[Goanet] KOGULL (THE CUCKOO) - Konkani/English article!

[domnic fernandes]

KOGULL (THE CUCKOO)!

(English translation follows)
Kheddea ganvchem jivit bhov xitoll ani nirmoll ani gelea xekddeache panchve 
ani sove dosken tor tem ekdomuch ojeapanchem zavn gel’lem.  Hoi, hanv mojea 
bhurgeaponnaili, ordo xekddo adli, khobor kortam.  Ek pavtt ami nidonk gelea 
uprant, soimbui amchea sangata nidtalem.  Tea kallar motorsaikoli, 
dhanvterim ani bosi rostear cholonasleot zoxeo aiz dis-rat choltat.  
Sokallim fuddem suknneanchea gaionnanchea ani monzatichea sadar ami 
uddtaleanv - goddialachi gantti vazonasli.  Azu-bazuk nodor marlear 
sogllench soimbik distalem.  Poilem suknnem jem sokall udeli mhunn porgott 
kortalem tem zavn aslem kogull ani tachea uprant kavllo.  Kavlleachi khuxin 
itihas asa punn hangasor jem kitem hanv boroitam tem koglli vixim.

Kogull ek lunchok suknnem jem aplim tantieam dusrea suknneanchea guntterant 
ghalta.  Amchea Goyeant, koglli kavlleachea guntterant tantieam ghaltat ani 
dekunuch sabar pavtti kavllo ani kogull sunnea-mazra porim varear loddaien 
revoddlelim amkam disti poddtat.  Jem pil dusre zatichea suknneanchea 
guntterant rovavn korta, tem zolman ietanch vhodde manddnen dusreank, 
guntteran asleleank, bhair danvddaita.

Kogull ek suknnem sumar pondra angull lamb.  Tem kid’de ani sukunndde khata. 
 Koglli don rongancheo astat – xirbeo ani kalleo; pondchean tancho rong 
dovsar asta.  Dadlo ani bail dogaim ek sarkim distat, punn torne piraiecheo 
koglli kallxeo astat ani tanche tokler ani pakotteanchea pakancher dove rund 
domos astat.  Kogull khup bobatti ji bogor-bogor “kwer-kwah" korun bobatt 
marta.  Amchea Goyeant koglli chodd korun fantear ani dis dare vochonk lagim 
pavtam oxeo bobatt ghaltat:  “Ku-uh, ku-uh, ku-uh, ku-uh”, ani 
“kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, 
kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, “kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du!

Fatrar fator marun uzo kortalet tea tempar, munis suknnim ani zanvaranchi 
xikar marun tancher jietalo.  Gelea xekddeachea modlea kallak fatrar fator 
marun lok uzo kori naslo khoro punn amcho lok mudolchea munxea porim 
jietalo.  Chedde aple fursoticho vell robonnan suknneanchi xikar korun 
sartalet.  Bomboikar robonnank "katty" mhunttalet.

Bhurgeaponnar robonn amchea mottvea kolsanvachea bolsan nam tor bhitorle 
komsache doddien ghaltaleanv ani kednaim sorpolle porim gollean 
umkaiteleanv.  Perichem kelkem ekdom okondd ani toxench loknnimchem kelkem 
tachea navanch porim mozbut.  Chaltim kelkim zambllichim kortalet.  Kelkem 
toiear kelea uprant tem purtem korunk ami eka mochiaxim voitalet karann 
amkam zai zal'lea chambddeacho kuddko tachech lagim melltalo zaka to aple 
arin bore toren burakui kaddtalo.  Tosoch to robonnancheo fali nittaien 
katrun ditalo.  Falinchem mol dattaie pormonnem aslem - jitleo fali datt 
titlem subeij mol.  Ami choddxeo saikolichea tiubacheo fali ghetalet karann 
motorachea tiubacheo fali voddunk kottin lagtalem.

Mellta tacher – suknneancher, chaniecher, xirleancher fator marun ami 
robonnanchi sonvoim kortalet.  Thodde pavtti cigretichim khali folinam, 
battleo, adi mokun kaddchim tatttam koxim manddtalet ani tancher robonnanche 
fator marun amcho tir sudraitalet.  Amche avddechem mokun kaddchem tatt 
zaddachea fanttear boslolo tambddea boddkacho xirlo.  Zo xirleache tokler 
fator marun taka zomnir xevttita taka uxear mandtalet.  Amche Gaumvaddintlo 
eklo munis boroch goro aslo ani tachem tond sodanch tambddem astalem; dekun 
taka 'tambddea boddkacho xirlo" mhunnon pachartalet!

