Carnival
is here and everyone in Goa is excited to witness the parades that will have creatively
decorated floats making their way through the streets of Panjim. While the
excitement is abuzz, there’s been another voice doing the rounds, the one that
says that Carnival now is becoming commercial. For the younger generation,
booming music, streamers, youngsters dancing on floats and a jolly King Momo is
what Carnival is all about but the residents of Panjim remember a different
Carnival.
Joaquim
Teles is the President of the Panjim Traditional Festival Committee and was the
President of Panjim Carnival Committee for 12 years till 2011, being a part of
the Carnival celebrations for more than 35 years. “Earlier, Carnival included ‘khell
tiatrs’ and shooting of ‘cocad’. A group of few people used to get together,
dress up funnily, sing to the music of the ‘ghumot’ and cymbals and then watch ‘khell
tiatrs’. Gradually, people noticed the Carnival celebrations in Portugal and
Germany and Brazil and brought in the trend of Carnival parades,” says Joaquim.
He
further adds, “I feel sorry looking at today’s Carnival as I feel it is organised
by event management companies and politicians. Those who organised the
traditional Carnival are either old, have migrated or are no more. Nikhil Dessai
is doing a good job at reviving Carnival but it is getting commercialised.”
Joaquim
formed the Panjim Traditional Festival Committee in 2006 and they now organise
a three-day Carnival programme at Kala Academy, Panjim to preserve the traditional
Carnival of yesteryears.
Francisco
Martins has created beautiful floats for Goa but this year, his attention will
be focused towards the Samba Square. An adviser for the Panjim Carnival
Committee, Francisco has been to Brazil to take note of the organising of Carnival
parades and how to make the best use of the financial support. “With Carnival
getting commercial, it should improve the art products too. With the
sponsorship the floats get, they should have been able to do better and bigger
designed floats. Earlier too, Carnival was commercialised but the floats used
to carry the name of the sponsors in small letters. For development, one
requires finance and with that, money. They should make better costumes and
improve the quality of the floats overall,” explains Francisco.
“The
sad part is that most of the floats are made in just 15 days. We used to start
working on the floats almost six months in advance. Nowadays, even birthdays
and anniversary parties are planned months in advance. A float needs better
planning and execution to make it look good for the audience,” says Francisco.
Tony
Dias, also a member of the Panjim Carnival Committee, has been part of the
celebrations for the past 20 years. He feels that the atmosphere around
Carnival changed around the year 2006-2007. “It started getting too commercial
by this time and the number of good floats started dropping from the parades.
We have to revive the old traditional Carnival. We have beautiful traditional
occupations and people who come with these floats like bakers, fishermen and
coconut pluckers should be encouraged. This year, we have decided to check the
floats and to only allow floats which are decorated. Cars and open jeeps
without decoration will not be allowed as a float as, many-a-times, the
youngsters behave in an undisciplined manner. We had great music, and I hope we
succeed in reviving the original Carnival of Goa,” concludes Tony.
