FN: Frederick Noronha’s blog

Various themes that interest me… Free Software, Goa, books, developmental issues…

A rich tapestry of history, clothing and passionate prose

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Book Cover:  http://bit.ly/ModaGoa

A stunning collection of photographs and illustrations, interwoven with the stories of people and events that shaped Goa, this book documents, for the very first time, the unique history of Goan costume.

In this, his tribute to Goa, Wendell Rodricks studies the factors that shaped Goa’s distinct garment style. From Buddhist drapes that carried forward the elaborate style of later Hindu costume, to the fine brocade coats of the Muslim Tughlaq rulers; from the Portuguese invaders who had to improvise their traditional Renaissance dress to suit the hot Konkan climate to the Western-style dresses of the newly converted Goan Catholics, Goans are what they are today because of the many peoples and cultures that touched their land. It was inGoa that the first ever Indo-Western garments evolved.

Different faiths, tribes and foreign cultures coloured the Goan clothing heritage, creating a style that is a unique blend of international aesthetic and Indian emotion.

Wendell Rodricks places this history of Goan costume in the spotlight with an archive that has never been researched before. Through illustrations by European travellers, a wealth of photographs by Mark Sequeira and India’s finest fashion photographers, and access to the fine clothing and jewellery of Goans, Wendell Rodricks makes a debut as author to reveal a rich tapestry of history, clothing and passionate prose, taking the reader to the beauty and backwaters of India’s golden state.

As Sathya Saran says, ‘[This book brings together] all the years of being a casual writer of serious articles to a head, putting his discipline and knowledge, and his love of his craft and his region to good use, creating for posterity a document that generations of students and readers can find inspiration from.’

Wendell Rodricks has put the tiny Indian state of Goa firmly on the fashion map. Establishing his own label in 1990, he moved to his ancestral village in Goa in 1993, creating memorable collections each season, inspired by many emotions. Known as India’s guru of minimalism, he gave the country resort wear, minimalism and ecofriendly clothing before the words were coined. He has written for many periodicals and books, has lectured on world costume History for eight years, interned at museums in Lisbon and New York and has been researching the history of Goan costume for eleven years. This is his first book.

Goanet A-C-E!
Arts ~ Culture ~ Entertainment
www.goanet.org

Written by fredericknoronha

January 3, 2012 at 1:35 am

Posted in Goa

Writing, for children…

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Espi Mai is Stuck Again...

Espi Mai is Stuck Again...

THE PRINTED WORD | Frederick Noronha

Anita Pinto’s ‘Tales from Golden Goa’ was something I first came across when my now-teenage daughter Riza needed some reading material. Rather, material to-be-read-to. The fascination with which she lapped up the Goa-based stories was really heart-warming.

Anita Pinto

Anita Pinto

Our own generation grew up with a scarcity of books for children. We would badger mum to pick up the few available at Varsha’s, the bookstall in Panjim then run by the father of Waman and Santosh Bhate who currently tend to it. There was another near the Shakuntala fountain in Mapusa, that mostly disappointed us and said no new books had come in from Orient Longman (or the handful of other national publishers).

There was a greater chance to come across an Enid Blyton, or a Beano or Bunty comic from the UK, or even an Africa-oriented Lance Spearman (aka The Spear) comic.

Now things have changed. A little. Aren, the second child, enjoyed Anita’s writing as much. The writer is releasing her second book of specifically Goa-focussed short stories for children this weekend (Oct 22, Saturday) at 5 pm at the Kala Academy. While looking at that subject, one was wondering how many options children looking for local reading material actually have. Functions like these could be an excuse for taking stock and building links among those focussed on the important job of writing for children.

A quick (and incomplete) rummage through my book collection tells me that a few but determined set of individuals have been writing for children in Goa. Perhaps they do so even if there the channels for distributing more such writing is yet to be effectively built.

For instance there’s Anne de Braganca Cunha (Goan Whoopee, Goan Tales for Children, 1999 and The Greedy Monkey, Mosaic Books, New Delhi); Surekha Panandikar (The Bridge at Borim, National Book Trust, 1999), Odette Mascarenhas (the Alfie Alphonso series), the late Olivinho Gomes (Konkani Folk Tales, NBT, 2007) and ex-Tanzanite (if not mistaken) Dr Susheela S Fonseca (Touched by Love, a novel for youth, 2005).

There have been magazines too, like the Prashanti Talpankar-edited one in Konkani (Rajhauns ani Bhurghim) and the children’s section in BIMB, ‘The Bookworm’ magazine from the children’s-library-and-more initiative of the same name, another by Rinald D’Souza, now a Jesuit priest, and musician-ad guru Alex Braganza’s own mag for youth. I’ve not seen copies of these lately, except for The Bookworm but could be simply out of touch.

On posting a query to Twitter, I got a couple of crucial reminders: Merril Diniz @MerrilD pointed to (my long-time friend) Mario Coelho of Ponda, while Prof Ramrao Wagh @ramraowagh pointed to another old friend, Rajashree Bandodkar-Karapurkar who, as he rightly noted, writes for children and her focus is on popular science.

Last weekend, I ran into Vishnu Wagh, the prominent writer active in the Marathi-Konkani space, theatre and other fields. Among the names he mentioned were Gajanan Jog of Taleigao, Kumud Naik okf the Goa Konkani Akademi, Rajini Bhembre of Curchorem, Milan Talaulikar of Tonca, Prof Prakash Parienkar, Dilip Borkar’s Bimb journal, sections within the Sunaparant and Marathi Gomantak Hello magazine, and Chandrakant Rama Gawas of Keri-Sattari.

There are others too, who while they don’t write exclusive for children, do have some of their writing which could be suitable to young people. For instance, Vinayak Sadashiv Sukhthanker (see his Tales & Tellers of Goa, 1974), Rahul Alvares’ adventures with snakes and his adventures during a sabbatical year after school (‘Free From School’, 1999), Luis S R Vas (Modern Goan Short Stories, 1971). Eulalia Alvares is from Mangalore, whose grand-neice, if I do not get it wrong, bears the same name and similar interests and is based at Margao.

While all this might sound like a long list, the point is (i) writing for children in Goa is still hard to come by (ii) it is written in different languages and scripts, with few translations among these, only dividing the small local market further (iii) some initiatives and writers have stopped or ceased (iv) there isn’t much happening on a consistent basis.

One hopes more could be done to promote this field, badly needed to stimulate the imagination of our kids.

ENDS

The writer can be contacted on fn@goa-india.org or 2409490 or 9822122436. First published in The Gomantak Times, Goa.

Written by fredericknoronha

October 17, 2011 at 1:23 am

Posted in Goa

Veni, Vidi… Goa

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Written by fredericknoronha

October 3, 2011 at 2:56 am

PUBLISHINGNeXT conference in Goa, Sept 2011

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PUBLISHINGNeXT conference in Goa, Sept 2011

Originally uploaded by fredericknoronha.

