BASURI DESAI
CANACONA
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In the quiet village of Manem in Cotigao, where green forests meet fields worked by generations, Shyam alias Shamba Desai has built his life not in the kitchens of an international airline, but with his hands deep in the soil.
His journey has been anything but easy. For several years, Shamba worked as an assistant chef with an international airline, taking him away from the fields and into a completely different world of work. But life eventually took him in another direction. He chose to leave his job abroad, return to Goa and take up agriculture.
He did not choose farming because it was easy. He chose it because he believed the soil could feed his family and give his wife and two school-going children a better life.
Today, he is regarded as one of the successful farmers in his area, cultivating vegetables and recently venturing into dairy farming. But behind the green fields and successful harvests is a story of repeated setbacks, risk, perseverance and hope.
Shamba faced his first major challenge when he entered agriculture by cultivating sugarcane. His second came when Goa’s only sugar factory collapsed, leaving sugarcane cultivation without the assured support that farmers had depended upon.
For many, that could have been the end of the road. For Shamba, it was time to change direction.
He began experimenting with different crops, moving from sugarcane to vegetables such as chillies, cluster beans, lady fingers, bottle gourds, cucumbers and watermelons. He does not remain tied to one crop for too long. At regular intervals, he switches crops depending on the season, market conditions and the prospects of getting a better yield.
“Agriculture is also about taking risks and learning from them. That is the lesson of my journey,” Shamba says.
For Shamba, farming is not merely an occupation. It is a business built around survival, responsibility and a deep connection with the land where he was born.
As the only breadwinner of his family, every decision has carried a risk. A failed crop does not simply mean a financial loss; it can affect the education and future of his children and the wellbeing of his family.
Yet, he kept moving.
His memories of agriculture go back to his childhood, when he would accompany his elders to the paddy fields and learn the basics of farming. He remembers those days with affection, even as he acknowledges that traditional paddy cultivation is no longer as profitable as it once was.
Over the years, he has experimented with the land and learnt through experience what to grow, when to change crops, how to manage soil and fertilisers and how to adapt when circumstances change.
That experience has also made him a guide for others. Youngsters from nearby villages often approach him for advice on vegetable cultivation, soil management and fertiliser-related matters. For a man who learnt much of farming by being in the fields, sharing that knowledge with the younger generation has become another part of his journey.
And Shamba is not stopping at farming.
Recently, he ventured into dairy farming, beginning with five cows. His ambition, however, is much bigger.
“I have started with five cows for now. I will procure another 15 shortly. Later, depending on the results, I want to expand. My dream is to have at least 100 cows,” he says.
But to turn that dream into reality, he knows that determination alone may not be enough. He is looking towards financial support from banks and other appropriate institutions to expand the dairy operation.
For Shamba, the journey from an assistant chef with the airline to a farmer in Manem has been a difficult one. He left behind a career abroad, returned home, faced the collapse of a crop-based livelihood, experimented with new crops and took fresh risks while carrying the responsibility of an entire family on his shoulders.
But perhaps his greatest achievement is not the number of crops he has grown or the cattle he hopes to raise.
It is that he chose to return.
He chose to return to the soil where he was born and build his livelihood from it.
His story is a reminder that success does not always have to be measured by a job abroad or a professional designation. Sometimes, it is about having the courage to leave a familiar path, return home and build something of your own.
From the kitchens of Emirates to the fields of Manem, Shamba Desai has travelled a different route — one marked by uncertainty, hard work and courage.
And today, as he looks across his fields and towards his growing dairy farm, his ambition remains simple: to work the land, feed his family, give his children a good life and leave behind a stronger livelihood than the one he started with.
For Shamba, the soil has not merely been a source of food. It has been his second chance.
