Life of Mario 1951

by Mario de Miranda, Gerard da Cunha (Editor), Almira Rodricks (Translator)

Mario is 25 years old and in goa he has just finished his college in bombay and is back with his old circle of friends and cousins there is the lovable and generous bandu, the eccentric antunes, the invisible gondicalo and a host of other interesting characters they are out to have fun; they organize dances, picnics, plays and have clandestine parties there is never a dull moment in their live and they live it out in full their local haunt is the caf-dattas, where they meet at every opportunity and have fun, until its time to pay the bill they often go to tatos as they get credit the gang meets each evening on the monte, which overlooks the village and play games and sing songs mario is an avid movie buff, always looking for company and is willing to travel from town to town watching movies which are forgettable he is a keen observer of village politics and the colourful personalities involved he studies status, fashion, theatre, music and dance and captures it with great humor mario conjures a charming and lovable world and takes us along on a great journey of the year of 1951 about the mario de miranda has not formally studied art and began his career as a cartoonist for the times of india group in 1953 he later moved into illustration and fine art he has illustrated numerous books including inside goa by manohar malgonkar, a family in goa and the open eyes by dom moraes among his own books are goa with love, a little world of humor, sketch book, germany in wintertime, paris and mario de miranda he has been invitied to sketch and exhibit in many countries including usa, japan, germany, spain and france he is also the recipient of many nation and international honours he lives in goa with his wife habibia and has two sons rishaad and raul

Paperback

Published January 1, 2011

About the author

Mário João Carlos do Rosário de Brito Miranda ComIH (2 May 1926 – 11 December 2011), popularly known as Mario Miranda or Mario de Miranda, was an Indian cartoonist and painter based in Loutolim in the Indian state of Goa. He was known best for his brilliant depiction of Goa and his political satire and capture everyday moments and humorous encounters, his artwork speaks about his own whimsical experiences and witty personality.

Miranda had been a regular with The Times of India and other newspapers in Mumbai, including The Economic Times, though he got his popularity with his works published in The Illustrated Weekly of India. He was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 2012.

He has illustrated numerous books including Inside Goa by Manohar Malgonkar, A family in Goa and The Open Eyes by Dom Moraes. Among his own books are Goa with Love, A little World of Humor, Sketch book, Germany in Wintertime, Impression of Paris and Mario de Miranda. He has been invited to sketch and exhibit in many Countries including U.S.A., Japan, Germany, Spain and France.

Reviews

[Guru · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is essentially an edited version of the 1951 illustrated diary of Miranda, then a young man of 25, fresh from Mumbai and seeking his fortune as an illustrator/designer in his native village of Lautolim. Many events from his daily life have been captured as cartoons and you can see his skill develop as he dabbles with color, humor, framing, etc.
He has a vibrant, active social life, along with a bunch of childhood friends, he goes for walks, arranges dances and picnics, hangs out at their favorite watering holes, and generally goofs around. Miranda was a movie buff and there are a number of entries in his diary about various movies - Hindi, Portuguese, English, and Marathi. He often refers to Hindi movies as “Indian” movies, which I found amusing. Portuguese Goa of the 1950s would have been a fun place to live. The Susegaad element of Goan life was pretty much alive back then!

[Amruta Deshpande · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was like entering into Marios Goan life and getting introduced to his friends roaming in towns and beaches of Goa exploring Goan culture and art. The cartoons are so funny and interesting to look at in this book.