Mihir Nayak
(Goan) food seems to be everywhere on my social media timelines. And it seems that I am not the only one. Food photography is one of the most popular posts on social media such as Instagram with hashtags such as #foodie, #foodporn, #nom and #tasty linked to over 20 million images! In addition, the hashtag #travel also features many culinary posts. So what is up with this phenomenon?
Food seems to play a key role in the lives of the young generation today. And this is largely due to the increasingly important links that food plays in the #identity of the Millennials (those born from 1990 onwards). Like the Generation of 1968, this Generation too is rejecting the values of previous generations. 42% of Millennials are drinking less than their parents, saying that ‘getting drunk’ belongs to ‘an older generation’. Instead, the Millennials prefer to focus of food – making it, eating it, talking about it, learning about it. Indeed, food today has become a critical form of self-expression for these youngsters. Research that I conducted showed that it was food, not fashion or music that is the defining topic of Millennials. Food and pictures of food are the new social currency, generated via photo sharing apps such as Instagram. And for all those of us in the tourism industry (in Goa), it is a trend that we need to take seriously.
Unfortunately, the headlines in the local Goan newspapers seem to be increasingly about the negative effects of tourism on the host community (a topic that I focused on in my PhD on Heritage Tourism in Goa). Unbridled growth of the casinos, a major garbage problem in tourist hotspots such as Calangute as well as the issue of drunken hordes of Indian male tourists ogling foreign, white skinned tourists and generally creating a ruckus wherever they go.
Unfortunately, there have been numerous instances of drunk male tourists misbehaving with women at beach shacks and nightclubs along popular coastal areas such as Baga and Calangute. In a recent article that I read, the tourism ministry is trying its level best to curb drunk tourism. Goa Tourism Minister Babu Azgaonkar said in a statement last year that those Indian tourists who come to Goa, get drunk and create chaos need to be stopped as they are ruining the local Goan culture, ruining Goenkarponn. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, it is not sufficient to merely curb drunk tourism. Instead, proactive steps need to be taken to taken to attract a better kind of tourism and tourist to the state. As Armando Gonsalves, Social Entrepreneur and Founder of the Goa for Giving NGO, rightly says, Goa has so much beauty, culture and art but the only reason many tourists visit Goa is to get drunk. This needs to change immediately if we want to protect the Goan tourism industry from completely destroying itself.
Cultural and heritage Tourism seems to be the only solution to the malaise that is currently affecting the tourism industry in Goa. As I wrote in my PhD Thesis, with its rich history and cultural heritage, Goa is perfectly poised to attract a better class of tourists – those who don’t just come to drink and get drunk but instead to enjoy the rich cultural heritage that Goa has to offer and learn a little more about the local culture. As my research has shown, cultural tourists are more affluent, well behaved, respectful towards local culture and customs and keen to learn more about the local people and their culture.
Cultural and heritage tourism is also the only way forward, especially considering the increasing homogenization of tourism destinations that is taking place in the tourism industry.
Every tourism destination seems to be only focusing on promoting generic images of sun and sand. This is leading to the increased homogenization mentioned above. With no way to differentiate one destination from another, the only option left to tourists is to choose destinations based on price, a spiral to the bottom that destinations such as Goa cannot afford to chase.
As other destinations in South Asia, for example, offer cheaper holiday packages, relatively expensive destinations such as Goa lose out, leaving behind only those tourists whose main aim on holiday is to take advantage of the cheap liquor prices and get drunk. Instead of focusing on cheap booze and generic beaches, Goa needs to explore alternative ways of attracting well mannered, respectful cultural tourists. And what better way to do this than through culinary tourism.
Culinary tourism is all about exploring culture and history through food and food related activities. And Goa, with its unique blend of culinary influences from both India as well as Portugal, is perfectly poised to play a major role as a food tourism destination. A great way of integrating food and tourism is through food festivals.
Food festivals are popular all across the world and they are increasingly attracting large numbers of cultural and culinary tourists who are keen to try out the local dishes.
One great example of how food festivals can attract the right kind of tourist to the destination is the recently concluded Taste of Goa Food Festival organised by Armando Gonsalves, Shaeen Gomes and others from the Goa for Giving team. By showcasing the wide variety of Goan dishes to a larger public, the food festival sent a strong message that Goa was not just about the beaches. By focusing on Goan cuisine instead of generic beach images or cheap booze, it was certainly a step in the right direction towards diversifying the tourist target groups that Goa attracts as a destination. Contests such as the Food Photo contest, supported by Goa Tourism, with (cash) prizes also helped increase the participation and enthusiasm of the participants. For all those social media users who did not make it to Goa this time, the combination of the Food Festival and the involvement of influencers ensured that the aforementioned users will come and visit Goa in the near future.
If tourism in Goa is to flourish rather than perish, the tourism industry needs to consider innovative ways of attracting a better type of tourist. Long known for its cheap booze and scantily clad foreign female tourists, Goa needs to undergo a major image change if it is to discourage the kind of tourist that has been causing negative headlines with their drunken and disrespectful behavior.
That said, we need to try before it is too late. To attract a better kind of tourist who seeks to engage with the local Goan culture rather than disrupt it, the tourism industry needs to work together promote the rich variety of Goa, including its art, culture and its food. The Taste of Goa Food Festival was the first step in the right direction.
(The author is a Professor, Hotelier, Consultant, Journalist,
Author)
