Of People and Places

Benaulim beach in Goa - Acrylic on canvas I saw them too that night - the leaping rabbits. In the pitch dark sky and ocean, white, they leapt as if in a fever, tumbling about in a frenzy to reach the shore. This image is not my own, It is from a Japanese anime film called ' In this corner of the world'. In that a boy says to a girl, "The white waves look like rabbits hopping." and she paints the scene as he sees it. A small clipping of the film - On that day, I saw them too. It was a very unique, beautiful experience. I wished for a full moon, but even without moonlight it was pretty amazing. The foam was glowing in the dark, perhaps reflecting the distant lights on our side of the land.

For most people Goa is a holiday destination, a place of endless booze and partying, fresh seafood, expensive restaurants and weekend getaways. Not for Konkanis, though. As a child, I hated the fact that visits to Goa were mostly restricted to visiting the Mangeshi Mutt (temple), with an occasional trip to the beach and I longed for all those touristy things that other people did :) As I grew older, I began to see that a lot exists beyond both these things. A vast part of Goa is unexplored, untouched by the madness that tourists bring with them. Take Chandor, for instance,  a charming village in South Goa. It is a small village that can be explored on foot. In the monsoons, this place is too beautiful for words. Luckily, we had a friend who lives there to show us around. On the way to Chandor, amid stretches of forests, you will see typical Goan houses. The houses have covered porches that face the street, and invariably you will see someone sitting there, reading a newspap...