Amche modle thoddde zonn fator marpan itle uxear aslet ki hathan fator marun 
ami suknneanchi, zanvaranchi, sorpanchi, adi xikar kortalet; tantlem ek 
xikarechem suknnem kogull.  Tea kallar ami choddxe follam fatranim 
paddtalet.  Amchem mokop ami follancher fator marun sudraitalet, vodik koron 
unch ambeachea zaddar asleleam ambeancher marun.  Tumkam ghoddiek soth 
mandunk kottin lagtelem ki amchea kalla voile thodde danddge tornatte fator 
marun madda voili addsoranchi penddi sokol denvoitalet!

Koglli chodd korun fatorfoddicher, ansaiecher, voddacher ani uzurmuttacher 
khann khavnk ietat.  Ami heam zaddam pondak ravon (bhairavn nimannea) amchea 
robonnanim kogllichi ani heram suknneanchi xikar kortaleanv.  Soglleam poros 
kogllichi chodd xikar zatali.

Eka suknneanche tokler far mokun taka ekach faran jivexim marunk sompem punn 
robonnanchea fatran toxem korunk eka bhov uxear robonnan fator marpeachi 
goroz.  Amchea robonnancho fator chodd korun suknneanchea pakotteacher vo 
paimancher vochon lagtalo ani he sande luksan korun uddoitalo.  Oxem ason, 
suknnem uddonk tozvit kortannam tachea pakotteak fur poddlelean taka uddonk 
tankonaslem ani tem eka luksan zalelea zuzachea vimana porim zomnir 
xevttotalem.  Tacho pakotto dukovlelean taka uddonk zainaslem punn tem apli 
xikar korteleak bogor-bogor pattim vollon polloit aplo jiv samballunk zuz 
manddttalem ani danvot ravtalem, punn kotta thoddeach vellan tem amchea 
hathak sampoddtalem.  Kogllichem mas khavpak sarkem eke kombie porim; dekun 
adlea kallar kogllichem mas jevnnank vapurtalet.

Tech porim ami koglli tansacheo faxi uzurmutak ghalun faraitalet.  
Uzurmuttachea sorbonvtim nisodde ganttin, sumar don angull rund, faxi toiear 
kortalet ani tansachem pond eka lagxilea zaddachea lunddak/khandeak 
bandtalet.  Kogull ievn uzurmuttar palxi bosta ani tonch marun tachem foll 
tonddan geta ani tem gillonk gomtto voir korta.  Zorui kogllichi tokli 
tharailele faxen poddlear, nisoddi gantt gomtteak fas ghalta, kogull taka 
sampoddta ani ti apleak salvar korunk bobo ani ueli marta jeo aikolea uprant 
amkam gomtalem ki ami mandleleo faxi sufoll zaleot mhunn.  Titlean ami 
danvon tea zagear vochon kogllik amchea tabean kortalet.  Tea zagear pavonk 
uxir zalear, amche ixtt lipon ravon palos kortalet ani konnuch thuim einam 
to pollovn  amchi xikar ghevn pollapoll kaddtalet.  Ansaiechea zaddacherui 
ami osleo faxi ghaltalet punn faxi chodd sufoll uzurmuttancher.

Fatorfoddam ani ansaie ekdom borim zonglli follam - fatorfoddam khavpak 
ghodd ani ansaie ghodd-ambott.  Him follam khavpak ami zaddar choddtalet ani 
khavn vaz eilea uprantuch sokol denvtalet.  Uzurmuttachim follam khainant; 
hanvem tor tim kednanch chakonk nant.

Don-tin zanttea kogllinchem mas eka rata voir zata.  Amchi maim kogllichem 
mas chodd korun mirsango ani kande ghalun sovsaitali; khavpak justuch 
kombiechem mas koxem lagta.  Hanv fokot ek horddeacho kuddko khatalom ani 
urlelem sogllem mas mozo daktto bhav khatalo.

