The festival of
Bonderam is not just about upholding
the festival of flags that has been celebrated since time immemorial. It is
about families on the island village coming together and bonding, while taking
pride in their traditional occupation. The songs, music and dances pay tribute
to the rich heritage of the village and are performed by the villagers
themselves.
With the monsoons,
the island of Divar breathes new life, welcoming Goans to the celebrations. Bonderam
festival will be celebrated this Saturday, August 18, 2018 from 3pm onwards,
organised by the St Mathias Sports Club. This year, the committee is headed by
Ivo Azavedo, President, Lynn Silveira, General Secretary and Santana Da Costa,
Treasurer among other members.
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The festivities will
start by 3pm as the flag bearers take the lead, moving to the beat of the brass
band. A new attraction for this year’s Bonderam celebrations is the St Mathias
Bonderam Trail 2018, which will take trekkers and heritage lovers on a journey
by Marius Fernandes, a Diwadkar himself, to discover the hidden treasures of St
Mathias village’s heritage, culture and natural beauty. The walk along the main
street of the village will showcase the historic landmarks, heritage homes,
chapels and temples.
“The procession will
begin at Sao Mathias Church at 3pm with the flag bearers, brass band and live
running commentary by RJ Joed Almeida. I will be taking the participants across
the village to eight heritage homes that will be opened up especially by the
families for the trail. The houses will be decorated with eco friendly
decorations and the families have been kind enough to serve Goans homemade
sweets including patolleos with tea and boiled grams. Besides the homes, we
will also go to landmarks of the village and conclude the walk at the Bonderam
Square, which is the St Mathias Sports Club, at 5.30pm,” explains Marius
Fernandes. The homes of Bridget Menezes, Crystal Menezes, Rita Diwadkar, Rosy
Noronha, Ross Picardo, Santan D’Costa, Francis Vas and James Fernandes will be
open for viewing.
The festivity will
continue with villagers of the four wards – Belsur, Amboi, Church Ward and
Goddar – presenting dances and floats. This will be followed by three colleges
– Carmel College for Women, Nuvem, Don Bosco College, Panjim and Dhempe College
of Arts & Science, Panjim
Besides the colourful
parade, the Bonderam celebrations include breaking of coconuts called kathodio
and an all-Goa fancy dress competition with junior and senior categories. This
year, the festivities will conclude with live performances by the band Brothers
in Arms, led by another Divar resident, Caitan Menezes, and Johnny B Gud with
Valerie. The anchors for the festivity will be William Anes, Arantxa Azavedo
and Macxi Picardo. The Chief Guest of the program will be Tony Gonsalves from
Divar.
From
a festive beginning to a serene end, the festivity will conclude with the feast
of Novidade, blessing of the new harvest. The following day of Bonderam, a
procession of villagers carrying the statue of St Mathias holding a silver
sickle in his hand, will march to the paddy fields, where the parish priest
will bless the new harvest and cut a few sheaves which will later be
distributed among the parishioners.