Discussing social media in Indian publishing. Publishing-Next.com #pubnext Goa, India, Sept 16-17, 2011.

Written by fredericknoronha

September 17, 2011 at 8:44 am

Posted in Goa

PublishingNeXt, conference. Goa Sept 2011

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PublishingNeXt, conference. Goa Sept 2011

Originally uploaded by fredericknoronha.

Selling books at the Publishing-Next.com #pubnext conference, Goa 16-17, 2011… That’s Manoj.

Written by fredericknoronha

September 17, 2011 at 8:08 am

Posted in Goa

PublishingNeXt, conference. Goa Sept 2011

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Written by fredericknoronha

September 17, 2011 at 8:01 am

Posted in Goa

Goa -Old Photos… the diaspora in Africa

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Goa -Old Photos… the diaspora in Africa

Originally uploaded by fredericknoronha.

See some age-old historic photos online at the Goa Old Photos group. http://bit.ly/ieNVmY

Via Flickr:
Dr. Euclid de Souza, vice-president of Goan Overseas Association, Joseph Anthony Zuzarte Murumbi, Foreign Minister, Kenya, Luis de AssisCorreia, Pio Gama Pinto MP Kenya and Rosario Gama Pinto at a Barclays Bank, Nairobi sundowner in 1964. Photo from the collection of Luis Assis Correia.

Written by fredericknoronha

June 2, 2011 at 12:34 am

Posted in Goa

Rui Lobo renders a Konkani mando, and more

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Engineer Rui Lobo, a good friend and a great guy, performs (with Eular Gomes on the tabla) at the release of Selma Carvalho‘s book Into the Diaspora Wilderness:



Written by fredericknoronha

October 2, 2010 at 4:08 pm

Posted in Goa, Music

Tagged with , , , ,

Derek Antao

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Someone on Facebook accused me of being an expert on Derek Antao. The name didn’t ring a bell.

A Google search later, I found this link to a reply I had sent (second-hand info, again) to Hartman De Souza on a thread started by Augusto Pinto:
http://www.mail-archive.com/goanet@lists.goanet.org/msg44421.html
 
Amazon.com lists this book, but it’s currently “out of print, limited availability” Give us this day a black sheep [Unknown Binding] Derek Antao (Author)
http://www.amazon.com/Give-this-day-black-sheep/dp/B0006E7N28

In case you were wondering, Hartman explained:

QUOTE: Derek Antao was a legendary English teacher at SIES College, Mumbai, and a well known playwright of the late 60s and early 70s whose plays were published in a little theatre journal coming out of Delhi, called Enact. I would appreciate some information on Derek Antao and a chance to stage a retrospective of his plays. ENDQUOTE

This is from the OPENLIBRARY:

Derek Antao 1936 – 2002: Derek Antao, dramatist, retired as Head of the Department of English, SIES College of Arts and Science, University of Mumbai, in 1996. Author of 14 plays, of which one has been published by the Writers Workshop (Give Us This Day Our Black Sheep) and Acushla, was published in the magazine Enact. His plays include Requiem For a Professor, Rock a Bye My Broken Doll, Vannakam Appa, And Then – Diwali, Let There Be Light, Cogito Ergo Sum, Yellow Fever, College I see You as an Open Mouth, Tabula Rasa, Autumn Serenade and Faria.Most of these plays, except the two published ones cited above exist only as Manuscripts. A Brief Review of some of his plays has appeared in the Journal of the School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies (JSL), Spring 2007. http://openlibrary.org/authors/OL1598465A/Derek_Antao

Zafar Karachiwala of Cuffe Parade, Mumbai lists this work in his online cv: “And Then Divali” – (Nishikant Wagle). Written by Derek Antao, produced and directed by Hima Devi (1993). http://zafarkarac33ac7c.peoplelex.com/

The person who wrote to me said, “i am working on a list on post independence indian playwrights in english and am looking for details on derek antao.”

If you, or anyone you know, might have further information on Derek Antao, please send it across, and I’d be only too glad to share it with others. Strangely, my book collection of Goa-related titles carries no trace (as far as I know) of Derek Antao. But then, I also cannot be charged with being knowledgeable about the world of theatre! –FN

PS: Do you know of any other playwrights from Goa, who wrote in English?

Frederick Noronha :: +91-9822122436 :: +91-832-2409490

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Written by fredericknoronha

October 2, 2010 at 3:55 pm

Goa sports links in cyberspace….

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Kids football Saligao by you.

OFFICIAL

Sports Authority of Goa
http://tsag.org/?pg=visstat

FOOTBALL

Goa Football Association
http://www.goa-fa.com/

GFA-links
http://www.goa-fa.com/?q=node/5

Sporting Clube de Goa
http://www.sportingclubedegoa.com/

Salcaocar Sports Club
http://salgaocarsc.com/

Dempo Sports Club (Wikipedia)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dempo_SC

Churchill Brothers
http://www.churchill-brothers.com/main.php

Sesa Goa Football Academy
http://www.sesagoa.com/aboutscdf.htm#football

CRICKET

Goa Cricket Association
http://goacricketassociation.com/

CHESS

Goa State Chess Association
http://goachess.com/

Goan chess blog
http://goanchess.blogspot.com/

BODYBUILDING

Goa Body Building and Fitness Association (Facebook)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/GOA-BODY-BUILDING-FITNESS-ASSOCIATION/95798352958?v=info

CYCLING

Goa Cycle Club
http://www.cyclists.in/group/goacycleclub

Goa Cycles: Rides, advocacy and more with the Goa Cycle Club
http://goacycles.wordpress.com/

BADMINTON

Goa’s ‘Professional Badminton League’
http://www.facebook.com/notes/sandeep-heble/goas-professional-badminton-league/181738157211

TREKKING

YHAI National Trekking Expedition GOA
http://yhaindia.org/files/adv_programs/description/Goatrekking.htm

WATERSPORTS

National Institute of Watersports-Goa
http://niws.nic.in/

Barracuda Diving India
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/barracuda-diving/

Goa water sports link
http://www.pressreleasepoint.com/goa-and-dona-paula-sports-club-offer-variety-watersports

Goa sports fishing
http://www.goa-sportsfishing.com/

Ask Laila on sports in Goa
http://www.asklaila.com/article/Goa/Get+Sporty:+Sports+Centres+in+Goa/79925/

DIASPORA

Doha Goans Sports Club
http://www.goa-world.com/goa/org/doha.htm

Manchester United Fan Club || Goa
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=41510756767&ref=search&sid=502514643.2468033804..1

CAMPUS

SPREE-National sports festival of BITS-Pilani, Goa campus
http://www.bits-spree.org/

LISTINGS, MISCELLANEOUS

Goa sports links on JustDial
http://search.justdial.com/srch/search_cwa.php

Sport Goans blog
http://sportygoans.blogspot.com/

GoGoa: Water Sports and Diving
http://www.gogoa.com/diving-goa.html#Water-Sports-&-Diving-In-Goa

Goanet Sports
http://lists.goanet.org/listinfo.cgi/goanet-sports-goanet.org

Goa Futsal League
http://www.facebook.com/search/?init=quick&q=goa
football#/group.php?gid=77168647415&ref=search&sid=502514643.2468033804..1

Sports of Goa-Indfy
http://www.indfy.com/goa-india/sports.html

This is incomplete, work in progress. Kindly send me any more links of interest related to sports in Goa. Thanks!

