The ghumot, one of the oldest indigenous percussion instruments of Goa, has finally got its place as the heritage Goan folk musical instrument. An instrument that has stayed close to Goan roots, the ghumot comprises a humble earthen pot and originally, monitor lizard skin, which has now been replaced by goat skin. Marius Fernandes spearheaded the movement along with other likeminded Goans to bring this instrument to the fore. The first and only Ghumtache Fest celebrating the ghumot was held at Siridao Beach on February 26, 2017, with live performances by the first girls’ ghumot group.
But the recognition has only highlighted new
challenges like funding the potters and more importantly finding the potters
“The next step should be potters getting funding
especially for making the ghumots; musicians too should get funding and a new
syllabus for the music of the ghumot should be formed. The ghumot should reach
the hands of every child in the schools of Goa. Pricing has to be fixed for
ghumots and every market has to have a designated ghumot area,” says Marius
Fernandes. Through the various people’s festivals organised by him in the past
decade, Marius was able to promote the ghumot among Goans with new enthusiasm.
Moreover, with the instrument not getting it’s
due, there is a feeling that there is a dearth of good ghumot makers with
necessary skill sets . However there are those like Anthony Fernandes from
Duler, who has been making ghumots for
years, who are positive of having enough supply for the now growing demands of
the ghumots. “There are potters to make ghumots and especially now with the
awareness of the instrument, there is increased demand. It takes one day for
making and drying the pot and the second to fit the leather over the mouth of
the pot.
Shakuntala Bharne is an Indian vocalist, writer,
poet and announcer at All India Radio. She released an album called ‘Gof’,
which featured her compositions and lyrics in some of the ten songs of the album.
She has composed the music, lyrics and will be singing the song ‘Ghumatacho
Naad’ in joyous spirit, celebrating the ghumot for Doordarshan with the recording
taking place on Tuesday. “I have written the lyrics and composed the music and
I will be singing the song accompanied by ghumot, and other percussion
instruments like a tabla and rhythms. We will also have an organ for the
recording. It is important to teach the children to play the ghumot and how it
can be performed with other instruments. The ghumot is an important instrument
in Goan culture as it is played for aartis and bhajans for Hindu religious
ceremonies and for Dekhnnis and Mandos by Catholics,” says Shakuntala, who
performed at the first ever Ghumtache Fest in Siridao in 2017.
Professor of History Prajal Sakhardande along
with Marius Fernandes, met with the Art and Culture minister Govind Gaude with
a petition to declare ghumot as the State Heritage Musical Instrument. “At the
outset, let me thank our Art and culture minister, for considering our proposal
to declare ghumot as Goa’s state heritage musical instrument. Now that this is
done, we need to take our ghumot to global platforms by organising ghumot
heritage music festivals, heritage festivals showcasing our Goan folk dances
that feature the ghumot. We should also have ghumot playing competitions for
the youth, etc. Ghumot needs to be popularised among the Goan youth in villages
and cities. Schools and college students should be taught to play it for their
gatherings, concerts, picnics etc,” says Prajal.
There are three sizes for the ghumot, ‘barik’,
‘vhoddle’ and ‘medium’ ‘tonddachem’ ghumot. The small mouth, ‘barik’ tonddachem
ghumot is for children, ‘medium tonddachem’ is for women and young girls and
‘vhoddle tonddachem’ is for men. Now we are making smaller ghumots that have
enough leather to play the instrument with two fingers. It is a great showpiece
and can be carried abroad as souvenirs,” informs Anthony Fernandes, as he works
with his family to make ghumots and keep them ready for the next sale.
Anthony checks and buys the skin for the ghumot
himself. “The skin has to be thin enough to get the right beat. I have made
over 1,500 ghumots and the various fests that are being organised are
responsible for the sale of the ghumots. I hope the government can start giving
a subsidy for potters as it is one of the oldest traditional occupations of Goa
and it keeps the ghumot alive,” says Anthony.
As a heritage Goan folk musical instrument,
there’s more music to come from the ghumot.
All its needs is more makers like Anthony Fernandes, more players like
Shakuntale Bharne and more heritage and culture activists like Maruis Fernandes
and Prajal Sakhardande.