It was news that caught the attention of Goa. It was forwarded relentlessly across digital platforms. What was this piece of information caught the attention of the people of this state? Time magazine chose North Goa in its World’s Greatest Places list for 2021.
The first reaction of most in joy was not of joy but surprise. Really? Everyone asked. And then they asked Why? One North Goa regular even quipped “Is this some Time Magazine cover of 1970 you are talking about?”
The article mentioned the Moda Goa Museum and Research Center, a longtime passion project of the late Wendell Rodricks due to open in October. The museum will feature 18 galleries housing more than 800 pieces and cultural artefacts from the designer’s personal collection, including the swimsuit, worn by 1966 Miss World Reita Feria and gold jewellery dating to the 1600s. The magazine also highlighted the Mansion Haus, a nine-suite boutique hotel and private members’ club that opened this year in a 19th-century villa in Anjuna, and the upcoming King’s Mansion in Candolim, a luxury hotel and seaside spa that pledges to incorporate traditional Ayurvedic medicine into wellness treatments that are personalized with the help of genetic analysis. All very nice, one will have to agree that can add to the allure of the state that is trying to entice tourists to visit its interiors instead of just staying on its beaches. But then as a resident of North Goa will point out the terrible garbage problem, the illegal constructions, the violations of coastal zone rules etc that mar the landscape.
Savio Messias, a long time player in the hospitality industry, reacted along predictable lines. He felt it was a marketing point for the niche traveller. He said “We have to take advantage; these kinds of places will not be visited by the mass market. This is a niche product. We requested the government to take advantage of this. Time magazine by mentioning this has done great publicity for it.
The magazine is read by people with knowledge and interest in such matters. This will help promote these locations overseas which is anyway a very important market for us.”
Heta Pandit heritage activist however had opinions that were completely opposite to what was expressed by Savio. She said “It may be Time magazine, the impression our authorities like to present is that everything is pristine and gorgeous. The Wendell project will be wonderful but this is a case of an individual making the effort to turn houses into livable places for meaningful purposes but the government is neglecting Goan heritage. They are actively destroying it. Look at what they did to the Aguada jail. The entrance, the old gate has all been destroyed. A consultant from Mumbai was hired who did not seem to have the expertise. Then look at what is happening in Old Goa with a structure coming up in the church property that is a UNESCO protected zone”. She said no one was thinking about the broader perspective. The Moda Goa project she said would be world-class but the general environment in North Goa was distressing.
Prajal Sakhardande an academic and one who is very interested in the conservation of Goa’s heritage said the Moda Goa museum would certainly add to the profile of North Goa and help bring in more international attention. However, he said one could not look away from the neglect of monuments, the illegal constructions in Old Goa and the general lackadaisical attitude of the authorities. He bemoaned the fact that Goa was still thought of as a place where you could come and drink and where every Goan was either drunk or dancing and doing nothing else. Nothing was being done to eradicate the negative connotations of being a Goan.
Poonam Mascarenhas whose involvement in building conservation has kept her in the frontline to keep Goa’s heritage intact felt the writer at the magazine should have come over and checked the situation on the ground. The Moda project was welcome but the fact it was fed to a magazine meant that someone in the government had planted the idea. She said “Someone in Delhi must have felt the absence of tourists and decided to do this. It has no foothold in reality either in Jaipur or in Goa. Our monuments are not even safe. This is tourism without carrying for the people.”
Regular Goans had views that were even harsher. Bharat Kamat said that within Goa, North Goa had its own place on the tourist map. Yet the incoming tourists displayed utter disdain for the beautiful place they visit. He said “ The beaches are littered with empty alcohol bottles and plastics. Some even venture out on the beach with cars, jeeps and other vehicles. Many others come here for drugs and prostitution. This has made life miserable for the local inhabitants. And the government hasn’t helped. They have not improved public infrastructure to cope up with the ever-increasing tourist inflow. All they talk about is a new airport and 1 national highway. Goa languishes as piles of garbage builds up”. He pointed out that internal roads were chockablock with vehicles from other states. There were no public restrooms and rapes made it to the front page as the police focus had been misplaced. The public, he said did not even know if the state had a tourism policy though consultants had been appointed for the same. Water and electricity infrastructure needed big investment and in such a situation the quality of life for the local people had fallen. There could be a backlash against tourism he said and the government needed to wake up and deliver.
Nupura Hautamaki a digital marketer said the Time magazine article calling North Goa as one of the world’s greatest places to visit, took her a little by surprise. Especially since the only place, it mentioned as a reason was the Moda Museum, which definitely has a great array of artefacts collected, and curated by Wendell Rodricks who had great aesthetics. It would she said not be a drab museum like most of the other museums run by the government but is yet to open. So ultimately the proof would be in the pudding. She said “The Customs Museum in Panjim, which at least when I last visited was quite well run and maintained, or so many other visitor areas like Fontainhas, the soon to be opened Aguada Prison Museum etc were totally not mentioned. And then let’s be real, what about all the bad roads, flooding of roads, constant power cuts, garbage-strewn everywhere, bottles trashed on beaches and riversides, heritage monuments in disrepair etc, have all been ignored.” Ouch. But she does have a point. Highlighting one fact to promote a state may work sometimes but not always. People want much more, they pay their taxes and want returns on their investments.