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Written by fredericknoronha

November 21, 2009 at 1:58 am

POP — the Panjim Open Philharmonic

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It’s no big name, but this is a bold experiment. It’s open, and it’s in Panjim (the tiny capital of Goa, India). Anyone can join in. All you need is an instrument, and the ability to read music. Rui Lobo, an IIT-ian whose main trade would have been hardware design, is the conductor, and it’s a baby nurtured by him and Rocky Lazarus. Very innovative!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YIu0eWXGFA

And a whole set of photographs here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fn-goa/sets/72157622726357296/

Written by fredericknoronha

November 9, 2009 at 7:45 am

Posted in Goa

Goa, shrines, photography and controversy

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There is still scope for discussion about what should be the rules for photography within a religious shrine, and outside a religious shrine (but within its property). I can understand the ire of those who feel they are being reduced to a spectacle when their intention might be to run a house for prayer.

Besides, there can be a far detailed discussion on principles of photographing persons, as I realised while searching for some other views on this subject.

Centre for Media Literacy has this page “Photo Ethics: Aim High When You Shoot” which raises issues about how people should be treated on camera. (In Rajan Parrikar’s original post, the issue was not people, but since JoeGoaUK raises it…)

Some pointers which struck me as worth considering:

* [W]hen photographing people do not treat them as if they were things.
* Do not take people’s pictures, give images, especially to the imageless.
* Never depict people as useless or inadequate. It is their helplessness which has to be shown.
* Do not invade anybody’s privacy except when it is necessary for depicting certain social situations.
* Yet, boldly reach into personal life, bearing in mind that the photographs you take are your brothers’ and sisters.
* There is no need to prettify people and objects; they have their beauty, and a good photograph exudes beauty.
* Sensationalism diverts attention from the essential.
* Shun extra long lenses. A short lens draws you near your subject.
* Try to establish a rapport with the person you photograph.
* Your social concern is to document life with empathy.
* Be true to the image people want to have of themselves, but at the same time do show what you believe is their real image. The dignity of the poor, in particular, demands that their situation be known.
* A documentary coverage can never be total. Complete a biased image by another biased image.
* Be an iconoclast – a destroyer of established images.
* Photos should not be used to exploit the persons portrayed.
* Ethical documentary photography is not your sole responsibility. But your photographs encourage certain responses in the viewer.

http://www.medialit.org/reading_room/article141.html

We can agree to disagree, but all I’m saying is that the issues involved as not as simple as they first seem.

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November 9, 2009 at 6:03 am

Googlegroups, Yahoogroups or Facebook

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In my view, both Googlegroups and Yahoogroups are almost as good. I used to favour Yahoogroups first, then took to Google and have now been involved with the launch of http://groups.yahoo.com/group/fsug-goa Mailman is the right choice, it’s Free Software. But you need to be able to administer it and have a fast-enough server.

Of the earlier two, each has one or two advantages. Yahoo has a add-10 addresses a day limit. But Googlegroups will block you if you add too many. Don’t worry, not much differences between the two.

Facebook (which is getting a lot of groups-like features these days) is good too. But, at best, it can supplement a Yahoo/Googlegroup. I don’t think Facebook is good enough as a stand-alone option, because it is easy to ignore (the discussions are less interactive, people can just be on the ‘group’ but not active).

In a word, go for either Googlegroup/Yahoogroup and take Facebook to supplement. Or Mailman if you can.

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November 9, 2009 at 5:54 am

Posted in Cyberspace

Tagged with , ,

Remembering yesterday’s Goa… via Benaulim

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PHOTOFEATURE :: By Frederick Noronha

Victor Hugo Gomes had been bugging me to visit Benaulim, and, as usual, I kept postponing. A man of few words (except when he’s writing detailed articles on themes like Goan music!), he just kept telling me, “You come and see for yourself.”

Finally, we did make it there.

His collection was the most amazing set of objects of the Goa of the yesteryears that I’ve seen at one place. That this artist and former curator of the Museum of Christian Art had done it all by himself, no state funding, and in his own home (with support of his lecturer-wife Alie, short for Aldina) is
all the more creditworthy.

In his collection, you can unwrap the story of Goa’s agriculture, cullinary practices and more. There are pots of every shape and size from yesterday’s Goa. There are spoons, and other kitchen utensils. Another collection deals with agricultural implements, and the technology — however simple, it was effective and sustainable — of the Goa of the past.

On Monday evening, November 2, 2009, Mario Miranda inaugurates the Goa Chitra museum, as Gomes calls it. As we forget what life was in yesterday’s Goa, this venture is a powerful reminder of a simple people, living simple sustainble lives. In a manner that probably made us more
contented than we are today.


Pots in their rich diversity:

Goa's pots... Victor Hugo Gomes' collection


The artist behind it all: Victor Hugo Gomes

Victor-Hugo Gomes, 2007.


Kitchen technology: simple but eco-friendly, human-driven grinders

Implements of the past... VHG has enough exhibits to launch three museums of his own!


A torture chair from the past? Note the spaces to tie hands and feet.

The smile on Riza's face suggests she doesn't know this was a torture chair... note the spots for tying hands and feet


Goan tools, in diverse shapes and sizes

Yet more Goan implements


Can you guess what each is used for?

Implements....


Measures and agri implements, from another day.

More implements of the past


The artist’s home

Raging to go... Benaulim, 2007


Soda water bottles. Remember?

... and soda bottles came in this shape


Beer, from Madras.

Beer bottles, from Madras (old)

Windows 1950s

Windows, 2007 (TM). Patent belongs to Goan artistry of a past generation.


Baskets

Bamboo craft from Goa, Benaulim 2007


The cutter’s arm

Implements of Goa's past...


Ladles, of wood

Coconut spoons of another era...


Benaulim, where the museum is set

Benaulim, Holy Spirit ... cross

The artist's home, Benaulim by you.

Scenic setting for such a succinct story.

The artist's home, Benaulim

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October 31, 2009 at 5:55 pm

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Checking out details of ‘A Survival Guide to Social Media and Web 2.0 Optimization’ by Deltina Hay. Interesting http://ping.fm/ZeXoV

Written by fredericknoronha

October 29, 2009 at 6:11 pm

Posted in Goa

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Very nice intro to Free Software talk, demo at Goa Science Centre this morn/afternoon. Thanks for a good job, Animesh!

