The Ganesh festivities have barely come to an end, but the anticipation of Diwali and Christmas thereafter is marked with equal fervour – not just by the communities concerned but the larger population at large. In Goa, particularly, it is heartening to see different communities participate in each festival as if it were their own. Festivals apparently are not made only for a specific community, but as a unifying force for all communities.
It is perhaps best surmised in the words of artist Harshada Kerkar, who echoes her father’s sentiments. “My dad used to tell us festivals are made for children so that they get to enjoy good sweets and food. Festivals are not so much about religion as they are about food and togetherness,” endorses Harshada, who makes it a point to visit her Muslim and Catholic friends for their respective festivals. “I may skip birthdays but festivals are a must do,” she maintains.
Businessman Ebrahim Haroon couldn’t agree more.“We celebrate two festivals – Ramadan and Bakrid, when I have a swarm of Catholic, Hindu and other friends joining in the celebrations. In the same vein, I wholeheartedly participate in the Christmas or Ganesh and Diwali festivities right through the night. In fact, every Ganesh, I send a celebratory message ‘Ganapati bappa moraya’ to all of my friends, irrespective of their religion. It does not matter what religious function it is, to us it just another good reason to get together and celebrate,” he avers.
Back from a two-year jaunt in Pune, Santacruz based Pratiksha Parsekar is looking forward to spending another Christmas with her Catholic friends.“I attend Mass with them at Don Bosco’s in Panjim and thereafter to a dance..Similarly my friends come over for lunch and even Aarti during Ganesh and as for my friends from the Muslim community, we look forward to the gifts of kheer and biryani every year,” reveals Pratiksha who kept up with the activities during her two-year abeyance on Whatsapp and Facebook.
“There’s no such thing as my festival or your festival,” dismisses Diedre Pinto from Mapusa.“In fact, my Hindu friends are constantly taking banana leaves and flowers from my gardens for their pujas. No celebration is complete without all of us being involved in each other’s festivities. We even exchange sweets and gifts,” she asserts. Her daughter and son, in the typical fashion of the day, have a group of friends from different communities on whatsapp, Facebook, Twitter and the like which helps them stay connected during the festive season despite the distance. “Whatever the festival, they invariably buy new outfits and exchange gifts. There is no differentiation.”
Surrounded by Catholic friends at her maternal residence in Aldona, Sarika Nagvekar grew up celebrating Christmas like her own. “I have helped to make cribs, stars and even sweets. Christmas was and is still a very exciting time for me,” says Sarika. “Do you know that the most popular Christmas dodol maker in Aldona is a Hindu lady?” she adds.
While festivals are another occasion to make merry, they are also proving to be the best unifying communal force.
