THE LATE TIATRIST M. BOYER - I.

Seen in the picture: A. Veronica with M. Boyer.


THE LATE TIATRIST M. BOYER.

Dilolem Utor moddtolo,
Ghoribak konnui soddtolo,
Guirest tukam konnui meutolo,
Duddu bhangaran bhortolo,
Pai mozo ghorib bhikari,
Sang doth atam konn makam ditolo.

Dhotik lagon marli-i daum,
Pirder tujem korchina naum,
Ankvar urlear uronk aum,
Pun tujem chodd borem zaum

When he heard this “canto” rendered beautifully by Antonette Mendes from his Tiatro Sounsar Sudorlo played at Raja Stores Video – Cassette Shop in Kuwait about 10 years back, M. Boyer abruptly stopped walking further and listening carefully this song, admiring his capacity to compose beautiful songs said “cha!! kitem moji tokli choltali re tedna!! Zait gai anink mojean oslim kantaram ghoddpak?” While walking along with him, I said NO. Not only you but nobody in future will be able to compose such great songs!! I said. Then tears in his eyes, he walked further. During that time, we brought him to Kuwait to participate in our show when he stayed at my place for one whole week and during this time he exchanged lot of ideas and views with me to produce his last Tiatro “Ek Ghor – Chear Vantte” which he wanted to stage in Kuwait thru our initiative.

30th May 2009 will go down in the history of Konkani Tiatro as one of the darkest days as on this sad day the death has snatched away from this planet one topmost Tiatrist from our midst. That Tiatrist is none other than the late Padmashree and also Sangeet Nattak awardee M. Boyer. It was in the morning that my friend Daniel D’Souza from Vasco called me and gave this sad news. Unfortunately on that same day at noon I was flying to Bombay en route to Kuwait and hence I could neither pay condolence visit to his wife Martha whom I know well nor wait for his funeral.

I saw M. Boyer first time somewhere in 1958 acting in Tiatro. Earlier he along with the late M. Dod de Verna created ripples of their Tiatro skills in Bombay but suddenly M. Dod left Bombay and settled down in Goa where he got employment as Tiatrist at Emisora de Goa, Panjim and also started acting in Tiatros in Goa gaining vast popularity. He was then called second Alexinho de Candolim for his thought provoking songs. According to M. Boyer, M. Dod de Verna robbed some of his best songs in Bombay and rendered them in Goa. This M. Boyer openly told at Mapusa during one of the Tiatros where he was acting. But to his surprise one member from the audience got up from his chair and answered M. Boyer thus: “I don’t think M. Dod de Verna will do such a robbery, on the contrary I will believe in the opposite”. Listening to this, M. Boyer was shut but M. Dod surprisingly never uttered a single word proving his innocence.

Though M. Boyer was known everywhere yet he gained top popularity soon after Bharat annexed Goa. During Portuguese time he recorded some of his songs including Goyche Convent at Emissora de Goa and these songs gained him more popularity. Immediately after Goa’s annexure by Bharat he staged his very good Tiatro “Besao” which gave him lot of push on Konkani Stage. But his fame gained him much popularity in his excellent solos hitting hard at the corrupt administration system of Bharati rule. He was a great lover of Konkani and Goa for Goans ideology. He was not pro-Portuguez but pro-Goa and pro-Goans. He wanted Goan characteristics and cultural attributes to remain intact unsoiled by the ideology implanted in Goa with the influx of non-Goan thru the advent of Bharati rule. It pained his heart to see Goa getting deGoanised and with this genuine Goan characteristics uprooting from Goa. In this connection to show his dislike for the Bharati maladministration in Goa, he rendered a nice song some of the words of this song go thus:

Goa tum gaum ganvan, dhorian dhoria, dongrar dongor,
Put tuje assat tukam voir kaddunk konnui hath di-it tor,
Nakam Mysore lightini bhorunk puro Goyam vanvta ti Dudsagor.

Then in the same song he goes further and sings:

Zori tor Indian tor serkar, amchi Goykaranchi bhagoita zalear as,
Dhi amkam separad Goa samballunk amchi Konkani mae bhas.

Then he concludes the song saying:

Ak’ke Indiecho lok tor sukhi, amkam Goykarankuch kiteak kantte,
Dhi amkam separad Goa korinastana vantte.

TO BE CONCLUDED.

A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.