Ester Noronha has a cheerful personality that easily translates on stage and screen. After
acting in films of different languages, singing songs in tiatrs and releasing
her own music, her next achievement is to make a greater name for Goa. She was
part of Mariano Fernandes’s tiatr ‘Tujem Bhangar Tujeach Angar’, where she
performed three songs. “I did six shows in the United Kingdom and five shows in
Mumbai. I did not start the Goa shows because if I do a few shows and then step
out, people would feel cheated. I am going to make it up in a better way,” says
Ester, about her stage shows so far.
On being a part of tiatrs, she says, “There already are
established actors in tiatr and they are doing well. Like the film industry,
they have a fixed mother, heroine, hero and they already have their thing going
on. I am already known as a singer and I’ll stick to it. I act in films so
there is no point in being selfish and taking a share of acting in tiatrs also.
I like to sing on stage and act on screen.”
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Her first shows were in the UK and Mumbai before making their
way to Goa. “The audience in the UK was very enthusiastic and positive. I got a
warm welcome full of applause and whistles when I went on stage; it made me
feel wanted and that is what makes an artiste’s wok worthwhile. Tiatr is a very
different culture for me, coming from films.
“The ‘Despacito’ song was actually third in line but the
audience would shout for it from the beginning, so when we actually got to it,
the sound in the hall would go high up with chants and screams.”
Speaking about Mariano, for whom she sang in two tiatrs, Ester
says, “Mariano as a producer is creative. He got me, Engelbert Rose, Alria Rose
and Cecille Rodrigues on stage. He is trying to upgrade the value of tiatr and
doing something new, which I appreciate. He wants to show something new, to
bring the evolution from films onto the stage. He wants people to watch tiatrs
but not like our ancestors used to, bring it up to the technology that we have,
try and get Konkani talent from the outside…”
Her Konkani cover of ‘Despacito’ became the first Konkani song
to hit the one million views mark in less than three months of its online
release. The song has been written and sung by her. “When I made the Konkani
cover, I didn’t really expect it to become viral. The original was in Spanish,
Justin Beiber made it in English so why not have a Konkani version for my
people. I thought if people like it, they will watch it and I released it on my
Facebook page and within a matter of three days, I was getting it back in loops
with increased views and positive comments. Goan audiences have always enhanced
my small steps and multiplied them in huge numbers and made them a great
success and now we want to do more for Goan people, language and culture,” she
states.
Ester started acting in films at the age of 18 years. In 2012,
she did an art film and then acted in Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and Konkani films.
When she is not working on stage or in films, she loves writing and singing
songs. She has released her own album, ‘Kalza Thaun’, when she was just 16
years old. She started composing from the age of 14. She loves reading novels
and watching films of various languages and genres.
Ester has been approached by many filmmakers, some even from
Goa, but she is being selective with her projects. “I don’t want to do the same
thing that everyone else is doing. What difference will I make by doing that
film? I cannot cheat my audience. They will look at my face and name on the
poster and trust me to give something with a certain quality. The projects were
good but not something I want to do, maybe someone who could relate to the
message can take it up. If we want to say something, then it’s better we say it
ourselves. We cannot wait for someone to be the medium through which we speak,
that’s the agenda of having our own production,” she says.
So how is Ester going to give Goa the love she has received? “We
are working on a complete Goan project, shot in Goa in Goan Konkani. It is
dedicated to Goa and Goan people. Nilesh Malkar is the director and the film
will be produced by my mother, Janet Noronha. Most of the shoot will be done in
South Goa. Our agenda is to show the hidden side of Goa, the less explored,
visited and seen. Whatever is not projected on a big platform, we want to show
it to the world. Goa is the same but they way we look at Goa has to change.
This is our tribute to the Goan audience taht has given us so much love over the
years,” she explains.
She
adds, “Goa has been like home, work and affection wise. I have a lot of friends
and family friends here. It made me realise that I have to give something back
to the place that I feel so belonged to. I have to do justice to the face of
Goa globally, how people look at and what they think about Goa and Konkani has
to change.”
