Reflected in Water: Writings on Goa

by Jerry Pinto

Described variously as the Kashi of the South, the Rome of the East and the pearl of the Orient, Goa, located on the west coast of India, is renowned for its scenic charm, its beaches, and the architectural splendor of its temples, churches and old houses. With its sun-sand-surf leitmotif it is also the land of the lotus-eater, a tourist's paradise of fun and frolic, raves and revelry. But Goa is more than just the world's favorite holiday destination. Its unique history, shaped by the various dynasties that ruled it the Rashtrakutas, the Kadambas and the Bahmani Muslims, before its 450-year-long occupation by the Portuguese from 1510 has given it a distinctive flavour, a different rhythm, an easy cosmopolitanism.

Reflected in Water is a collection of essays, poems, stories and extracts from published works that bring to life both the natural beauty and the changing social and political ethos of India's smallest state. From Mario Cabral e Sa's delightful take on the earliest Portuguese women to come to India to Gita Mehta's description of hippies at Calangute, from Alexander Frater's mesmerizing account of Goa in the monsoon to Manohar Malgonkar's ode to the Mangeshi temple, this anthology celebrates the irreverent and the sacred in equal measure.

Teotonia R. de Souza's profile of the little-known opium smuggler who tried to liberate Goa' is as captivating as Frederick Noronha's portrait of Abbé Faria, eighteenth-century priest, mesmerist and revolutionary, and one of the region's most famous sons. While Antoine Lewis fleshes out Goa's culinary delights, Frank Simoes pays a tribute to feni, the quintessential spirit of the place. Naresh Fernandes's obsessive search for the elusive humerus of St Francis Xavier echoes Vivek Menezes's quest for a painting by F.N. Souza, arguably the greatest painter the state has produced. And various aspects of Goa's history and society, arts and architecture engage the interest of writers as diverse as William Dalrymple and Graham Greene, Maria Couto and Armando Menezes.

Insightful essays, intense poetry and evocative fiction, as alluring as the place they describe, make Reflected in Water redolent of the very essence of Goa.

Genres: Nonfiction, India, Anthologies, Travel, Essays, Indian Literature, Poetry

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Jerry Pinto is a Mumbai-based Indian writer of poetry, prose and children's fiction in English, as well as a journalist. His noted works include, Helen: The Life and Times of an H-Bomb (2006) which won the Best Book on Cinema Award at the 54th National Film Awards, Surviving Women (2000) and Asylum and Other Poems (2003). His first novel Em and The Big Hoom was published in 2012.

Reviews

[Sairam Krishnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goa, at least to the contemporary Indian middle class imagination, renders a rather monochromatic picture, one of beaches, beer and unabashed, intoxicated revelry. This is a shame, that a place possessed of such natural and historical riches for the interested traveller is reduced to a caricature (sometimes literally, as in the illustrations we find on the walls of both upscale hotels and seedy, ramshackle little bars).



Before visiting Goa two months ago, I found myself frantically looking for material to read before travelling to a state I’d never been to before. The recommendation I had was Farrar Far, a scholarly tome I figured I had to get to a decent library to read. Filing that for another time, I poked around the internet and found what I think is the best book for the literary traveller (of the Indian variety) to approach Goa (Please correct me if I’m wrong. I would love recommendations; Goa fascinates me endlessly).



Part of the singularly delightful series of city centred anthologies Penguin started bringing out almost a decade ago, Reflected in Water more than does justice to the project, which is to educate a traveller new to its shores about this rather misunderstood and misrepresented sliver of India.



The pieces collected here (by Jerry Pinto, whose literary credentials are impeccable) come from wide range of writers, poets and memoirists, including a memorable essay by Graham Greene, writing in 1964 from a village in Anjuna. One cannot help but wonder how Goa must have looked like then, before the hippie years, untouched and almost virgin country. The politics that gave credence to Goa and the burning issue of its independence from its neighbouring Maharashtra is given ample space, as is its syncretism before, during and after the Portuguese years with the Hindu faith. There are essays on Goan cinema and art, music, food, and of course, the little state’s much celebrated rains.



