A slice of old Goa

After a 450-year rule by Portugal, Goa was formally integrated with the Indian Union in March, 1962. Since then, and after she was granted statehood in 1987, she has undergone a great change at an amazing pace. Goa is, now, one of the most popular tourist destinations in India.

Attracted by the bounties that nature has bestowed upon her and the warmth of her welcome and hospitality, thousands of domestic and foreign tourists head towards this picturesque Indian state. North Goa is captivating; they can feast their eyes on many a scene of beauty, fascinating sea-beaches, marvellous monuments et al. South Goa is soothing to their soul; they can, being far from the madding crowd, experience serene surroundings. But it is more interesting and

worthwhile to know how people lived their lives and what were their habits and customs in the bygone days.

Therefore, the tourists, who may pass by the ‘Ancestral Goa’ and ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’, are sure to deny themselves the pleasure of touring this part in the south of the island state. It would, indeed, have been a great miss for me had I omitted to visit this site so worthy of wonder.

In the first week of October last year, I could, accompanied by members of my family, accomplish my long-wished-for tour to Goa. Next day of our visit to North Goa, we set out for South Goa where our car driver and guide conducted us to Loutolim, a mini village atop a hillock.

Loutolim lies about 10 kilometres away from Madgaon Railway station. There we found, situated side by side, the ‘Ancestral Goa’—an open-air museum-cum-park, and, the ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’—the house (now referred to as “mansion”) of the Araujo Alvares.

Ancestral Goa

It is at the ‘Big Foot’ that the ‘Ancestral Goa’ has been set up to recreate Goan village life under Portuguese rule. Why is the Big Foot site called so? The leaflet for tourists contains the legend which runs thus:

Endowed with a deep sense of duty and infinite goodness, a local wealthy landowner by the name of Mahadar always helped the poor. Greedy neighbours, taking advantage of his great generosity, started fleecing him until he was shorn of all his possessions. He was so reduced to penury that his wife died for lack of the wherewithal. Pleased with his strong and unshakeable faith, even in the face of adversity, God appeared before him in his dream and asked him for a boon. Mahadar simply asked for a small place to stand and pray for mankind. God granted it on a hot rock where he stood on one foot and prayed. Testing his devotion and finding it

undiminished, God took him to heaven, leaving his footprint behind, with the boon, “Anyone praying here, with a pure heart, will be blessed with luck.” Many believe that it is at this foot, famed as the Big Foot, that wishes of pure souls are fulfilled.

The Big Foot is located within the periphery of the ‘Ancestral Goa’. First of its kind in this land, this open-air museum-cum-park with an area of over nine acres of land depicts culture and tradition of rural Goa from the past. It displays the art and artefacts on the lifestyles of the native people of olden times. Charlie Chaplin rightly said, ‘There are more valid facts and details in works of art than there are in history books’. It would be a pleasant surprise for tourists if they are privileged to meet a sixth generation Alvares family man, Maendra Jocelino Araujo Alvares, an artist himself and the creator of ‘Ancestral Goa’ who wielded his chisel and the stricken laterite stone grew to beauty in the form of Sant Mirabai, whose overwhelming devotion to Krishna has become history. Who does not know that her melodious devotional songs, pouring forth her soul, in passionate praise of her lord, are played or sung all over India and beyond! Goa can take pride in producing India’s longest laterite sculpture, that too, in just 30 days.

There are numerous remarkable works of art representing different aspects of life and livelihood of the forebears of the Goans and some species of flora and fauna that are perishing. The art gallery at the Big Foot displays the paintings of various local artists.

When a foreign tourist was coming out after visiting the site, he was heard saying, “As if ‘Ancestral Goa’ is the Montmartre of Paris in miniature.”

Casa Araujo Alvares

Adjacent to the ‘Ancestral Goa’ lies ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’—the palatial 251-year-old house of the Araujo Alvares family. Inherited from his ancestors, this magnificent house has been elegantly maintained with meticulous care by Salvador Eufemiano F Alvares, the first-generation man, who was an eminent lawyer in property-litigation cases. He earned wide

social recognition, chiefly by rendering pro bono legal services to the poor.

