MINGUEL RODs Death Anniversary.
4th October this year was the 51st death anniversary of the greatest
tistrist that Konkani Stage has ever produced, the late Minguel Rod. I bow
down my head with deep respect to this Konkani stage genius and pen down
this article on this giant. Though the power of my pen to make a write up on
this man is small compared to the greatness of this legendary figure yet I
try to make some sketches of his life. May His Soul Rrest In Peace. The
death of Minguel Rod at the tender age of just 32 was a great loss not only
to Konkani Stage and Goa but more than that for Konkani language as a whole.
It was he who during those days attracted in greater number the Goan
aristocracy, Bhatkarshai and Bamonnshahi to Konkani Stage who many times
used to attend his tiatros even by disguising themselves not to disclose
their real identities. This they used to do in order to witness in person
what Minguel Rod depicted of them on the stage. During those days attending
a Konkani Tiatro was the work of semi literate or illiterate persons and
precisely because of this the so-called elite Goans used to refrain from
watching the tiatros. No doubt he was not schooled at Arpora or any other
reputed school of the then Goa yet he underwent basic schooling in Roman
Script Konkani at his local Parochial School which during those days besides
teaching you in basic requirement of writing and reading Konkani in Roman
script used to enrich the students with good moral education and music
reading-writing-playing. To become genius one need not go to Oxford or
Harward or Sorbone. William Shakesphere never attended any University and
yet he became what we read him now. Minguel Rod was born genius and his
genius came to surface only when he landed in Candolim to do his
apprenticeship in Tailoring near the Candolim Church which finally he left
unfinished and embarked on Tiatro. The reason for this was that in Candolim
during those days he came in close contact with great tiatrists of that era
namely Alexinho de Candolim, Young Menezes, Vitorino, Maestro Isidore and
many Konkani intellectuals of that time. In their company he learnt many
things, which soon developed into him the great Minguel Rod the Tiatrist.
When he entered the Konkani Stage he was burning with fire to bring about
total revolution in Goan Society. Some of his tiatros such as Gorib Sezari,
Gorchem Kestaum, Bapul Bhau, Lembddo Santan, Pobre Fidalgo are just a few to
name where one could easily notice revolutionary ideas running in his blood.
His tiatros dealt not only in hammering the Bhattkashai and Bamonshahi
only but also hammering the dadageri and arrogance of family life in the
lower strata of Goan society. That was the need of the hour and still it
is, for this reason his tiatros will never attain the old age.
Currently many of the present day tiatrists are borrowing their stories from
Hindi Films but Minguel Rod was giving originality in his tiatros and songs.
Though in his tiatros one could see originality yet in many of his songs
and solos one could by observing minutely come to know that the tunes were
borrowed mainly from English songs. As I was told, one day while he was
passing by my neighbours house, Radio Cylon was playing in its morning
programme one song. Hearing this song from a distance of few metres,
Minguel Rod suddenly stopped and picked up the tune so perfectly that based
on this music he composed a beautiful but sorrowful song in his great Tiatro
Bapul Bhau. It was said that while Kid Boxer singing this song canto
the Village Regidor seated on the first row was sobbing like a child, of
course the theme of this canto had great significance. The father (Kid
Boxer) of the dead child carrying the new born babe to the cemetery to bury
her without anybody attending the funeral, this was due to extremely bad
poverty. The words of this canto run something like this:
Puta Pai tuzo dis kaddta khavun Bakri,
Tukam purunk zai also laun bend ani sontri,
Pun atam purcho poddlo nastana kon lok ani padri.
Till today no playwright has acquired the art of composing sorrowful
cantos as Minguel Rod used to do though according to Rico Rod, M. Boyer
came little closer to Minguel Rod. But according to me it was the late
Airestedes Dias who came closer to Minguel Rod and not M. Boyer.