Dha vorsanche piraer astannam mojea bapain mhaka Kuwait thavn poilem varear 
far marpachem DIANA bonduk (air gun) haddun dilem zantun hanvem sabar 
suknneanchi xikar keli.  Chovda vorsanche piraer, bapain mhaka dusrem DIANA 
..22 Caliber bonduk haddun dilem zantunui hanvem bhorpur suknneanchi, 
bokeanchi, bollarinchi, pakeanchi, sonxeanchi, adi xikar keli.  Hanv far 
marpan uxear aslelean, sabar pavtti vaddeantlo lok mhaka apovnk daddtalet 
tanchea ghoranim ghuslelea sorpank marunk.  Tea kallar Aitar dis urleleam 
disam porinch aslo; tea disa kainch khas ghoddonaslem; xikar marun hanv mozo 
vell sartalom.

Kogllicho tallo svadik ani zobordost jeant to pois aikonk ieta.  Amchea 
Konkan vattarant eok zonn asa zaka ‘Kogull’ mhunnon pachartat karann tachoi 
tallo koglli porim zobordost.  To anik konn nhoi punn amche somestanche 
vollkicho, Munglur xarantlo Konknni kolakar, Wilfy Rebimbus.  Devan taka 
lamb avk dinvchem.

Dumingachea pornea kallachea chovkar thavn sod’deak itlench!

Moi-mogan,
Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna/Dhahran, KSA
================

THE CUCKOO!

Life in the countryside is always wonderful but it was much much more 
wonderful during our childhood in the 1950’s and 1960’s!  I love to wake up 
listening to nature’s sounds – the birds singing all around because that’s 
the way I grew up.  Yes, I am talking about my childhood over half a century 
ago.  Once we went to sleep, the outer world also slept with us - there were 
no motorcycles, no cars and no buses plying on the roads, as is the case 
today.  There was no alarm clock system in those days.  We woke up at birds’ 
chirping, squirrels’ singing, cats’ meowing, dogs’ barking, goats’ bleating, 
cows’ bellowing,  everything around us bustled in a natural way.  The first 
bird to break the news of the dawn was a cuckoo followed by a crow.  
Although the latter has a history of its own, I shall talk here of the 
former bird.

The cuckoos are a family of ‘near passerine birds’.  They are ‘brood 
parasites’ laying their eggs in the nests of other birds.  In Goa, they are 
known to lay their eggs in crows’ nests which is exactly why many times one 
can see crows and cuckoos chase each other in the air and fight like cats 
and dogs!  The chick which hatches from the egg laid in another species’ 
nest methodically evicts all other occupants.

The cuckoo is quite a large bird about 15” in length.  It eats insects and 
caterpillars.  Adults are grey-brown with a paler grey throat and upper 
breast.  The under parts are white with dark barring and the tail is edged 
with prominent white spots.  Sexes are similar, but juvelines are browner 
and have broad white tips to the head and wing feathers.  The cuckoo is a 
noisy species, with a persistent whistled ‘kwer-kwah’ call.  But in Goa they 
are more famous for their ku-uu, ku-uu, ku-uu, ku-uu and “kdd’du-kdd’du, 
kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, 
kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du, “kdd’du-kdd’du, kdd’du-kdd’du cries!  The 
completely different calls mean that confusion is only likely with silent 
birds.

During the Stone Age man hunted birds and animals with stones and arrows and 
lived on them.  Although Stone Age did not prevail in the middle of the last 
century, people were quite backward and still followed a primitive way of 
living.  Boys spent their leisure time hunting birds with their “robonn” 
(catapult) - Bomboikars called it ‘katty’.

During our childhood days, we carried a catapult in short pant pockets, or 
placed it in the fold of an in-shirt, or simply hung it around the neck.  
The best “kelkem” (catapult handle) came from a “per” (guava tree) followed 
by a “lokondd” (a very strong wild plant); a common kelkem came from a 
“zamboll” (jambul tree).  Usually, we prepared a kelkem and then approached 
a cobbler to complete a robonn, as only he could provide us with a piece of 
leather in the desired size and make holes in it with his "ari" (awl).  He 
also cut “fali” (rubber tube strips) neatly.  The price depended on the 
thickness of “fali” – the thicker the strips the higher the cost.  We mostly 
went for bicycle tube “fali”; car tube strips didn’t stretch as much and 
also they needed more strength to pull them.

