Dr. Francisco Colaço dr_colaco@yahoo.com
What is Mando? Everyone is talking of Mando these days. Mando is a dance-song with lyrics that convey pathos and imagery. It is a concrete symbol of the synthesis of two cultures: the Latin Christian and the Indian Hindu. Nowhere else one sees a file of men dressed in purely Western outfits and a file of women in Indian costumes holding fans gently swaying back and forth to a melancholic tune. Mando conjures reminiscences of a fantasy world of yesteryear to which today’s renowned composers have added new, pressing themes that make it a felicitous blend of the new and the old. BITTER-SWEET HISTORY Mando is said to be the biography of the Goan heart: a long tale of our bitter-sweet history with all the joys and sorrows. Something that expresses with immortal lyrics the glory and the martyrdom of Goan heart with its immense capacity to love and to suffer. Any event connected with the Mando generates profound interest among its aficionados. Recently, Goa witnessed one such momentous occasion. Against the backdrop of nostalgic Mando music by Curtorechim Salkam, Dr. Maria Aurora Couto released the book “Song of Goa Crown of Mandos” written by Dr. Jose Pereira, Michael Martins and Antonio da Costa, a 497-page hardbound book, co-published by the Saligao-based Goa-1556 and Broadway Publishing House. It has proved to be the fruit of much labour, patience and dedication by those who rose to the challenging task. Dr. Couto with her well-known verve and fluency waxed nostalgic about those days when she, her late revered husband Albano and Dr. Jose Pereira formed an “inseparable” trio. While extolling the grandiosity and scholarship of Dr. Jose she made it a point to stress the latter’s simplicity and originality that make him unique, a giant among mortals. She concluded quoting lines from Dr. Jose’s touching letter of condolence upon the death of husband Albano (and this brought tears to the eyes of many). Dr. Jose Pereira, the co-author of the book, who had specially flown from US to grace the release function, rose then to speak. With precise, measured, erudite words he gave a scholarly overview about Mando and its significance. Dr. Jose Pereira is the professor emeritus of theology of Fordham University, New York, where he lectured on History of Religions. A multi-faceted multi-talented personality, he has taught and done research in various academic institutions in Lisbon, London and Varanasi and has published 16 books and over 130 articles on theology, history of art and architecture and on Goa and Konkani language, culture, literature and music. He has devoted a great part of his life to the study of Mando, something that fascinates him immensely. Dr. Jose had earlier written a trilogy of books on Mando. Because of the huge demand, no sooner these books were released, they were out of print. This obviously left a big lacuna that had to be filled. The present book “Song of Goa Crown of Mandos” is a welcome release. The word “Crown” has been aptly chosen because Mando is indeed a “crown” made of four “jewels”: Mandos of Yearning (Utrike), Mandos of Union (Ekvott), Mandos of Lamentation (Villap) and Mandos of News (Fobro). Our immortal Mando composers of yesteryear dealt poignantly with the ardent and passionate love that yearns for union. Since yearning for love at times culminates with marital bliss, at times with failure to achieve union, the love forlorn, the jilted love affair leading to despair, desolation and lament, our great composers of Mando dealt also with this aspect admirably. A sizable space has also been reserved to describe social and political events. Mandos of Fobro deal with historical happenings, scandalous fashions, clandestine affairs and anecdotes from composer’s personal life — truly a portrait of traditional Goa, depicted with humour and malice. It is said that malice delivered impersonally and without prejudice used to be a developed fine art in that bygone era. The book “Crown of Mandos” is the fruit of much scholarship and meticulous research and beyond doubt, the authors have succeeded in bringing a real treatise on Mando. They have dug through a lot of archives, taken the trouble of interviewing hundreds of people, reviewed thousands of manuscripts, and obtained a wealth of information, treading the breadth and length of Goa, Saxtti in special. As a result, we have now the voluminous reference material at our disposal in the form of a compendium: Song of Goa (Crown of Mandos). Anyone who is interested in the subject (even those who have a bent for research) can now approach mando with a scholarly mind. They are given the rare opportunity to analyze Mandos in a manner never made previously possible. Information about each Mando is under several headings. The cover is artistically designed — modern, attractive. (Since the cover is meant to be a clip from a dance sequence, it is a minus point that the lady turns her back to the male partner while the latter looks at her; sadly the all-important eye contact between both partners is lost). The printing is neat; the various sections are well-separated into different categories. This book includes an introduction to Konkani songs (of varied types); essays on the Mando and its romantic, political and social world; lyrics, scores, translations of and commentaries on many prominent Mandos; details of the lives of some Mando composers; and rules of Saxtti elision. The book is truly an encyclopedia, a Mando reliquary which will serve as a mirror for a detailed look into the past and benchmark for all the new developments around Mando. WANTED: BOOK ON DULPODS We now hope that local publishers will set themselves the task of compiling a book on Dulpods. This they could do under Dr. Jose Pereira’s guidance and help from our greats like Tomasinho Cardoso, Fr. Bernardo Cotta, Michael Gracias, Marianella, Elvis Goes, Elvis Gonsalves, Inacio Palmeira and so many others who endeavour to make Mando vibrant as well as relevant to the present generation. Incidently, at the release functionn, the performance by ‘Curtorochim Salkam’ was commendable. Irineu’s voice is rich. Celine and Cynthia, the Costa Sisters, sing beautifully. Victor’s guitar playing and chord work is exceptional. However, the ‘impromptu’ dulpod at the request of the audience was lackluster, bereft of synchronization. A Mando dancing couple or two would surely have made the occasion more memorable. (This is an edited version of the article published earlier in the Goan Observer.) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Scribbling 