It was not very correct to say that he was not singing Zupatti. The
zupattis of Minguel Rod were of totally different category. By the way the
core of those days tiatros was nothing but Zupattis and without zupattis the
audience would not enjoy tiatro fully. Hence zupatti became the part and
parcel of the then tiatros, either mild or harsh. One great zupatti Minguel
Rod rendered was if I am not mistaken, at Navelim. Two groups of tiatrists
were performing their tiatros for the local feast there. One of C. Alvares
and his troupe and the other by Minguel Rod and his troupe. Because of high
profile propaganda of Alvares tiatro people were thinking to watch his
tiatro but suddenly news spread all around that the legendary trio of
Kid-Young-Rod will render an excellent zupatti trio and within a split of a
moment things turned down upside down and people flocked for Minguel Rods
tiatro. It was a direct hit to C. Alvares and his group. Few words of this
zupatti run like this:
Nesson Dusreachem Kapodd,
Hath paem kamrun bosleat makodd
Kosiens mellem, ginenar kayem,
Bhau moje buddtale tankam hath dium voir
kaddlet ayem.
About criticizing females, Minguel Rod was the last yet sometimetimes in his
songs he mocked at them. One song that justifies this statement is his song
Peixe Mulher. One thing one must admit that he was a staunch supporter of
emancipation of females and always fought for their rights, he showed total
sympathy for them. His campaign against dowry is a genuine example of his
support for the suffering females.
He failed in his married life. As a husband he was not very well understood
by his wife, she was too pigmy intellectually compared to his gigantic
intellectual capacity. He had a very nice girlfriend in Candolim at Saipem
Vaddo while he was doing his tailoring apprenticeship at Candolim near the
Church but due to caste and class differences he never got an opportunity to
marry her and in the end the poor girl out of frustration turned mad. While
they were in love Minguel Rod used to whisper in her ears some romantic
words which during her madness she used to say in the form of a song. Few
of these words later on Minguel Rod ingrained in one of the cantos of his
wonderful play, if I am not mistaken Lembddo Santan. Some of the words
run thus:
Pettoi re kaddi tujea mogachi,
Bagoi re ax mojea kallzachi,
Kallzan uzo pettla sang ax korunk konnachi?
Kuwait based tiatrist the late Fermino from Tivim was very close to Minguel
Rod while in Bombay. Before leaving for Goa Minguel Rod met Fermino at his
Club house (Kudd) and told him that he will never meet him again as he is
surely going to die. When Fermino asked him why he speaks thus, Minguel Rod
replied: There is nothing left for me on this planet. Sounsar ho fottkiro.
Hea sounsarant maka kainch ghodd mellonk na, fokot koddu. Ho sounsaruch
koddu. Hence his last tiatro was named KODDU Sounsar. After his death
with the help of Anthony DSa who especially came from Bombay and Jacinto
Vaz his tiatro Open To Close was staged at Mapusa which I personally
watched as a small boy. Before the start of this tiatro, his wife along with
his children were brought to the Stage and shown to the audience. Seeing
them thus, the entire audience applauded them with deep reverence to Minguel
Rod, it was not just applauding but standing ovation for few moments. It
was during this time that I first time saw his son Julie (Jr. Rod) singing a
solo about his father which goes thus:
Aikotoch Pai Raddiar tosso gramaphonar tallo tujo,
Tum assai so dista jivo, pun amchea noxiban pai tum na favo.
Kitlech pai tuvem tiatro boroilei bookar,
Pun tanchim solfam sarkim nant mapar,
Toxech kitle tiatro amkam tuje mellonk nant sabar,
Haddun dixeat tor vhodd zait upkar
The last lines indicate that the moment Minguel Rod died, some of his close
associates robbed his dramas and songs. Even while he was alive, under the
influence of liquour he neglected his drama books, which were taken by
anyone and used the way they wanted.
