in contact with late M Boyer as both were neighbours at Maddel Pequem, Margao. Before Liberation, as there were scarce educational institutions in Goa, John Claro had to move to Bombay in order to pursue further education and seek employment. 

On December 25, 1953, this tiatrist penned his first tiatr, ‘Camil Bottler’, and simultaneously acted in it for the first time. “The tiatr was directed by Souza Ferrao and it had artistes like Master Vaz, C Alvares, Effie Fernandes, Andrew, Anthony de Sa, Anthony Mendes and other popular artistes from Mumbai,” he recalls.

“It was staged at P T Bangwadi at Calvadevi and this hall was a testing ground for all the tiatrists in Mumbai. If your tiatr was successful there, then you could stage it again,” informs John Claro. “As my tiatr was well accepted by the audience, it was staged again at Caswaf Jhangir Paul Hall in aid of a section of the church, and the first cardinal of Mumbai, Valerian Gracias, watched it,” he adds. 

The next tiatr to follow from the mighty pen of John Claro was ‘Rinnkari Zanvoi’ which was also staged in Mumbai. Till date, this versatile tiatrist has penned and staged 15 tiatrs which include ‘Nirmiloli Sun’, ‘Gupit Karann’, ‘Ghorabeachi Durdoxea’, ‘Utrachi Mudi’, ‘Purtugez Kolvont’, ‘Trevis Vorsam’, ‘Konkani Advogad’, ‘Inglez Madam’, ‘Tambddi Mati’, ‘Rostadak Ostad’, ‘Vinglli Nachpinn’, ‘Civil Kazar’ and ‘American Dollar’.

After Liberation, when John Claro came back to Goa, he staged his second tiatr, ‘Rinnkari Zanvoi’, for the tiatr buffs in Goa too. No doubt, he also staged his first tiatr, ‘Camil Bottler’, in Goa, but it could not be staged beyond two shows as Souza Ferrao was in the lead role.

But John Claro won the hearts of the tiatr lovers with his tiatr ‘Purtugez Kolvont’ which touched the century-mark within a short period of time. Thereafter, it was staged outside Goa as well, thus completing a double century. He admits that during those days, there were limited auditoriums and it was difficult to stage tiatrs on a regular basis. 

Unveiling the secret behind the success story of his century tiatr, he says, “This tiatr was written in Portugal after watching a fado at Algarve, a tourist centre. The tiatr begins with a fado and there’s a lot of entertainment in it, especially the comedy aspect. The comedy was scripted especially for Paul Romy and the main role was written keeping Ofelia in mind, but she could not make it. Instead, Sabina, despite looking a bit mature for the role, did full justice to her character.” 

Recipient of the Goa State Cultural Award 1993-94, John Claro’s last tiatr was ‘Amerikan Dollar’. He vividly recalls that the proprietor of Herald Publications, late Antonio Fernandes and thereafter his son Raul Fernandes always co-operated with regard to publishing tiatr advertisements, even if it meant a late night dash to the office. 

Besides tiatr writer/director, John Claro was also a prolific writer and his writings can be traced in publications like Goa Times, Sot Uloi, Goan Express, New Goa, Goycho Avaz, Gulab, The Goan Review, Navhind Times, Herald and Gomantak Times. Two years after the liberation of Goa, he penned one novel, ‘Norsicho Mog’, which is a story of a mother and it was published by Prabhakar Tendulkar. His much acclaimed tiatr, ‘Purtugez Kolvont’, is also available in print form.

Comparing modern tiatrs to yesteryears, he confides, “Today’s tiatr has no vision. It is a mere copy from films and TV serials. When we penned tiatrs, we never saw the financial aspect. It was only the love of stage and art.” “Today’s comedy has a lot of vulgarity and it cannot be compared to earlier comedy by Kid Boxer, Anthony Mendes and Jacinto Vaz. Minguel Rod knew what people wanted and he delivered, which helped him to succeed in his career,” he adds.               

After ten years of sanyas as a tiatr writer and director, this 85-year-old gentleman today runs ‘Claro Consultancy’ in the heart of Margao city, a business that deals with English/Portuguese translations. His two sons, Godfrey and Godwin, are actively involved in documentation of Portuguese passports. “It’s totally a family affair,” he signs off.