<p>With its rich and complex socio-cultural identity that draws heavily from its 450 years of colonial past as a Portuguese province, and its breathtaking landscape, Goa commands magnetic attraction matched by very few regions in India.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Maria Aurora Couto’s biography of her mother — Filomena’s Journeys: A Portrait of A Marriage, A Family & A Culture celebrates the spirit of this unique land and its people through the story of one woman who shaped her family’s destiny with sheer faith, love and endurance.<br /><br />Couto’s Goa: A Daughter’s Story, published in 2004, was a revelation to those who subscribed to the clichéd perception of the region as the land of just superficial fun and beauty. In Filomena’s Journeys, she attempts to add another dimension to the exploration of her native land and culture through the story of her mother Filomena Borges. <br /><br />Born in 1909 as the youngest of five children in a Catholic Christian family in Goa, Filomena was orphaned before she turned eight. Growing up with a strong connection to the land in the picturesque village of Raia under the care of her maternal grandmother, she naturally imbibed values of stability, compassion, hardwork and an unshaken faith in the Divine.<br /><br />At the age of 26, Filomena married Francisco de Figueiredo aka Chico and the marriage proved to be her greatest test, which eventually altered the course of her destiny in ways she had never imagined.<br /><br />Though a gifted musician with great potential, Chico was so consumed with his music and his own self that his responsibility towards his wife and their seven children hardly featured in his make-believe world.<br /><br />In such a scenario with an uncertain future looming large over her children, Filomena took a leap of faith in the dark, moved away from the unstable environment in her husband’s place of Margao to land in Dharwar in Karnataka — a decision that gave a definitive twist to the fate of her family.<br /><br />Vividly sketched and passionately told, Filomena’s Journeys juxtaposes the stories of Filomena and Chico, not just as two individuals with diametrically opposed priorities in life, but also as representatives of two diverse classes of the Catholic landlords in the early 20th century Goa, at a time when the region was experiencing tremendous social and political churning.<br /><br />It is a fact that religious conversion under colonial rule in India was often achieved through coercion where the converted were forced to abandon the local culture and adopt an alien lifestyle, which often had insidious psycho-cultural ramifications. <br /><br />Couto’s father Chico’s life was an example of this phenomenon. Chico was torn between the burden of living up to the lofty legacy of his Westernised ancestors and the harsh ground reality of the dwindling privileges of the Goan landed elite, thanks to the political unrest in the region, which eventually culminated in Indian annexation of Goa in 1961.<br /><br />On the other hand, Filomena, who had a Konkani upbringing, was more connected to the land and local culture, which better prepared her to deal with the volatility of life.<br /><br />A reputed historian herself, Couto refers extensively to various publications and documents of the period to recreate the Goan society of that era. She pieces together her material through personal meetings, phone conversations, Skype sessions, emails and letters with her parents’ contemporaries and others who had information to share.<br /><br />For an outsider, Filomena’s Journeys is like a crash course in the vibrant Goan society of the early 20th century. With her highly visual words, she brings to life the aristocratic buildings, rich cuisine, western music, fashion, elegant etiquette and manners, etc of the Portuguese Goa. She delights with the description of the natural splendour of Goa with its lush coconut groves, paddy fields, rivers, temples and churches.<br /><br />The personal and historical narrative blend nicely in Couto’s book, making the story of Goa as intimate as Filomena’s own story. Even after conversion to Christianity in Portuguese Goa, those converted continued to cling to the caste-based hierarchies prevalent in Hinduism, which gave a unique definition to the feudal structure of Goan society.<br /><br />“Yet this intensely feudal world, despite its pretensions and affectations, was also a warm and secure world of family bonding, rich village lore, lively conversation and gossip, and elaborate rituals of fine living.”<br /><br />Embedded in this family memoir is also the story of Couto and her six siblings, whose growing up years were a mix of loving care from Filomena and constant fear of their father Chico’s unpredictable temper, which traumatised them.<br /><br />However, Couto makes peace with her painful past with regard to her father because “he brought Filomena suffering, and still had her love, till the very end of her life. And if she had compassion for him, how can her daughter not?”<br /><br />Chico passed away a detached, lonely man at the age of 53 in Goa, away from Dharwar where Filomena was at the time with her children, in pursuit of a better life for all of them. When Couto’s husband was posted to Goa as a highly-ranked officer in the government, the same land that Filomena was once forced to leave for the sake her family’s future, embraced her with open arms and celebrated her success after much hardship.<br /><br />Life had come a full circle for Filomena who preferred to confront problems with phrases like — “Let us see; let it be; forget it, all this will pass” even as she took the challenges of life head on!<br /><br />Written with the right blend of emotions, a historical perspective and a desirable touch of fictional embellishments, Filomena’s Journeys is a just tribute to the resilience and undefeatable spirit of a remarkable woman.<br /><br /><em>Filomena’s Journeys: A Portrait of A Marriage, A family & A culture<br /></em>Maria Aurora Couto<br />Aleph<br />2013,<br />pp 290<br />Rs. 495</p>