Young Menezes was his close disciple but inspite of being in Goa he did not
know that Minguel Rod died till the completion of funeral. Young Menezes
was also a heavy drinker and due to this drinks I am sure he never
remembered that his colleague died inspite of heavy announcement in the Goa
Radio Emmissora de Goa. In fact according to my information Baldinho
Araujo announcer of Emmissora de Goa gave a running commentary of his
funeral and yet Young Menezes did not know that Minguel Rod died means
surprising. Though it was surprising yet it was true. Within 24 hours of
Minguel Rods death Young Menezes was acting in one tiatro at Merces or
Kalafura, I am not very certain the exact village. News went all around
that Young Menezes is going to sing a solo on the death of Minguel Rod. Only
to listen to this song people came not only from the locality but also from
Bardez and Salcette. According to those who witnessed Young Menezes singing
this song that day they said that Young Menezes came on the stage bare
footed, folded hands and in complete black suit, totally drunk yet totally
sober in delivering his song. When music started playing for this song, by
listening to the sound of Clarinet and drums, the audience starting
screaming sorrowfully because the song was such sorrowful. Some of the
words of this most sorrowful song go like this:
Outumbrache chear tarker,ixtta mojeatum melo,
Burgech ponnir sounsar ho soddun gelo,
Orixt palkacho khambo, Deva umttun velo,
Goyam asson pounk paulona derrepnt tum melo
The songs finally ends thus:
Gomlolem zalear chimtti bhor tori galtolom aslom mati
Otmeank tachea korat ek Amchea Bapa Noman Mori.
Commenting on this song, legendary Alexinho de Candolim said: I have never
heard such an excellent song before and I doubt anyone will compose such a
beautiful song in the future.
Minguel Rod was very phylosophical even though he never studied Phylosophy
in any Seminary nor at Sorbone in France. Many of his statements had
phylosophycal meanings. For example, in one of his songs he sings thus:
Gorban choltoleachem, ghor khuim aslem okhond fatranchem,
Pun Dukrache xempddek haddoun durig moddlem babdeachem.
Minguel Rod was not only a great tiatrist but also a great human being. The
way he kept his purse open for others so too he kept his stage open for all
the tiatrists. Today many of the tiatrists sing hosannas in praise of him
and yet others treat him as their model. Today if tiatro has come to this
high level it is partly because of the enormous contribution of Minguel Rod.
Though there are so many avenues created for the promotion of Tiatro now a
days but regrettably to keep his memory alive no prize is instituted in his
memory nor. It was Minguel Rod who did the revival of tiatro when just
before him tiatristpon went into the hands of wrong hands. It was exactly
during this period Minguel Rod came on the scene and brought total revival
in tiatro. For such a man we just cannot forget. About 10 year back when
his son came to Kuwait to act in one drama, Minguel Rod was posthumously
honoured by Kuwait Konknni Kendr in one of the city hotels. But this was
not an end . Something more is required. To keep the memory of Minguel Rod
alive, we must have excellent tiatro and excellent tiatrists to attract
greater number of qualitative audience as Minguel Rod used to do. To keep
the memory of Minguel Rod alive the tiatrists must attain high ideals and
not act like stupid by creating the means for the destruction of tiatrists.
As a tiatrist Minguel Rod was not jealous of other tiatrists, on the
contrary he was co-operative and helpful to other tiatrists. He would not
deny even his adversary his rightful place on the stage by using the
terminology To Aslear Aum Nachona as it is shamelessly and disgracefully
done in Kuwait and elsewhere by tinpot tiatrits and regretably accepted by
other tiatrists who are equally tinpot. He never made an attempt to kill
the art of tiatr in any tiatrist as it is done in Kuwait and elsewhere by
stupid tiatrists. In the end the late Minguel Rod loved tiatro, he loved
tiatrists. May Konkani Stage and Goa produce more of such Minguel Rods. But
will it ever happen again? I doubt, because such persons come to a land once
in centuries. May be our land will never get such a genius again.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.
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