In the village Loutolim and in its vicinity, there are a number of impressive Portuguese mansions that have, mostly, been designed artificially to showcase Goan culture and open to the public. But the ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’ has been kept as it was in earlier times by the later generations, even after the death of the hamlet’s historic figure Salvador Eufemiano F Alvares. It was home to the present generation of Alvares siblings till the late fifties of the 20th century. As the children left for better education to the town, the inmates moved their residence, converting it into a holiday home for Alvares’ extended family. Once a traditional Goan home, it has now become a favourite haunt for tourists.

Matriarch of Alvares family, Dona Margarida, who left for her heavenly abode about a decade and half ago, willed that no change should take place in the set-up of the home. All the rooms are commodious and the objects therein have been scrupulously kept neat and tidy. The visitor will wonder how gracefully the master of the mansion furnished it with antiques, rare and old photographs and are being preserved religiously.

As a visitor enters the ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’ and ambles through rooms and curiously observes around, he would be awestruck and transported to the old world of Goa. It has the ambience of a very aristocratic home. Salvador Eufemiano F Alvares’ Advocate-room that befits a lawyer of repute, the impressive and comfortable Master bedroom, the well-furnished Main Hall,

the spacious Kitchen with its exquisite dishes, the grand Dining Room, etc., will conjure up visions of the actual lifestyles of a well-off Goan-Portuguese family of times long past.

After a four-day stay in Goa, on the day of our departure from there, I was fortunate to meet the Master of the entire spectacular show and Alvares family’s illustrious present heir Maendra Jocelino Araujo Alvares. A Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Bombay, he is a lover of music, art and gardening. Sant Mirabai on laterite stone—India’s longest laterite sculpture—is a great masterpiece of his creative artistic work. He is untiring in his propagation against excessive use of plastic and environment pollution and all that ails our world.

When I asked him what message he would like to leave to generations to come, he, who is in his mid-sixties, said, significantly, ‘Look after your past.’ Truly, Past is our guide—we learn from our Past to shape our Future.

Our tour to Goa had, indeed, been incomplete had we not visited the ‘Ancestral Goa’ and the ‘Casa Araujo Alvares’. They greatly helped us understand what the culture of Goa is all about.

The writer is retired Chief Commercial Manager (General) South Eastern Railway. He is presently an Advocate in Calcutta High Court.

Views expressed are personal

Lesser-known facts about Goa

A tale of two independence days

At the time when India attained independence from British rule on August 15, 1947, Goa was still under foreign control, as the Portuguese refused to release control of the state.

About a decade and a half later on December 17, 1961, Goa, with the help of Indian Army, air force and naval forces, managed to set itself free from the clutches of Portuguese rule. The under-prepared Portuguese army proved to be no match for the combined Indian forces.

The Portuguese army couldn’t withstand the storm of combined Indian forces for a long time. On December 18 itself, the Portuguese governor officially surrendered, and the very next day, Goa officially became a part of India!

Consequently, Goa celebrates its second Independence Day on December 19, four months after the entire nation celebrates freedom from the British forces.

Goa has one of India’s largest waterfalls

Goa boasts of one of the largest waterfalls in India — The Dudhsagar Waterfalls. It is located in the far east of the state, and is acknowledged as the second-highest waterfall in entire India. In terms of measurement, it has an impressive height of 603 metres.

The Dudhsagar Waterfalls is surrounded by a dense foliage. Cascading down a mountainside behind the railway line, the magnificent waterfall is a rare treat for the spectators’ eyes. The Dudhsagar Waterfalls is undoubtedly a highly recommended sight. Apart from sight-seeing, visitors can’t avoid the temptation of taking a dip into this marvel of nature.

Home to legitimate two-wheeler taxis

One might have fancied a whole lot of stylish and luxurious vehicles while travelling to multiple places across India and the world. But how about unpacking a town or a state with two-wheeler taxis! This unique concept is a reality in Goa where, without the fear of landing into a stranger, one can pay a motorcyclist for a lift. This is not possible in any part of the country.

This unique feature of Goa can be attributed to the abundance of motorcycle taxis and riders — known as pilots — crowding the roads of the island state. This unique medium of transport is convenient in its own way and cost-effective as well.