There cannot but be a dark, rather sad undercurrent of nostalgia that runs through the book: Goa has lost as much, perhaps more, that it has gained by tourism and its fame as India’s party destination. And therein lies the paradox that this anthology puts forward to us thinking travellers. How do you reconcile the fact that what led you here will also soon strip the place of all its beauty, its unique culture and perhaps everything that is really Goan? What do you, as a tourist, owe Goa in return?



A difficult question, with an equally difficult answer.

[Krishna Sruthi Srivalsan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book seemed like an interesting read, but goodness gracious, it just dragged on and on! It was almost as if someone had googled Goa and brought together every single essay, article, poem, or memoir ever written on Goa. Like any anthology, this was a mixed bag for me. I loved a few, but sadly the vast majority of them were rather dry and tedious. The ones I did enjoy reading were William Dalrymple's At Donna Georgina's , Frederick Noronha's On the Abbe's Trail , Vivek Menezes' article on Francis Newton Souza (who claimed to have swallowed Goa whole), an excerpt taken from Alexander Frater's Chasing the Monsoon (something I have marked to read when I travel back to Kerala in the monsoons, reserved for quiet afternoons watching the rain...) and Naresh Fernandes' quest to find a bone from the arm of St Francis Xavier.

What worked for me: Although rather tiresome, the book brought to light many interesting aspects about Goa to me. For example, Dalrymple's interview with Donna Georgina who still thinks about 'crossing the border to India', and who believes that the 'liberation' of Goa in 1961 was not really a liberation but more of a botheration,is an example of someone who still remains fiercely loyal to the Portuguese. On the other hand, there are essays which mention the cruelty of the Portuguese and the movement for liberation in the 1960s. Post independence, the focus shifts towards Konkani pride and the need to keep Goa separate from Maharashtra.

Another aspect of the book that I found compelling was the role of religion in Goan society. Maria Couto's essay Keeping the Faith , for instance, narrates how numerous families were separated in the wake of the Portuguese conquests. A few members fled the scene, and escaped down south in order to protect their faith, whilst the others stayed on and embraced Christianity. Although still related by bloodlines, they are now separated by religion. What fascinated me the most was the fact that despite having converted, many of them still maintain Hindu traditions, even going as far as worshiping in temples. In the same way, I found it interesting that one could certainly find Hindus among the mass of the faithful at Bom Jesus where the tomb of the 16th century Jesuit priest, St Francis Xavier, is located. (Interesting trivia- every ten years, St Francis' body is brought down from the altar for worship, and this is known as the Exposition. During one such ritual, a lady was so overcome with devotion that when she bent down to kiss the saint's feet, she bit off Xavier's big toe...and it began to gush blood!)

What I missed in this book: It's a book on Goa. Why wasn't there any mention of Mario Miranda and his wonderful work? George Menezes is one writer from Goa whom I have had the pleasure of reading before, and I do think he has written much better work than Where has all the culture gone? Unfortunately, none of those were included either, and if they were, I'm sure this would have been a more engaging read. Further, I must confess I chose this book because I had only recently discovered Jerry Pinto and was looking forward to reading him. With the exception of a poem and an old Goan folktale, there wasn't anything else penned by him. Oh well, looks like I'll have to wait to read Em and the Big Hoom instead.

[Dibyajyoti Sarma · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is more to Goa than sun and sand, the hippies and the fenny, and Portuguese influence and the stately churches. It’s all these and more. It is a tiny geographical land which has been constantly struggling to maintain its own identity, first with the forces of the Portuguese colonialists and then, after the liberation, with the Indian state, as Maharashtra first annexed the state to its borders and then tried to impose Marathi as the official language, as opposed to the local Konkani.

The book, incisively edited by Jerry Pinto, is a precious mixture of critical essays, book extracts, commentary, poetry and even a comic strip, ruminating the past, present and future of Goa, how it came into being as a result of the old marriage between Konkani and Portuguese, and how it fought hard to retain its own identity, first at the hands of the Portuguese, and then, the Indian state, and now, the onslaught of globalization.

Among other things, I did love the placement of two contradictory pieces together. First, an extract from William Dalrymple and second, Prabhakar S Angle’s defence of the misrepresentation of Goa.

[Manish · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never been to Goa and like most Indians, most of my impressions of the state are a bit cliched and anchored on the stereotypes - beaches, drugs, greenery, churches, Portuguese colonialism etc.