<p>With its rich and complex socio-cultural identity that draws heavily from its 450 years of colonial past as a Portuguese province, and its breathtaking landscape, Goa commands magnetic attraction matched by very few regions in India.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Maria Aurora Couto’s biography of her mother — Filomena’s Journeys: A Portrait of A Marriage, A Family & A Culture celebrates the spirit of this unique land and its people through the story of one woman who shaped her family’s destiny with sheer faith, love and endurance.<br /><br />Couto’s Goa: A Daughter’s Story, published in 2004, was a revelation to those who subscribed to the clichéd perception of the region as the land of just superficial fun and beauty. In Filomena’s Journeys, she attempts to add another dimension to the exploration of her native land and culture through the story of her mother Filomena Borges. <br /><br />Born in 1909 as the youngest of five children in a Catholic Christian family in Goa, Filomena was orphaned before she turned eight. Growing up with a strong connection to the land in the picturesque village of Raia under the care of her maternal grandmother, she naturally imbibed values of stability, compassion, hardwork and an unshaken faith in the Divine.<br /><br />At the age of 26, Filomena married Francisco de Figueiredo aka Chico and the marriage proved to be her greatest test, which eventually altered the course of her destiny in ways she had never imagined.<br /><br />Though a gifted musician with great potential, Chico was so consumed with his music and his own self that his responsibility towards his wife and their seven children hardly featured in his make-believe world.<br /><br />In such a scenario with an uncertain future looming large over her children, Filomena took a leap of faith in the dark, moved away from the unstable environment in her husband’s place of Margao to land in Dharwar in Karnataka — a decision that gave a definitive twist to the fate of her family.<br /><br />Vividly sketched and passionately told, Filomena’s Journeys juxtaposes the stories of Filomena and Chico, not just as two individuals with diametrically opposed priorities in life, but also as representatives of two diverse classes of the Catholic landlords in the early 20th century Goa, at a time when the region was experiencing tremendous social and political churning.<br /><br />It is a fact that religious conversion under colonial rule in India was often achieved through coercion where the converted were forced to abandon the local culture and adopt an alien lifestyle, which often had insidious psycho-cultural ramifications. <br /><br />Couto’s father Chico’s life was an example of this phenomenon. Chico was torn between the burden of living up to the lofty legacy of his Westernised ancestors and the harsh ground reality of the dwindling privileges of the Goan landed elite, thanks to the political unrest in the region, which eventually culminated in Indian annexation of Goa in 1961.<br /><br />On the other hand, Filomena, who had a Konkani upbringing, was more connected to the land and local culture, which better prepared her to deal with the volatility of life.<br /><br />A reputed historian herself, Couto refers extensively to various publications and documents of the period to recreate the Goan society of that era. She pieces together her material through personal meetings, phone conversations, Skype sessions, emails and letters with her parents’ contemporaries and others who had information to share.<br /><br />For an outsider, Filomena’s Journeys is like a crash course in the vibrant Goan society of the early 20th century. With her highly visual words, she brings to life the aristocratic buildings, rich cuisine, western music, fashion, elegant etiquette and manners, etc of the Portuguese Goa. She delights with the description of the natural splendour of Goa with its lush coconut groves, paddy fields, rivers, temples and churches.<br /><br />The personal and historical narrative blend nicely in Couto’s book, making the story of Goa as intimate as Filomena’s own story. Even after conversion to Christianity in Portuguese Goa, those converted continued to cling to the caste-based hierarchies prevalent in Hinduism, which gave a unique definition to the feudal structure of Goan society.<br /><br />“Yet this intensely feudal world, despite its pretensions and affectations, was also a warm and secure world of family bonding, rich village lore, lively conversation and gossip, and elaborate rituals of fine living.”<br /><br />Embedded in this family memoir is also the story of Couto and her six siblings, whose growing up years were a mix of loving care from Filomena and constant fear of their father Chico’s unpredictable temper, which traumatised them.<br /><br />However, Couto makes peace with her painful past with regard to her father because “he brought Filomena suffering, and still had her love, till the very end of her life. And if she had compassion for him, how can her daughter not?”<br /><br />Chico passed away a detached, lonely man at the age of 53 in Goa, away from Dharwar where Filomena was at the time with her children, in pursuit of a better life for all of them. When Couto’s husband was posted to Goa as a highly-ranked officer in the government, the same land that Filomena was once forced to leave for the sake her family’s future, embraced her with open arms and celebrated her success after much hardship.<br /><br />Life had come a full circle for Filomena who preferred to confront problems with phrases like — “Let us see; let it be; forget it, all this will pass” even as she took the challenges of life head on!<br /><br />Written with the right blend of emotions, a historical perspective and a desirable touch of fictional embellishments, Filomena’s Journeys is a just tribute to the resilience and undefeatable spirit of a remarkable woman.<br /><br /><em>Filomena’s Journeys: A Portrait of A Marriage, A family & A culture<br /></em>Maria Aurora Couto<br />Aleph<br />2013,<br />pp 290<br />Rs. 495</p>