Written by fredericknoronha

October 29, 2009 at 6:09 pm

Posted in Goa

Dr Bernadette Gomes… sociologist, artist

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ONE KNEW BERNIE as a committed student activist in our college days. Later, I encountered her new avatar as Dr. Bernadette Gomes, sociologist, whose work and potential has been rated high by the likes of the US-based (Marblehead, MA) anthropologist Dr Robert (Bob) S. Newman. More recently, I got to know her as someone whose writing really deserves to be published (but that’s taking time to happen).

After hearing her mention it for long, last week I got to know the artist in Bernie.


Her exhibition ‘Maadani — Under the Coconut Palms’ is to go up on display in Panjim’s Institute Menezes Braganza on October 29, 30 and 31 (9 am to 7 pm). It’s subtitled, “Growing up in Goa, rendered in paint by Bernadette Gomes”.

In fact, her paintings strike one as a two-dimensional, sociological statement in four-colours (to use a printing term). This, she says, is her childhood recollection. But it’s definitely not the self-obsessed perspective of middle-class and affluent Goa, made up largely of a nostalgic yearning of the past or the mirages and promises of the uncertain future.

Her work instead tells the story focussing on subaltern Goa (and that’s where the activist embers come alive). It remids us of the traditional occupations and lifestyles which are now under severe threat (as capitalism and consumerism overrun a semi-feudal society with unbridled speed and determination).

She describes her paintings thus:

Each of them is a personal experience brought to life. It’s the way in which Goa’s folk life has touched mine, shaping me as I grew up.

The paintings capture people’s practices; a way of life that’s fast disappearing. Like the gathering of dried leaves before the monsoon, to light kitchen fires. Like par-boiling paddy at night. Women bathing at the village stream…

Others peep into little known aspects of Goa’s varied peoples. Like the Meazghor of the pastoral Gouly tribe, a living room-cum-kitchen-cum-store room, made entirely of woven cane. The men dancing the Powo during Dussehra. Or just taking a break as they tend the goats.

Fun, frolic and solemnity is portrayed in the Sotryo festival of Cuncolim; the fire walkers at the zatra of Goddess Lairayee at Sirgao; the village church feast…

My favourite, a lively scene of salt-pan workers, that could come from coastal Pernem, or any one of the villages in Bardez and Tiswadi that once made Goa a salt-exporting centre par excellence (now this traditional sector is facing immense pressure).

The details are amazing and, sometimes, like a picture clicked by one of those modern, high-res digital cameras, almost better than life!

Her images include:

    Goa under one umbrella — the sotryo festival of Cuncolim, celebrated by Hindus and Christians alike.
    Goulys get going — the Powo dance, a unique Gouly Dussehra custom.
    No fear of fire — the Dhonds of Goddess Lairayee walk on burning embers.
    Leav-ing nothing behind — gathering dry leaves for the fire before the monsoon in the zabblo (traditional coir-net bags).
    Salt of the earth — salt pans were once Goa’s principal industry.

Not for nothing does Bernie mention that she’s from Santo Estevao “also the native village of (noted Goan artist who rendered Christian themes in Indian style) Agnelo da Fonseca.”
She recently took premature retirement from her job at the Government Colleges where Bernie lectured in Sociology. But maybe the loss of students in Cuncolim and Quepem could be the gain of the local art scene. Enriched not just with lively colours but a deep understanding of the rich lives of the poor Goan who now gets turned invisible and often falls beyond the radar of urban Goa.

Written by fredericknoronha

October 29, 2009 at 8:25 am

Posted in art, Goa

Sociologist, researcher, artist…

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ONE KNEW BERNIE as a committed student activist in our college days. Later, I encountered her new avatar as Dr. Bernadette Gomes, sociologist, whose work and potential has been rated high by the likes of the US-based (Marblehead, MA) anthropologist Dr Robert (Bob) S. Newman. More recently, I got to know her as someone whose writing really deserves to be published (but that’s taking time to happen).

After hearing her mention it for long, last week I got to know the artist in Bernie.

Bernadette Gomes

Bernadette Gomes



Her exhibition ‘Maadani — Under the Coconut Palms’ is to go up on display in Panjim’s Institute Menezes Braganza on October 29, 30 and 31 (9 am to 7 pm). It’s subtitled, “Growing up in Goa, rendered in paint by Bernadette Gomes”.

In fact, her paintings strike one as a two-dimensional, sociological statement in four-colours (to use a printing term). This, she says, is her childhood recollection. But it’s definitely not the self-obsessed perspective of middle-class and affluent Goa, made up largely of a nostalgic yearning of the past or the mirages and promises of the uncertain future.

Her work instead tells the story focussing on subaltern Goa (and that’s where the activist embers come alive). It remids us of the traditional occupations and lifestyles which are now under severe threat (as capitalism and consumerism overrun a semi-feudal society with unbridled speed and determination).

She describes her paintings thus:

Each of them is a personal experience brought to life. It’s the way in which Goa’s folk life has touched mine, shaping me as I grew up. 

The paintings capture people’s practices; a way of life that’s fast disappearing. Like the gathering of dried leaves before the monsoon, to light kitchen fires. Like par-boiling paddy at night. Women bathing at the village stream… 

Others peep into little known aspects of Goa’s varied peoples. Like the Meazghor of the pastoral Gouly tribe, a living room-cum-kitchen-cum-store room, made entirely of woven cane. The men dancing the Powo during Dussehra. Or just taking a break as they tend the goats. 

Fun, frolic and solemnity is portrayed in the Sotryo festival of Cuncolim; the fire walkers at the zatra of Goddess Lairayee at Sirgao; the village church feast… 

Take a look at some of her paintings and decide for yourself:

My favourite, a lively scene of salt-pan workers, that could come from coastal Pernem, or any one of the villages in Bardez and Tiswadi that once made Goa a salt-exporting centre par excellence (now this traditional sector is facing immense pressure).

Art ... by Bernadette Gomes by you.

And here are two rich scenes from traditional Goa and its festivities…

Art ... by Bernadette Gomes by you.

Art ... by Bernadette Gomes by you.

The details are amazing and, sometimes, like a picture clicked by one of those modern, high-res digital cameras, almost better than life!

Her images include:

  • Goa under one umbrella — the sotryo festival of  Cuncolim, celebrated by Hindus and Christians alike.
  • Goulys get going — the Powo dance, a unique Gouly Dussehra custom.
  • No fear of fire — the Dhonds of Goddess Lairayee walk on burning embers.
  • Leav-ing nothing behind — gathering dry leaves for the fire before the monsoon in the zabblo (traditional coir-net bags).
  • Salt of the earth — salt pans were once Goa’s principal industry.

Not for nothing does Bernie mention that she’s from Santo Estevao “also the native village of (noted Goan artist who rendered Christian themes in Indian style) Agnelo da Fonseca.”

