I remember that the first December that we were in hostel, our Goan fellow-students told us with obvious pride about the Carnival that was about to take place.. in February !! Yes, although it is held for only 3 days, the preparations start weeks ahead. Every weekend I remember our friends rushing off to their homes to prepare for the forthcoming carnival. Young girls & boys start designing their colourful costumes & masks (all set to even impress each other), bands pick up their practice, floats are created.. oh I remember waiting with anticipation for that day to come so that we may witness carnival for the first time.
Yep .. the Goan people are known to celebrate colourful festivals. But perhaps the most eagerly awaited one is the Goa Carnaval (that’s Portuguese for Carnival). It was initiated by the Portuguese who ruled over Goa for more than 5 centuries. The word Carnival is derived from a Latin word meaning ‘to take away meat’. It is celebrated as a precursor to the 40 days austere Lent period, during which Christians abstain from consuming meat and alcohol.
The carnival used to be a raucous affair with eggs, flour, oranges, lemons, mud, dirty water etc being thrown at people. Even used kitchen utensils were thrown out of windows. Maybe this was significant in cleaning up the house before lent. It was accompanied by gorging on lavish spreads. All this being the preparation for lent.
As we found out, the carnival remains much of the madrush of yore with festive travelers joining in from not only India but from all over the world. As we non-Goans lined up the streets of Panjim, we heard that the festival has started with the election of “King Momo" – he is the king of chaos and would preside over the next 3-days’ festivities. Then came the procession of vibrant floats, preceded by the King.
We were pulled into the madness as the last few weeks’ frenzy reached its zenith – the crowds hit the streets and danced along to live music. So did we on the sides. & being a whole bunch of hostel-ites, we really freaked out together. The whole atmosphere was literally “electric” and no one could escape the excitement & joyous carousing.
Revelers with colours smeared on their faces did not spare the onlookers either. So I suddenly found myself in hues of blue, green & yellow !! But it was so much fun.
In these 3 fun-filled days, street plays, songs, dances happened everywhere. Cultural competitions were held where the winners were crowned by King Momo himself. The floats of the carnival were also judged and awarded prizes.
The merriment continued with grand dances held in the evenings. The most famous was the concluding “Red-And-Black dance” held by the Club National in Panjim. Oh yes … we ran around like mad.. getting together red, black & gold attires to wear to the dance that night … & boy.. did we enjoy
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