This anthology of writings on Goa did a lot to educate me on the aspects of Goa which I never cared to bother about - the Marathi influence, the strong Hindutva strains, the various musical gharanas along with all night classical concerts, FN Souza's art, the Goan diaspora, the fisheries and agro industry, Goan theater, memories of the 1964 'military action' and much more.

Some pieces of writing by the foreign travellers to the state (Graham Greene, Richad Burton, van Linschoten etc) were a bit tedious for me to follow and so were some of the stories. Naresh Fernandez's quest for the relics of St Francis Xavier was the most enjoyable read.

Someday when I visit Goa, I'll be grateful to this book for helping me see and search for more than what meets the eye.

[Narci · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I knew at least a little about Goa. Turns out I've barely even scratched the surface.

[Vysloczil · Rating 2 out of 5]

Goa is a very interesting place when it comes to its unique historical experience and the many transformations it underwent during the last few centuries.
This book is a loose collection of seemingly random essays, poems, and even one comic on Goa. Some are really insightful and provide a picture of Goa that is hard to find in other places. Most of the book, though, feels a bit superficial and put together without any big picture or context in mind.

[Aakanksha Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

thoughtful!

[Rajiv Bhattacharya · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book because of my strong ties with Goa. Some of the essays are good and some bore one to death. Overall its a good read and gives an overview of some ( though not all )aspects of Goa

[Bob Newman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mixed collection of Goa-iana

For some reason the small former Portuguese territory on the west coast of India is inextricably mixed with my fate. I’ve thought about it, lived there, and written about it for more than half my life. I have or have had many Goan friends and others, in America, Canada, Portugal, Brazil, other parts of India, and Australia who were not Goan but were similarly attracted to the place. Maybe it’s only because of this that I think of Goa as an unusual part of the world, full of interesting culture and history. Maybe many other locations have similar attractions, but not for me. London, New York, Tokyo and Beijing may have drawn many writers and readers, others may thrill to the stories of the Arctic, the Amazon, or the Outback, but for me Goa has been central ever since I first set foot there in 1965. That’s why I get pleasure from reading books on Goa, even if they are of mixed quality like this one. Well, some of the many contributions were written by friends and acquaintances of mine. If Goa interests you, then you can’t afford to miss “Reflected in Water”.
Certain sections were written by well-known writers whose books sold millions, for example Graham Greene, William Dalrymple, and Richard Burton, the 19th century traveler. I would say that such writers are present mainly because they wrote something about Goa—how well they knew the place is definitely a question. There’s a section from Cleo Odzer, a self-confessed flower child and druggie, a person who knew diddley-squat about Goa. No, it is better to grin and turn to the many sections written by Goans themselves, poets, essayists, autobiographers, novelists, and journalists. There are so many different views of that tiny, seaside Indian state, even one regarding a murder case written by a 16th century Dutch merchant who lived five years there. You’ll find short chapters on Goan cinema, on the tiatr (folk dramas), on a famous Goan painter who lived in exile, on the famed Abbé Faria—an early hypnotist—and one about a search in Macau for possibly hidden remains of St. Francis Xavier, who lies entombed in Old Goa, but…
The quality of each contribution differs, but any reader will find something of interest, something to assuage a certain sense of saudades when far away from that coconut palm-strewn land on the Arabian Sea. Recommended.

[Amrendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a definitive collection that covers Goa from end to end. Whether it be its history, its many explorers and conquistadors, it's varied cuisine, the music scene, you have it all covered here. Not only this, the usual Goan association with tourism, the Hippie Movement of 70s, it's alcoholic beverages, theatre, it's monuments, temples and churches, it's all touched upon in the various short stories and essays which this book contains. The Liberation of Goa, the post-liberation politics, the Goan diaspora and the classic Portuguese days of yore, it's unique culture and it's popular characters also do find a mention.
Easily, a very fine and exhaustive collection with over 35 works of prose and poetry. It gives, at once a very comprehensive introduction to the layered narrative that is Goa.

[Edwina D'souza · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some chapters are a delight but some chapters are also boring. Still the positives are far more than the negatives. My favourite chapters which I'm sure to revisit are the ones on Tiatr, Tomb Raider, the Konkani vs Marathi debate, the first Portuguese woman to come to Goa, Goa's bread story as well as goan cuisine. Glad to stumble upon this find.