We practiced catapult by practically aiming at everything we came across - 
birds, squirrels, lizards, etc.  Sometimes, we also set up small targets of 
empty cigarette tins, bottles, etc. The most favorite target was a "tambddea 
boddkacho xirlo" (lizard with red head) on a tree.  Anyone who could hit a 
lizard on its head and bring it down was considered an expert!  In 
Gaumvaddy, we had a person who was very fair in complexion and whose face 
was always red; hence, he was known as "tambddea boddkacho xirlo!"

Some of us were so expert at throwing stones that we hunted birds, animals, 
snakes, etc., by throwing stones at them with our hands; one such prey was a 
cuckoo.  Keep in mind in those days we brought down fruit with stones.  We 
improved our aim by throwing stones at fruit, especially at mangoes on high 
trees.  You won't believe it but some of the elderly boys of our times would 
bring down tender coconuts by aiming stones at them!

The cuckoo frequents on a “fatorfodd” or an “Ansaii” or a “vodd” or an 
“uzurmut” (a corn-shaped plant which stems out from the ground and produces 
multi-colored - yellow-pink-red fruits.)  We mostly visited the 
above-mentioned trees and hunted down cuckoos with our catapults.  One of 
the most hunted birds was the cuckoo.

While it was possible to aim at a bird’s head with a gun shot, one had to be 
a real expert to do that with a catapult.  The stone from our catapult 
mostly hit a bird’s body and damaged its wings.  As a result, the moment it 
attempted to take off, it fell to the ground just like a fighter jet which 
lands on its belly when hit by an enemy fire.  If one of its wings were 
damaged, it was unable to fly but it would keep on running until we caught 
up with it and captured it but not without putting up a brave fight.  
Cuckoo’s meat is as good as chicken's; hence, people in those days used it 
for food.

The next method to catch cuckoos was to use a noose made out of “tans” 
(fishing line).  We prepared various loose nooses, about two inches wide 
each, out of a fishing line, spread them all over an “uzurmut” plant and 
tied its end to a nearby tree trunk/branch.  The cuckoo flies in, sits 
vertically on the uzurmut, picks up the fruit with its beak, and then raises 
its head in order to swallow it down.  If the cuckoo’s head gets into the 
noose, it gets fastened to the neck and when it attempts to fly off, it gets 
caught!  A noose-caught cuckoo’s cries are different than normal – they are 
SOS cries!  The moment we heard such cries, we knew our trap was successful. 
 We would run to the spot and catch the prey which obviously was helpless 
but yet tried to defend itself.  If we were late to reach the spot, nearby 
friends would wait for a while and if the person who set the trap did not 
show up soon enough, they would walk away with the catch.  We also set 
nooses on an “ansaii” tree and succeeded.  By the way, “fatorfoddam” and 
“ansae” are very tasty wild fruits – while the former is sweet, the latter 
is sweet-sour.  The norm usually was to climb up the trees and eat the 
fruits until one was tired of eating them.  “Uzurmut” is an inedible fruit; 
at least I have never eaten it.

Two or three adult cuckoos give more than a pound of meat.  Our mother 
mostly prepared chilly fry dish out of its flesh.  It tastes just like 
chicken.  I ate only one piece of the chest and the rest my brother would 
eat.

My father brought me from Kuwait my first DIANA brand air gun at the age of 
10 with which I hunted several birds, squirrels, etc., on weekends.   He 
brought me the second DIANA .22 Caliber Air Rifle at the age of 14 with 
which also I hunted various birds, including grey and white cranes, bats, 
rabbits, etc.  People from the ward often sent for me to get rid of snakes 
which had entered their houses.  In those days, there was practically 
nothing to do on Sundays.  So, I would go hunting and pass my time.

The cuckoo’s voice is quite pleasant and powerful which can be heard over a 
long distance.  In the Konkan region we have a person known as “Kogull” (The 
Cuckoo) because he has a powerful voice like cuckoo.  He is none other than 
Wilfy Rebimbus, one of the living legends of Konkani from Mangalore, 
Karnataka State.  Long live Wilfy Rebimbus!

That’s all for now from Dom’s antique shelf!

Moi-mogan,
Domnic Fernandes
Anjuna/Dhahran, KSA

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