How Goan hearts won gold in Toronto!

 How Goans won Gold in Toronto, in the hearts and minds of the packed crowd!

And the gold goes to … VIVA GOA!

By Norman da Costa

Canada has been riding a golden wave at the Olympic Games in Paris. And on this side of the Atlantic GOA Toronto has run away with the gold medal with a magnificent celebration of the Viva Goa festival.

While it took thousands of workers and more than four years of planning to stage the Olympics, the GOA with the unpaid help of a little more than 120 volunteers turned a dream into reality by staging the best-ever Viva Goa Festival at the Paramount Fine Food Centre in Mississauga. As thousands snaked their way through for MASS AT 10 AM, it felt like Canada’s entire Goan population of 50,000 (according to the Canada Census) had looped it into Paramount.

Although no exact figures have been released it is estimated that attendance was anywhere between 7 000 and 10 000 and that is an astounding figure. You can’t blame anyone for the delay as the visionary behind this incredible undertaking, Selwyn Collaco, president of the GOA Toronto, and his band of volunteers are still trying to catch their breath. They deserve a rest after stitching together a gathering of this magnitude. And even the sun applauded the committee as it burst through the clouds to make sure it would not rain on this parade.

There was a motive behind the committee’s decision to look for a new location after years of staging the show “as a picnic in a park to a top class facility to showcase our culture that we as Goans can all be proud of,” said Collaco.

The event also celebrated World Goa Day and brought together Indian, Brazilian and Portuguese cultures.  Indian and Brazilian dancers enthralled the crowd before our very own Goan dancers held centre stage.

As in previous years, the GOA cast its net far and wide and snared top flight Goan singers from the homeland. This year Collaco reached for the stars and landed the Cadillac of Goan crooners. He signed the one-and-only Remo, who, like Lorna, attracted thousands to Paramount. Many I spoke to said they were drawn to Viva Goa by the presence of one of Goa’s greatest singers who now lives in Portugal.

GOA had to break the bank to acquire his services but it was worth the effort. Goans made the trek in droves as if someone had started a rumour that free feni was available.

Just as in previous years, Collaco used his contacts to land the Goan nightingale Lorna who continues to attract fans like bees to honey. Collaco admitted he had been trying to sign Remo from as far back as 2018. But this time there was no sweat shed as Remo reached out to Collaco. It was obvious Viva Goa’s popularity had reached him and he was here with his band The Microwave Papadums. He asked for the moon but then again if you want Taylor Swift to perform you have to dig deep into your coffers and this is what the GOA did.

While thousands were spellbound by this impresario, others felt he spent too much time trying to engage the crowd in unnecessary talk instead of what made him great … singing and playing his instruments. The other artists roped in were superb and electrified the crowd.

Collaco who is a band leader with Goa Amigos in Toronto, roped in the dynamic duo of Tammy and Roy for their second straight year. Also back by popular demand was Goan fadista Sonia Shirsat who is often referred to as "the Goan ambassador of Music to the world."

Other top-notch artistes included Kokani pop sensation O'Luv, renowned director of music Norman Cardozo, New Zealand's Goan Jazz maestro Ben & Josh Fernandez and the energetic singer and guitarist Bismarc from England. Of course, our very own locals who enthralled the were the one and only violinist Grenville Pinto and bands Blindfold Test, The Band Syndicate, Bootleggers, DesertStorm, Monkey Business and Goa Amigos.

While the spotlight focused on the overseas stars, the local talent had centre stage and were brilliant thanks to their coaches who worked 24/7 over the last past three months to impress which they did.

The GOA Kiss staged the traditional Goan Fashion show and Goenchim Naketram drew rave reviews. The crowd also applauded those who did an incredible and professional job performing the Karvi and Kunbi dances all decked out in saris. There were also several others who left an indelible mark on the day. Pity some of the crowd could not see all of these performances since the program ran simultaneously in both the halls.

Also, all the food stalls were packed to capacity all day and I am shocked they did not run out of food. The items were reasonably priced and the lineups were long and tiring. Restaurants Nostalgia, Chorisauga and Konkan Delite resembled the 401 at rush hour with bumper-to-bumper traffic. The wait was at least an hour. They will come back again with three more kiosks. They were given the option to erect more eateries but did not take up the offer this year.

The Paramount was custom-made for Viva Goa as it is a multi-purpose premier sports and entertainment centre. With an an adjoining facility for the soccer tournament, two huge rinks were converted into two halls with enough room for a stage, sitting plus stalls for selling food, spices, books, art and a couple of bars thrown in as well.

Outdoors there were tents erected on a space large enough for more than one soccer field and this area was also peppered with kiosks and of course the main stage for the night show.

There were lots of other side shows especially involving the children.