She recently took premature retirement from her job at the Government Colleges where Bernie lectured in Sociology. But maybe the loss of students in Cuncolim and Quepem could be the gain of the local art scene. Enriched not just with lively colours but a deep understanding of the rich lives of the poor Goan who now gets turned invisible and often falls beyond the radar of urban Goa.

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Written by fredericknoronha

October 26, 2009 at 5:06 am

Panjim by nite

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From my collection of "Panjim by nite" pics

You'll find more Panjim by nite pics at http://photosfromgoa.notlong.com

Written by fredericknoronha

September 9, 2009 at 8:19 am

Posted in Goa

Some wine links

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PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST… AS A WINE-MAKER

http://osdir.com/ml/culture.region.india.goa.saligao/2004-08/msg00015.html

Commodity tourism: wine & dine in the farm!
http://www.commodityonline.com/news/Commodity-tourism-wine–dine-in-the-farm!-12561-3-1.html

Winemaking is way of life
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/winemaking-is-way-of-life/398546/0

The Wine Classroom

http://pawinenovice.blogspot.com/2009/08/md-e-letter-features-winemaking-school.html

Make your own wine (it’s not what you think)
http://www.blogcatalog.com/blog/the-wine-case/038ea3b381af454efc0e012fb1a646fb

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Written by fredericknoronha

September 8, 2009 at 5:14 am

Posted in Goa

Tagged with , ,

Books in Goa: promises and perils of publishing

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By Frederick Noronha

Selma Carvalho spent part of her Goa holiday trying to finish a book dealing with stories of Goan migration. The UK-based mother of a three-year-old believes her work has inputs that could help Goans better understand their own complex reality.

Carvalho is one of a growing trend of writers bringing Goa-centric work to the fore. An increasing number of books on Goa is getting into print, here and elsewhere. Goa, the size of an average Indian district, has an amazing set of numbers on its side. Outside of the metros, it is probably the most intensely published region nationwide, given its size.

“Each year, between 200 to 250 books are being published in Goa alone. Out of these, about 70% are in Konkani,” notes Central Library curator Carlos Fernandes.

Fernandes, a soft-spoken man with a reputation for his quiet efficiency, sits at the helm of the oldest public library in South Asia. The Central Library was set up as the Publica Livraria in 1832, but has been overtaken by the metros across India. Formerly with the Goa Engineering College, Fernandes believes that good writers can help sell books in a world where a market exists and technology has made things simple — you can layout a book on your desktop computer at home.

The trickle is turning into a flood. Old-timers remember the situation in the 1980s, when there would be just a handful of Goa-related books visible at exhibitions and sales. Today, there are literally dozens, if not a few hundred books on Goa in print. That is, if you know where to find them.

“Goa is in a unique situation,” avers Vivek Menezes, a Goan expat who returned home while in his 30s. He has published two books, that offer overviews of music and art in Goa. “Yet the market is ridiculed. People make false assumptions about Goa.” His suggestion is that much more is possible.

Miramar-based Menezes, who can be often found in the mornings working hard at writing from his office near Panjim’s municipal garden, sees Goa as a “potentially large and lucrative market”. He points to the tourist purchases of local books. Besides, “Goa is on top of the national food-chain in terms of interest and visibility.”

Writers' Club by you.

GoaWriters meeting underway. Photo: from left, Rahul Shrivastav, Willy Goes, Victor Rangel-Ribeiro, Jose Lourence and Vivek Menezes. More GoaWriters below, from left, Xavier Cota, Cecil Pinto, Alito Sequeira, Damodar Mouzo, Jose Lourenco and Augusto Pinto. Women members are absent from photos for some reason!

Goa Writers March 2008 by you.

Menezes argues: “You have all the ingredients in place for huge growth; but we’re told that Goa is too small and cannot sustain! We have a huge captive audience. In the last two to three years, due to the presence of (top national writers like) Amitav Ghosh (who have homes in Goa), the writing community is also getting built up.”

                       * * *

Simultaneously, the market for Goa books has opened up in recent years. This is not to say that everything is gung-ho. There are big challenges; but opportunity is now felt more strongly than ever before. Outlets are coming up in Goa, in a shape and size that marks a dramatic departure from the conservative, play-it-safe past.

Peter Nazareth, the editor of an anthology of Goan writing (”Goan Literature: A Modern Reader”, Journal of South Asian Literature Winter-Spring 1983) was surprised on encountering online videos about a couple of bookstores in Goa.

He wrote: “I am astounded! They look like very good bookstores with many, many books. (One belonging to Khalil Ahmed) looks as good as the best bookstore in Iowa City, which is the city of writing in the US.”

Broadway at Sant Inez in Panjim was set up by Khalil Ahmed, who decades back looked after the Goa market while working for major publishers in New Delhi. Today, Broadway is into publishing too, and has earned a reputation for its special counters that offer books at bargain prices. Khalil Ahmed runs it with son Faheem, in his twenties.

Panjim bookshop: Broadway by you.
Panjim bookshop: Broadway by you.

Broadway, at St Inez.

Besides this, there are others like the Coutinhos of Margao, whose sprawling premises in an old-styled Goan house is in the heart of the city. Located behind the Margao main post office, it is called Golden Heart Emporium. In one room, a number of Goa-related books lie crowded in shelves, vying for the reader’s attention.

Special ‘Goa sections’ for local bookshops are a fairly recent trend though.

Bookshops that first made their Goa book sections visible included the Other India Bookstore, a charming place almost hidden — but widely written about in travel guides and known in alternative Indian publishing circles — above the old Mapusa Clinic at Mapusa. OIBS is an alternative network that has a good selection and does a lot of mail-order business.

Lawyer Norma Alvares has been associated with this network as a trustee, and has displayed innovation and the ability to build a market where none existed. Besides their environmental, activist and NGO books, the OIBS also has a long-standing commitment to promoting Goa-related books.

OIBS, till recently, would activelytrack down and chase self-published authors. By pursuing those who came out with a book on Goa, they managed to put together a wide choice of Goa-related books, in a market that is otherwise fragmented, and marked by a lot of difficulties in finding the books you need.

                       * * *

This is a major problem with Goa books. Most are self-published, or brought out by small-time publishers.

Local newspapers, mostly, don’t review newly published local books. So, when the book is just out, very few people are aware of it. By the time readers get to know of it, the title could well be out of print, or difficult to locate!

Apart from the OIBS, Golden Heart at Margao, and Broadway, those with good Goa-related book sections include The Hotel Mandovi’s bookshop, and even the unusual Literati, just off the Calangute-Candolim road. It would probably help if there was more reader-pressure on bookshops to stock more Goa-related titles.

Golden Heart Emporium, bookshop at Margao by you.

Margao’s Golden Heart Emporium.

There are other factors too.

Having good bookshops does help. It’s not just numbers sold that matters; even the glamour of the printed word grows, and could get taken more seriously.

