(25 Mar '12)
In the near future,
visitors will come to Goa not for the beaches and related activities like
lounging around to eat, drink, swim (and occasionally, irresponsibly, drown),
or ogle at scantily dressed women nor for special parties. Perhaps Goa as a
wedding and conference venue will stay for a while.
Those who believed that
one could make tourism money out of Goan history or architecture, would by now
have a doubt or two that they could be wrong.
Of course, we could still market our zatras and Mollem and Cotigao
sanctuaries, perhaps our mines, too, if we could persuade the owners to
rehabilitate them into forests or zoos. We could do something about our
overpriced taxis and poor public transport... perhaps this government has that
on its agenda.
In the meantime, there
are events we need to make note of that are quietly but steadily creeping onto
the scene that will attract interested folk from within the country and
without. The Thinkfest, the IFFI, and the Kosambi lectures, for example. I have
met so many people who came to Goa specifically for them. People who otherwise
wouldn't have bothered. These are areas that we need to tap.
Last year, when Goa's
(and India's) first swimathon was organized across the Zuari, I knew that this
was something, if well-organized, that would generate interest. There were only
twenty participants, there was delay, no prizes, safety measures needed much to
be desired... swimmers had to encounter ulta tide, barges and five rough
kilometres. The swimathon, organized by an inexperienced team, had an
objective: it raised money for a cause, the NGO Coastal Impact, run by
scuba-diving expert Venkat and his wife Karen who've been doing a good job over
the years of creating awareness about the health of Goa's coast and marine
life.
This year, too, the NGO
selected as beneficiary was a good one, Child Rights in Goa, represented by its
dedicated activist director, Dr Nishta Desai.
The organizers, singer Varsha Mathur Patel, Elias Patel, and karate
coach Joseph Fernandes learned their lesson well: not only did they get more
and better sponsors, the Swimathon which was held last Sunday had eighty-two
participants and three competitive events with prizes. The age-groups varied
from age 9 to 61 years. Participants had come from Vasco, Belgaum and one was a
British tourist. The on-lookers on the Bambolim Beach, Mumbaikars and Delhites,
were more than curious. They were impressed at what Goa had to offer. This is
an event that needs to be encouraged.
The same weekend, I
attended an unusual conference at the Fundacao Oriente, where Goan writers met
on a common, informal platform to exchange experiences on writing processes,
marketing of work, getting paid for it, etc. Considering that Goa is … or has
already become... an as yet unlabeled culture capital of India, this was unique
because the writers present there were those who wielded their pens in English,
Marathi and Konkani. No one seems to write much in Portuguese nowadays. Bhai
Mauzo, Meena Kakodkar and Mahableshwar Sail were there too!! What a treat it
was, listening to their stories... biographical ones, the journey of their
careers. Such events must be publicized, they are precious: litfests sans
commerce.
Lesser known activities
are happening in North Goa's beach belt. A struggling organization call Wallfly
regularly sends me a mail. The trio that runs an NGO which teaches
non-privileged persons (dalits, the lamani children) to make films on their
lives selects interesting films and shows them at The Art Chamber at Calangute.
They don't charge, but one can donate some money for their cause if one wishes
to. Lot of effort for a casual but very interesting evening.
I have a feeling the
time has come for five-star hotels to host more intellectual events.
Fire-swallowing dancers and guitar-strumming amateur singers can stay, but
readings from books, classical music soirees and small skits at dinnertime in
pretty venues will get Goa the right kind of tourists. I remember thinking this
when I attended the first international rugby tournament at the Don Bosco's
ground in Panaji last November. This tournament is going to be held every first
weekend of November. There is no doubt it will draw enthusiasts from across the
world, like the tournaments in Dubai and Hongkong do.
Those in the know tell
me that Goa has better international cuisine available at better prices than
any other place in India.
Sort out the transport
issues, assure guests that they won't be cheated, have good medical facilities
and deal with the garbage... and tourism will flourish rather than flounder
here. We have the beaches, we have adventure sports and so much more to offer
now. Go, Goa.
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