A popular farewell mando
Can you imagine the agony and frustration of being separated from your loved ones for months at a stretch without any way of communicating with them except perhaps through a letter or two received weeks after being posted? This was what Goan tarvottis and their families had to put up with in the late 1800s and the first half of the 1900s. And that was why each time our tarvottis had to sail away on long voyages on British-run ships such as the S.S. Canberra, or Kampala, it was hard for them to bid their loved ones goodbye.
Our Goan mando composers captured those heavy-hearted, emotion-packed moments of parting between tarvottis and their families through poignant farewell mandos. “The time has come to say farewell, Oh how my heart aches…” that’s how one such popular farewell mando Adeus korcho vellu paolo composed by one of our greatest mando composers – Torquato de Figueiredo – begins.
Today in the twentieth century, many Goan young men still sail on American cruise ships to earn a few dollars more for their families. They may still have to put up with the rigours of life at sea, but thankfully for them, it’s a more connected world we live in today.
Enjoy this mando that not only has links to a slice of Goa’s maritime history, but will also let you take a short cruise into the recent past through pictures of some of the iconic ships on which our Goan tarvottis once sailed. Do share the link with tarvotti families you know.