Says the prestigious Frommers.com, one of the best travel guide in America: “It’s Literati … that has the atmosphere. You can sit for hours in the terrific book cafe and read or browse or buy secondhand as well as newly published works, while at the same time enjoying a delicious brownie or a tall glass of chilled kokum (fruit drink). Ask owner Divya Kapur about any upcoming events like poetry or book readings and writing workshops.”

Writer Shikha Tripathi writes online at myfidgetyfeet.com: “As uncanny as chalk and cheese, Goa and books sounds like a divorced idea. My last trip to the place, however, revealed the literary culture of a place I had previously equated not with books but with the greater known b’s — beer and beaches.”

                       * * *

Things are changing fast. The bookshops are there; so are the books, and the authors. So what stops Goa-related titles from getting a better place in the local sun — not to forget wider national and diaspora markets?

“Distribution. Distribution. Distribution. A distribution network is sorely needed. There are no real distributors in Goa,” says Cecil Pinto, who in 2007 published ‘Domnic’s Goa’, a book by Gulf-returned Domnic Fernandes of Anjuna, which nostalgically narrates life as was in Goa two generations ago.

Like the proverbial chain, the strength here too is that of the weakest link! For most in the field, the distribution networks, or lack of them, is the serious most constrain that Goa currently faces in making its books viable and visible.

Talk to any author, publisher or reader, and the most common complaint is that books don’t travel beyond Goa. Not even to cities which have large Goan pockets, and could be potential markets.

Amitav Ghosh, Goa, June 2008 by you.

Amitav Ghosh, one of the writers who has made Goa his home for part of the year.

But, to be fair, it takes for a huge cost and many challenges to even try to tap this scattered market. Pinto points to the disappointing experience of his book not reaching diaspora communities, even via mail-order networks. But book sellers here have to cope with difficult and costly (or unavailable) payment mechanisms, delays in receiving payments, and poor communications. Unless this severe bottleneck is somehow overcome, a lot of potential will remain stymied.

Remy Rodrigues, former partner of advertising and publishing firm Era, says the biggest problem with books is “marketing obviously”. One has to work hard to build the profile of a book, and “experienced writers” are important he feels. “If you throw peanuts, you only get monkeys.” Of course, this leaves Goa in a chicken-and-egg situation. Where does the money come from if the market is yet to be built up?

Cecil Pinto agrees that things are falling into place: “Writers and readers can be from anywhere. They don’t have to be physically present in Goa. Editing, illustration, photography, designing, printing, packaging and publicity talent and facilities exist here. What we need is an efficient distribution network which can make the book visible and available locally, all-India and worldwide.”

But others see the problem as lying elsewhere.

Dr Fatima Gracias, historian, says: “Publishing books in Goa is time-consuming for the author, as in some instances the author has to look after many aspects of publishing. Publishers often do not pay much attention to finer points — editing, appearance, cover, paper quality. Academic books lack a good bibliography or reference list, correct footnotes, end notes, ISBN (International Standard Book Number) and, most importantly, an index.”

“Publishers in  Delhi takes time to come out with a book but they take care of all aspects of publishing. In some cases, the publication needs to be financed by the author. The author has no control or idea of number of copies published,” she adds. Dr Gracias has published four books, two each in Delhi and Goa, and is awaiting completion of the fifth.

Add to this the other typical problems of a small and scattered market. Books can be published in limited numbers — usually a thousand copies, sometimes 500. This pushes up costs and makes it costlier to promote each book.

Money can be slow to return, both for authors and publishers.

                       * * *

Yet, despite this, publishing continues unabated. Goa comes out with a significant number of titles each year.

In the mid-1980s, after reading a really insightful essay by a Western scholar on Goa, this writer began collecting books on the region. Today, one has a collection of about 28 shelves of Goa books, each with approx 30 books, reports and the like. Others like ex-librarian and Goanvoice.Org.UK editor Eddie Fernandes has a collection of a few thousand books. All related to Goa.

Loretta Nunes, manager of the Other India Bookstore, volunteers to count the number of available books on the Mapusa-based outlet’s “Goa books catalogue”. It’s over 190 right now! Goans seem to be the most prolific — for reasons tough to understand — in the fields of biographies, history, religion, tourism and cookery (for obvious reasons).

Margaret Mascarenhas, author, Skin by you.

Margaret Mascarenhas (front), another prominent local writer.

“Some books don’t move (sell) fast. Most Goans don’t buy books. It’s the foreigners who go for it,” she says. But this may also be because the OIBS has received favourable mention in places like the trendy Lonely Planet guide, which, in turn, influences many foreign tourists to visit.

OIBS, and its sister organisation, the Other India Press, are quaint outfits, which trace their roots to the environmentalist couple, Dr Claude and Advocate Norma Alvares. Almost hidden by an un-typical entrance at the rear of the old Mapusa Clinic building, this outlet is unknown to most Goans. But it does, as mentioned, good mail-order business, and is known across the country and beyond. It has a wide selection of environmental and activist titles, and now, a rich selection of Goa books too.

                       * * *

The other part of the puzzle is the book collector, mentioned above. There are perhaps a handful of hard-core addicts who collect every Goa-related book they could get their hands on.

IMG_0420 by you.

Konkani writer N Shivdas, currently head of the Goa Konkani Akademi.

Leroy Veloso is one such avid collector of Goa books, based in Moira. He began buying books on Mumbai’s street markets in 1998, when he first went to work on board the ship. He started collecting Goa books since 2006, when he changed careers and opted for the shore.

Says he: “Obviously newer published books are easier to get on Goa, out of print books are difficult. You have to keep asking around and searching in second-hand shops, jumble sales, etc. It’s more like fishing. Don’t know whether or what I’ll get books on Goa but I am usually pleasantly surprised.”

Veloso argues: “I don’t think there is much market for Goa books in Goa, people expect to get free copies of books. Also I feel the government should make it compulsory, or facilitate, the publication of PhD theses on Goa issues, as these are simply lying in the Goa University library now.”

Expat Bosco D’Mello, from Toronto and earlier from Bombay who traces his roots to the Bardez village of Socorro, says: “Books from Goa fill a void in my understanding of Goa and its people. It supplements my knowledge of Goa and Goans through the ages and helps understand how Goan society has morphed into its present state. I am drawn to non-fiction and historical manuscripts although I do own novels authored by Goans or about Goa. The other reason I buy books authored by Goans — fiction or non-fiction — is to support Goan writers.”

He suggests that copies of Goa-related books should be donated or submitted to public libraries in cities around the world that have large Goan populations. Goan associations could also act as channels to popularise Goan books. Interested Goans could act as local points of contacts for selling such books, he suggests.

Leading hotels in Goa could purchase large volumes of Goa-related books at cheaper prices and handout to their guests as part of a welcome package, he suggests. But, of course, it’s a question of everybody just taking care of their own business interest. So….

                       * * *

When one talks to different interest-groups involved, it becomes clear how disparate the concerns are.

