Whenever I introduce myself as a Goan the words muttered or whispered by those around me are, Wow! Cheap alcohol, feni, urrak, nice girls, happy go lucky people, pubs and discos, drugs …. and many more such things. In such instances, the only thing I can do is smile helplessly. Pleased? Not at all. How can I be pleased? I feel disgusted at such times. Is this what Goa is all about? What about our hospitality, welcoming spirit, the kindness that overflows from our large hearts?
We cannot allow a few negative factors to overshadow the immensity of good things. I have seen what Goa was like when I was little…. it was picturesque and blissful. It’s good even now but not as mesmerising as it was then. When people speak ill of my birthplace, a place where I have spent the most fruitful years of my life, I feel like my heart is chewed like gum and spat out.
Goa is beautiful! No doubt about that. Thousands of tourists flock to our beautiful Goa every day. Is it only because of all those unsavory things mentioned earlier? No, I don’t think so. It cannot be. It’s more than that that’s attracting the people. Goa is an exceptional place endowed with silver sand beaches, lush green fields, rolling hills, tall-standing churches, sacred temples and above all, kind, large-hearted native Goans who will invariably give you a glimpse of exquisite hospitality, once encountered.
Goa is a paradise no doubt, but then it looks like the devil is sneaking in and we need to be careful. Goa is not the way it used to be. Hills have turned into plateaus or hollow valleys. The places where once fields existed are now occupied by huge buildings. The churches and temples seem to be losing their peaceful ambience, reverence and serenity. The people are still large hearted but are taken advantage of, bullied and robbed; as a result they seem to be losing trust in people, in general.
People call us ‘Susegad Goenkar’ but this does not catch my fancy at all. ‘Susegad’ was meant to be a stereotype for one who was slow, careless, lazy, and happy go lucky. I remember getting very much disturbed when people called us ‘Susegad.’ But then, it made me even angrier when people who had never visited Goa, or did it just once or twice, portrayed Goa and Goans in a negative light. If this were true about Goans I would want to think that there would not have been great Goan personalities such as Abade de Faria of old, or stellar individuals such as Chris Perry, Prince Jacob, Wendell Rodricks to name a few.
I would like to think of this word ‘Susegad’ differently. ‘Susegad’ for me would mean relaxed, peaceful, contented and optimistic, a term referring to people who tackle problems and life challenges as and when they arise.
