In a land that has seen a few centuries of Portuguese
occupation and that has imbibed many of its socio-cultural norms, the lack of
Portuguese films being showcased in Goa would seem like an anomaly. The Semana
da Cultura Indo Portuguese (Goa), which now opens its 7th edition, has not only
filled the lacuna, but is bringing a plethora of contemporary Lusophone films
in Portuguese to Goa. “The aim of the festival is to depict the perspective of
Portugal and Lusophone countries. The purpose is to promote the language and
highlight aspects of other Lusophone countries – from social to cultural,
history, relationships of different people of different countries/societies.
Most of the films are contemporary and these are interspersed with classics. A
major event of the Semana da Cultura, the main aim of the festival is to
promote cinema in Portuguese language which are otherwise not screened or
showcased elsewhere. In fact, a few recent films have been released in India
for the first time, ” explains Delfim Correia da Silva, Director, Instituto
Camoes, who curated the first edition of the film festival. “For example,” he
adds, “‘O que Ha de Novo no Amor?’ highlights the travails of teenagers in
modern society. This year however, a major part of the films are from Portugal
and some from Angola.”
Endorsing the aim of the film festival, President of the
Semana da Cultura Indo Portuguese (Goa), Jose Elman Coelho Pereira, says,
“Basically, Semana da Cultura is promoting Indo-Portuguese culture which in
embedded in the Goan culture. Through films, one keeps up with language and
communication. One can see the contemporary way of life of the Lusophone
countries is through these films.”
Seeing the evolution of the film festival over the years,
Orty Soares, member of the executive committee, observes that the festival has
become popular as people, especially those who enjoy Portuguese, get an
opportunity to see Portuguese films which are otherwise not showcased here.
Another committee member, Nalini Souza, points out that while the festival
showcases different aspects of Portugal and Lusophone culture, people get an
opportunity see contemporary films of Portugal and see it as a progressive
country rather that living with the idea of Portugal in the old era.
Like any film festival, the Lusofonia Film Festival is
helping to showcase the various aspects of not only Portugal in its
contemporary avatar, but also of different countries in the Lusophone sphere.
