This Friday, May 24, 2024, a videogame artist and two documentary filmmakers, who have clinched the V M Salgaocar Fellowship & Emerging Artist Grants 2022, will get together to stoke myriads of emotions in you with their artistic showpieces.
The exhibition, being held at Sunaparanta Goa Centre for Arts, will showcase works of Afrah Shafiq, Nalini Elvino de Sousa and Kalpit Gaonkar in audiovisual and videogame formats.
Goa-based multi-disciplinary artist Shafiq’s video game The Bride Who Could Not Stop Crying (2023) offers players a unique narrative experience, where choices shape the emotional journey of the protagonist, reflecting the complexities of familial relationships and cultural expectations.
“V M Salgaocar Fellowship Grant was a gift because it allowed me the freedom to meander and not worry about outcomes, which is often how process-led and research-based work pans out,” said the videogame creator, lauding the benefits of the fellowship grant.
V M Salgaocar Fellowship Grant was a gift because it allowed me the freedom to meander and not worry about outcomes, which is often how process-led and research-based work pans out
Afrah Shafiq, videogame artist
Shafiq informed the fellowship allowed her to discover new aspects of her projects as she went along; “although I started off with an interest and something I wanted to learn more about, my project also involved a lot of ‘not knowing’ and it was only through the process of the fellowship that the work began to materialise into a shape”.
Filmmaker Elvino de Sousa’s Kantar Goa is a tribute to Konkani songs. It offers an insight into the evolution of Konkani songs, tracing their journey from traditional performances to modern media platforms, that continue to hold significance even today, illustrating the essence of Goan culture through the kantaram's enduring legacy.
Filmmaker Elvino de Sousa’s Kantar Goa is a tribute to Konkani songs. It offers an insight into the evolution of Konkani songs, tracing their journey from traditional performances to modern media platforms
From the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, the kantaram, often portrayed as the side-show of tiatr, reflects the strong essence of Goa. Her film offers an argument to bring it to the centre-stage.
It argues how kantaram was capable of transcending the stage, reaching people’s homes through records, airing on the radio, and expanding further through social media.
V M Salgaocar Fellowship Grant allowed me to visualize my research penned down during my Master’s degree at Aveiro University in Portugal. As a result, a fifty-minute documentary was produced portraying my research into music and acting, bringing together some of the finest artists and academics in tiatr
Elvino de Sousa, filmmaker
“V M Salgaocar Fellowship Grant allowed me to visualize my research penned down during my Master’s degree at Aveiro University in Portugal. As a result, a fifty-minute documentary was produced portraying my research into music and acting, bringing together some of the finest artistsand academics in tiatr,” said the filmmaker.
Gaonkar’s ‘Tracing the Dust’ is a three-channel video with sound, which presents a documentation of the evolving tribal landscape of Goa and beyond. His progressive project unveils cultural collisions, capturing the idealistic essence of tribal life amidst political and cultural influences. It culminates in an exploration of Utopian tribal culture and the evolution of faith, offering viewers an insight into the intricacies of indigenous traditions.
“The fellowship grant provided me with the invaluable opportunity to delve deeply into the evolving identity and traditions of tribal communities in Goa. This support allowed me to document and archive the rich folklore, practices, and cultural shifts within these communities,” he said.
Gaonkar appreciated the “guidance and resources” he could avail of because of the fellowship; “as a result (of the fellowship), I produced a comprehensive video project that captures these narratives with an insider's perspective”.
The fellowship grant provided me with the invaluable opportunity to delve deeply into the evolving identity and traditions of tribal communities in Goa
Kalpit Gaonkar, filmmaker
According to him, his documentation has not only preserved important oral histories but also highlighted the cultural frictions and influences shaping tribal communities today.
The preview and walkthrough by the grantees will begin at 6 pm, followed by a presentation Kantaram on Vinyl by Leaxan Freitas, a professional dedicated to preserving Goa's Art Deco heritage through documentation and engaging Art Deco Walks. Beyond these pursuits, Freitas is a Vinyl record selector and collector who loves to share Goan culture through music.
FOR ENQUIRIES
Justina Costa, Media Manager, Sunaparanta Goa Centre for the Arts |+91 9370675100 / justina@sgcfa.org / info@sgcfa.org