Odette Mascarenhas, author of a book on the famous chef Masci (her father-in-law) and two more Goan “Harry Potters” for kids, says: “We writers have a tough time to break into big houses in Mumbai and Delhi. Most of our writings are Goa-centric. So perhaps a local publisher would help. We need to create a niche to showcase Goan talent.”

Sheela Jaywant, a Goan author, compares the local market with Mumbai: “Not much difference between the two. Goa being smaller, everyone knows everyone and books have to be given free. Mumbai is bigger, one has lots of colleagues and acquaintances, and books have to be given free.”

She adds: “Price-wise, too, not much difference for a self-publisher. Ah yes, many in Goa have space to store the undistributed books. In Bombay, that’s one big pain!”

Tales from the attic (By Savia Viegas) by you.

Tales from the Attic, by Savia Viegas

“I took self-publishing as a way to leverage my writing into public space,” says former journalist and academic Savia Viegas, who recently sold a thousand copies of her novel set in Goa, ‘Tales from the Attic’. To do so, she went beach-to-beach, around Salcete where she lives, acting as “hawker” to many, including to visiting tourists.

Cut to Rama Harmalkar (40), a traditional printer who studied the art in Bicholim. Harmalkar quickly realised that there is a need for quality print jobs, and outsources his work to printers in Mumbai. For a marginally higher price, he offers a quality job, which has drawn business for him from a wide section of those going in for book publishing, both individuals and some publishers.

But novelist, former journalist and musicologist Victor Rangel-Ribeiro, who is 83 and yet keen to share skills with others here (he helped kick-start the GoaWriters group), believes that one shouldn’t gloss over problem areas.

Rangel-Ribeiro says: “Publishing in Goa differs from publishing as it is practiced in the West: in Goa, a publisher seems to be any individual who takes a manuscript and prints it. A book launch is held, people are invited, and the book is considered published.”

Even when backed by a knowledgeable and powerful array of forces — acquisition staff, editors, copy-editors, legal experts, proofreaders, a sales force, advertising and PR — books that are published in the West often fail to sell. “To me it seems that most books that are written and published in Goa are orphaned and abandoned at birth. It is a miracle that books published in Goa sell at all,” says Rangel-Ribeiro, not mincing his words.

Indo-Portuguese historian Dr Teotonio R de Souza, based in Lisbon and working towards a reprint of his ‘Medieval Goa’, believes that writers need to improve their inputs into their books. He calls for rigorous scholarship in the social sciences, relating contents to actuality (even in History), and the courage to face controversial issues like caste, conversions or colonialism. Souza was founder-director of the Xavier Centre of Historical Research, and some of their books have been published through networks like Concept, New Delhi.

                       * * *

Unfortunately, language is another factor that fractures the Goa market; not to decry diversity. For instance, outlets which stock English-language books might not keep Konkani and Marathi titles, or vice versa. Inspite of Goa’s multilingual situation, very few translations happen here still.

Visibility of Goa books is another issue. In a situation of profound ignorance about new books being published, how are potential buyers to get to know of what’s available? South Goa is getting a plush new district library opened, and one suggestion is to hold a permanent exhibition of books published in Goa. Likewise, Goa, with its pleasant weather for much of the year, could hold open air book-fairs to widen its market. Indoor fairs for books are held here, but these lack the scale or colour needed to draw in the crowds.

Goa’s postal service needs to offer better facilities, if wider markets are to be tapped. At Panjim’s General Post Office, one could run into widely fluctuating postal rates and unawareness, though the official policy is actually quite helpful and aimed at offering books preferential postal rates.

Much needs to be done to promote the reading habit in Goa too. Despite claims, the village libraries set up in Goa in the 1980s are either in a state of collapse, or not growing significantly. Showing an inability to run the network of village libraries, the government is now handing these over to voluntary groups. This may work in some cases, but the need for an expansion of village libraries is undeniable.

                       * * *

Prabhakar Bhide, of the Rajhauns Vitrans, heads an active publishing house started in 1981. Till date, they have a total of 941 titles in print, including school and educational books, Bhide says.

The biggest challenge, says Bhide, are “bread and butter issues”. He says: “If I can’t create a viable business, then how can one continue? I need to be good enough to market whatever I produce, or produce whatever the market needs.”

While Goa books have a small market, the reading habit is actually improving, he feels. Among his popular books, he lists Goa, A Social History (by P D Xavier), Magnificent Monuments (by Xavier Lobo), the recently reprinted The Goa Inquisition (A K Priolkar) and Goan Home Wines (by Edwin Saldanha).

Literati, the Calangute bookshop by you.

Literati, a fashionable bookshop where Calangute meets Candolim.

Broadway’s managing director Khalil Ahmed says his bookshop is keen on publishing titles from the region. “It takes time to recover the investment, but it’s okay. Though this is a small market, there is still scope. One cannot predict which book will click,” says he.

He praises government support, and says this helps too. Broadway has published some 15 titles. Faheem Ahmed (24), the next generation at the firm, says publishing Goa is their way of giving back to a state which hosts their business.

Author Vishnu Wage (44) has himself authored and published 15 titles (six collections of poetry, four plays, one biography, two in free verse, and two satires). Besides this, he’s also been an editor, a theatre personality, a cartoonist, and a politician!

What’s the economics of publishing these books?

Says he: “I’ve self-published my books. But I also have a tie-up with distributors in Maharashtra, and give it to them to sell. This (selling in Maharashtra) is not possible if one writes in Konkani. It’s very tough to move from door to door selling books (laughs).” To ensure attractiveness, Wagh says he’s careful to maintain layout and production standards, while making the books aesthetically appealing too.

“More or less an equal number of Konkani and Marathi books published each month, say about 15 to 20 each. Over 100-150 new books (in Marathi and Konkani each) get published on an average in a year. But hardly 5% of these would be worth reading,” avers Wagh.

Says Dr Pratap Naik, a Jesuit scholar and Konkani promoter: “Whether we published our own or published by others, experience is not so good. Sales are limited.”

“‘Romans’ (Romi Konkani fiction) used to sell because readers then didn’t know English. Konkani was the only option (in those times). Who reads Konkani now? Those who were earlier Konkani readers have now learnt English,” he says.

In his view, the religious publication ‘Dor Moneachi Roti’ (at one stage even published from Karachi) and the ‘Romans’ were two ways for keeping the Goan Catholic in touch with their culture and Konkani in the past. “If (Konkani pulp fiction is) reprinted today will it sell? I have my doubts. That readership is all but gone,” he says, sounding pessimistic. TV, DVDs and audio cassettes offer stiff competition to books too.

“Devanagari books thrive because of government support. It’s not a question of whether a hundred or a thousand books are published each year. My challenge is, the the government stop giving grants, and spend that money on welfare of the people… that will give us an indication of whether people really need Konkani,” says Naik.

This could be seen as a reflection of the Devanagari-versus-Romi script battle that has been going on in the Konkani world here. But, Naik agrees that the pressure of a reader-shortage is being felt in the Romi world too.

