Goa is interesting from the historical, artistic and sociological points of view -- Paulo Varela Gomes
-------------------------- GOA, SEEN FROM THE OUTSIDE -------------------------- Paulo Varela Gomes says he has "lived five lives". As a child, until nine, was his first life. Then his parents were arrested as a result of a failed revolution against Salazar's regime. "My father was seriously bullet-injured and spent six years in prison, and my mother, two. I became an adolescent at my grand-fathers house. This was the beginning of my second life, largely resulting from political events (although I was also a hippie, hitch-hiked across Europe, attended rock-festivals, the usual stuff)," he explains. Readers here would of course know him as the friendly, even popular, Delegate of Fundacao Oriente, in Fontainhas. But earlier he had also been involved in the student's movement against the dictatorship and the colonial war, was arrested as were many others ("but spent only three weeks in jail"). After the 1974 revolution, this second life of his continued: he "managed to finish" a degree in history, but mostly was a teacher's union leader and a card-carrying member of the Communist party. In his fourth life, he left a position as a teacher, did several things -- being an art critic, journalist, pop music writer, author and presenter of two television documentaries (one of which about the Portuguese in India), left the Communist party, did a post-graduation in art history, started teaching architectural history at the university of Coimbra, curated an international exhibition... and became the second delegate of Fundação Oriente in Goa in 1996. His "fifth and present life" began when he left Goa in 1998 to complete his PhD and become a full-fledged academic, only interrupting his academic life in 2006 when he came to Goa as delegate of Fundação Oriente for the second time. "And now, I am preparing myself to enter my sixth life: early retirement and doing... Who knows, only the future will tell," he told Frederick Noronha in an interview. Excerpts: FN: You spent two fairly long stints in Goa. What did you appreciated the most about in this region? The extraordinary kindness of its ordinary people and of part of its elite, and the extraordinary resilience of all of those who did not live up on democracy, sustainable development and the beauty of Goa. FN: As far as Goan attitudes go, what upsets you the most? First, the fact that, like in other countries (eg Portugal), for fear of the unknown, people do not manage to shake off bad politicians. Second, the self-delusions that maintain Goa on the disaster path (like the idea that it is uniquely beautiful with its "pristine beaches", etc, etc). Third, the way people sometimes simply give in to thugs in high places or in the streets. FN: How do Goan attitudes contrast, in your view? People, considered collectively, act pretty much the same way everywhere. We all belong to one species. My answer to your first question highlights what I think is different in Goa. FN: What are the positive things about the working atmosphere in Goa, and that back home (Coimbra)? In Portugal, conditions are extremely difficult from the economic point of view and it is very hard to spot any "positive thing". This is true, in particular because the politics put in practice to deal with the crisis will do nothing but make it a lot worse. Without mincing words: Portugal is a country on the verge of economical and social collapse. As for Goa, three highly positive aspects: the excitement of change, the will to resist un-sustainable change, the eagerness to learn and do better. FN: Where do you see Goan architecture headed? There are good architects and planners, good buildings and neighbourhoods, but concerns about harmony between human needs and environmental equilibrium are not dominant. On the contrary, 90% of what is built in Goa is very bad from all points of view and will have a disastrous effect upon the territory's future. FN: What do you see as Goa's strengths and weaknesses in this field? Strengths: tradition, a good architectural college, some good practitioners. Weaknesses: the building industry and its indifference to harmony and sustainability, the disastrous territorial governance, the thoughtless imitation of building types and building solutions unfit for Goa. FN: At this point of time, what do you see Goa as having to contribute to the outside world, if anything? I still think Goa is one of the more interesting territories to observe from the historical, artistic and sociological points of view due to the specific effects of Christianizing upon the habits of people and the landscape. Goans will positively contribute to the wider world if they take advantage of the originality of Goa's past. FN: What do you miss most about Goa now that you're not here? My friends, a couple of places, some habits I had (cappuccino at Miramar's Coffee Day, for instance...), the monsoon, churches and churchyards throughout Bardez, Tiswadi and Salcete, a chai at a roadside dhaba... So many things, such a long way away. FN: If you could effect some changes to improve the quality of urban life in Goa, what would these be? Leaving aside the necessary political and administrative levels (which are essential), I think the idea of public or collective space in Goa and other places of the same population density and climatic conditions should be seriously rethought. Imitating solutions invented elsewhere simply won't work: the square or piazza, the sidewalk, the garden, these three urban/architectural features (and many more) should be different from what they are in the West. Thinking up original solutions is essential for Goa's sustainability and quality of life. ### First published in The Navhind Times.