Sao Joao festivities take a leap towards commercialisation

Sao Joao is being celebrated across Goa today. For a majority of the locals, this is the day of the year when they gather together, many wearing kopels (wreaths of flowers that adorn the head), and swaying to the beats of the ghumot and cymbals.

However one may want to describe the festival, this is the time of the year when villagers meet, share fruits, drinks and jump into water bodies — it used to be wells in the past.

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Sao Joao is a deeply traditional festival, where villagers would go to those houses in the ward, where the girl had recently married and after receiving fruits, drinks, perhaps even a donation, walk to the house where there was a firstborn.

After that, the villagers would meet at the ward chapel for a prayer, and then walk to the well or a pre-determined water body, where a big crown was thrown in and the revellers dived through it into the water

Sao Joao is a deeply traditional festival, where villagers would go to those houses in the ward, where the girl had recently married and after receiving fruits, drinks, perhaps even a donation, walk to the house where there was a firstborn.

There was a time, when villagers went around the ward, jumping from one neighbour’s well to the other, throwing in caju feni bottles and jackfruit into it, and waiting till the items thrown in were retrieved, and later shared.

The year 2025 could be a special year for Sao Joao because, for the first time, the government seems to have stepped in with the Department of Tourism stating that it is partaking in the festival in a village called Siolim in North Goa.

This Sao Joao, plunge into wells and plates of delicious Goan sweets

Joining a festival is a good idea but, there is something that is worrying, because like Carnaval, the spirit of Sao Joao could well be lost in a few years — lost just the way the spirit of Carnaval cannot be recognised anymore.

Carnaval was a festival of the people, until some people thought to rope in the government. By bringing in the government, they brought in the money, and with it, commercialisation of a festival that had the essence of the goodness of people.

By bringing in money, Carnaval was stripped of its essence. It is now gone, and will never be found again. Full stop.

Joining a festival is a good idea but, there is something that is worrying, because like 'Carnaval', the spirit of Sao Joao could well be lost in a few years — lost just the way the spirit of 'Carnaval' cannot be recognised anymore.

The same could be the fate of Sao Joao because the festival, in Siolim, has slowly started losing its sparkle, although some other wards of the village do celebrate the festival in a traditional manner.

Festivals in Goa have always been unique because they stem, not from what the Portuguese left, but from the spirit of community living, or more aptly said, the spirit of comunidade that was sown some thousands of years ago.

Fruits, flowers, festivities at Goa's Sao Joao

Back then, the spirit of comunidade was about caring by sharing, and it was that spirit that prevailed on all locals during festivals. Festivals are times of the year when the goodness of Goa comes out from each Goan.

Unfortunately, that spirit is now largely lost. Sao Joao, Carnaval and many other festivals have always been about the spirit of goodness that is ingrained in locals. Sadly, that is, because without good, the link with the Almighty is bound to be weak or non-existent.

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For many, just like Carnaval, Sao Joao is moving from a ward festival to a celebration of all and sundry, where the human element is lost to loud music and lots of booze.

This sort of Sao Joao is not only seen in Siolim, but in other villages too, Aldonabeing one of them. But not all is over. Once commercialisation sets in, there is little the locals will be able to do because money quenches the thirst temporarily.

Then, it will be time to repent. It will be too late because like Carnaval, Sao Joao will turn into a festival to draw in tourists, and the locals will feel left out. We are getting there.