Yet, despite all the many problems, there are signs of change. Books are reaching the presses in growing numbers. One cannot overlook the role of books in generating ideas and knowledge. To ignore the low-returns field of book publishing in a small market would be a crucial error, and as things are moving — with many advantages in its favour — Goa has no alibi for not taking this sector seriously.

—-

Frederick Noronha, a journalist for 25 years, recently himself ventured into a small, alternative publishing venture Goa,1556 [http://goa1556.goa-india.org]

*********************************************************
BOX: The rat and the lion
*********************************************************

It takes an American anthropologist to underline the point
that publishing a Goa book in Goa itself makes good sense.

         Dr Robert S Newman, the Marblehead (Ma.) based
         anthropologist, says, “My experience in publishing
         my Goa related book was basically good. I published
         my book in Goa because I left academia and didn’t
         need to impress anyone with my ‘hotshot skills’ and
         ‘great intellect’. More simply put, I wasn’t
         gunning for a promotion.”

Bob Newman, anthropologist by you.

Above, Dr Robert ‘Bob’ S Newman. Photo FN

Newman, earlier at La Trobe University in Australia, says he
“just wanted people to read what I wrote.” The most important
people for him, he says, were Goans, since his work is on
this place.

Publishing a Goa book some distant, bigger centre would only
push up costs. “Also, interest in Goa in the wide world is
rather limited. Many publishers in the West would
automatically say, ‘This book is not going to sell.’ In Goa,
that would not be the case,” he notes.

In the late 1990s, when Newman published here, then as now,
there was a limited choice by way of publishers he could
approach.

Yet, he says: “I think the challenge does not lie in the lack
or plenitude of publishers. It is in the quantity or quality
of manuscripts available. Things have to be written in order
to get published.”

Newman, from distant North America, reminds us of the crucial
task of knowledge creation.

“If we look at Anthropology, where are the manuscripts?  Who
is encouraging (Dr Bernadette) Gomes to write the various
things she could write? Why did she receive so little
encouragement over the years?  Coffee table books probably
sell more, but they do not constitute “better books” in my
opinion. Who is pestering Alexander Henn, Alito Siqueira,
Manuel Magalhães, Jason Fernandes, Claudia Pereira, and a
few others to hurry up and produce a manuscript?  Nobody.
What about the writers of literature?”

         Looking back, Newman says: “When I came to Goa in
         2006, there was a lot of interest in the book and
         people had heard about my work.  That was
         fantastic. They heard of me in “Goa” circles in
         Portugal too.”

If he had written the “same kind of stuff” on Afghanistan or
Iraq, it might have brought better returns, Newman suggests.

He argues: “Books on India at large might sell more or be
more widely read. But I always felt glad that I studied Goa
and wrote on Goa because I opened the door — there really
wasn’t much anthropology on Goa before.”

“It was kind of a pioneering work and I’ve always hoped that
a bunch more would follow, building up on what I started.  I
wanted my book to be available in Goa and that’s what
happened. As they say in South America — mejor la cabeza de
raton que el culo de leon!  (Better the head of a rat than
the arse of a lion!)”
*********************************************************

PUBLISHED, IN A SLIGHTLY ADAPTED VERSION, FIRST IN Goa Today, August 2009.

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September 8, 2009 at 4:30 am

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Images from the release of the Medieval Goa

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Images from the release of the Medieval Goa book: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fn-goa/sets/72157621978256223/

Medieval Goa release by fredericknoronha.

153 photos | 728 views Above, the audience

Medieval Goa book release function by fredericknoronha.

Above, part of the panel of historians: Dr Fatima Gracias, Dr Charles Borges, Dr Ms Maria Aurora Couto and author Dr Teotonio R de Souza (partly visible)

Medieval Goa book release function by fredericknoronha.

The author and Dr Couto. Others partly seen are Sushila Sawant-Mendes (right) and Dr/Fr Charles Borges sj (left)

Medieval Goa book release by fredericknoronha.

The author with Goa University VC Dr Dileep Deobagkar.

PS: Don’t believe all I have to say (or click) on this. Goa,1556 — which I am associated with — has co-published this book!

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September 8, 2009 at 4:28 am

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Medieval Goa Release

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Medieval Goa Release

Originally uploaded by Joel’s Goa Pics.

Medieval Goa, released in Goa on August 21, 2009 at Panjim.

Written by fredericknoronha

August 22, 2009 at 1:11 am

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June 21, 2009 at 2:51 pm

Posted in Goa

Cooking up a tasty meal… of information (and data)

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“What’s that for?” I asked.

“To cook…. yes, it’s to cook,” laughed Onno Widodo Purbo, who calls himself “an independent ICT writer who dreams to see a knowledge-based society in Indonesia.”

Dr. Purbo showed every sign of enjoying his joke tremendously.

PANALL2009 - Penang by you.

But in a little while, things were up and running. It was about information, not steamed rice or sambal.

As participants at the PANALL2009 camp finished lunch, the diminitive former academic turned tech-campaigner mounted the stairs and began his strange demo.

By the time he finished, everyone was astounded by the simplicity of the technology he used. And it’s power.

In short, what he was doing was to take a wok — the versatile round-bottomed cooking vessel originating in China — added on a wifi pen drive, and manage to create rough-and-ready and cheap tool to extend the wireless capacity of your computer. In this way, one could link up dozens of others while sharing a single fat pipe to the Net.

This makes Net access a whole new ball game, specially in resource-poor, talent-rich countries where most can’t afford the luxury of the internet.

Purbo, a PhD, counts among his current priorities “spreading knowledge — through many workshops, demos, seminars in Indonesia — on low cost Internet access using wokbolic, neighbourhood network, open source software, internet telephony etc.”

To know more about his work, search for the terms “wokbolic” or “wajanbolic” (the “wajan” is the Indonesian term for the “wok”). The second part of the name, of course, refers to the parabolic reflector, which is what it is, even if of an unusual kind.

Some of the papers he has written are in Indonesian, but there’s enough images to guide one around.

See this Bahasa Indonesia note which gives a detailed design and step-by-step guide on how to create a “wokbolic and bazooka” antenna for 3G.

Caution: PVC tubing and aluminium tape is to be used to create this low-cost weapon against information-poverty.

Measurements have to be precise too, explains Dr Purbo, as he talks in fractions… so as to get the exact size and shape to reflect the wireless link and connect computers, almost magically it would seem.

By using this ingenuity, Purbo makes a USB wifi stick — which could link computers a few metres away — to connect over hundreds of metres. Someone was asking about using such a tool “in series” — as kind of repeater stations.

Yes, that’s possible too! This author of a thousand articles, and over 40 books, should know!

An http://www.idrc.ca/en/ev-45872-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html earlier article on Dr Purbo.

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Written by fredericknoronha

June 13, 2009 at 2:06 am

Posted in Goa

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