Remembering
Valmiki Faleiro (January
6, 1956 – October 5, 2023)
 |
| Valmiki Faleiro |
MELVYN MISQUITA
misquita@outlook.com
14 OCTOBER 2023
As the years progress, the list of memories gets longer. The list of memorable moments and the list of regrets. With the shocking and untimely demise of eminent writer and historian Valmiki Faleiro of Margao on October 5, two regrets and two treasures were added to this list.
But first, a background.
I have long admired Socrates Valmiki Faleiro –
until October
5, I didn’t even know that
Socrates was
his first name – for his writing skills. He
was
articulate, had profound knowledge about
Salcete, and especially Margao, and was a master of history, mystery,
and the occasional controversy.
Among
the many fascinating articles by Valmiki, two had stood out for me,
largely because they were
connected with musicians of yesteryears. The
first was ‘Goan music: a long, twisted, and often colourful road
across time’ and the
second was ‘San Franciscu Xavier-a: A queer
story’. More about the first article a little later.
I
would
occasionally interact with Valmiki, letting him
know that I appreciated his articles in newspapers. At some point in
time, he
became aware that I was the son-in-law of the
late Jose Gracias of Borda-Margao, who was associated with the Margao
Comunidade for some time.
Valmiki, one of the largest shareholders of the Margao Comunidade and
a person of keen interest in Comunidade affairs, had good memories of
my
late father-in-law.
My
close
interaction with Valmiki began barely three
years ago and it involved work on my late
father-in-law and a group of musicians mainly from Salcete who
performed in a band ‘Joe Blues’, later renamed to ‘Music
Lovers’, between 1953 and 1963. My work was based on a
seven-decade-old diary, hundreds of handwritten music sheets,
memorabilia and other artefacts which were meticulously preserved at
the residence of my late father-in-law.
My father-in-law, two other founder members, Alvito da Costa and
Ronaldo Coutinho, were from Borda-Margao, while the fourth founding
member, Anacleto Figueiredo (nephew of the Maestro Antonio
Figueiredo), resided near the Holy Spirit Church. The 37 musicians
who performed with the ‘Music Lovers’ at some point in time over
those 10 years included the legendary musician, Chris Perry, and his
brother, Paul Perry.
Chris Perry’s house was barely about 50 metres from the residence
of Valmiki. Hoping to pick up some details (other than those already
known to his fans across the world) from Valmiki, I decided to visit
him at his residence. I cannot ascertain the exact date as all my
WhatsApp messages prior to October 2022 accidentally got deleted
while I was in the process of switching phones.
Valmiki’s house is by the side of the majestic Holy Spirit Church
at Margao. And Valmiki’s house is no less impressive. The exteriors
of Valmiki’s house are beautiful in aesthetics and architecture,
while the interiors, furnishings and finishings are
just as exquisite.
Valmiki and his wife, Daisy, were great hosts, welcoming me into
their house. Within minutes,
Valmiki took me to the first floor, where we began our conversation.
I explained my project and the musicians involved. When the topic of
Chris Perry came up for discussion, he provided some interesting
insights into
the life of the legendary musician and his
personal experiences with
Chris Perry.
But
true to his nature, Valmiki could not remain on one topic for long.
He would divert to related topics with amazing ease, rattling names,
places and events with remarkable memory. My purpose was to get more
information about Chris Perry, but much of our time was spent
discussing other topics. They may not have been relevant to my music
project, but they were, nonetheless, of great interest to me.
The
topics and their narratives were unadulterated. Nothing was censored
or edited by Valmiki, even though we were formally meeting for the
first time. Perhaps, he saw in me an avid listener, who sat
mesmerised and absorbing his fascinating stories. And of course, his
ability to narrate them with clarity and precision.
Shortly
after our conversation came to an end, Valmiki took me around his
house, giving me a brief guided tour of his palatial abode. Valmiki
stopped to show me one of his many prized possessions: A beautiful
150-year-old large
teakwood cupboard, handcrafted by a highly skilled carpenter who was
the grandfather of Joe, Chris and Paul Perry.
“This
large teakwood cupboard still going strong 150 years later to this
day. Much before Joe and Chris Perry’s genius at creating
everlasting melodies, their grandfather’s handcrafted legacy
silently lives on,”
Valmiki was to tell me some time later.
Valmiki
also took the trouble to trace the baptismal and death certificates
of the band leader, Alvito da
Costa. He
even translated the original Portuguese text into English, with
meticulous precision. It was Valmiki who first brought to my notice
of an interesting remark
inserted in Alvito’s baptismal record, stating
that he had married
Audrey Vida in a church at an unusual location: Kashmir.
Aware
that I was working on this
music project, he knew the importance of keeping records. In his
email to me on September 21, 2020, Valmiki had this to say:
“Dear
Melvyn,
Was
just going through yesterday’s files of Alvito da Costa before
storage.
Thought
of sending you copies so that you can also have them for proper
record.
Noticed
that the .png pic of the Burial/Death certificate I sent you
yesterday did not show the name/signature of the priest concerned.
So
took both the Baptism and Burial certificates again and saved them in
.jpg, which is a better format for page layout artists. Attached.”
In
the
same email, he added words of encouragement:
“Do
think of pursuing the idea of a book – the story of the band, the
original compositions of Joe Perry, and reproducing whatever notation
sheets your father-in-law had saved.
From
my side, anything that I can do, most willingly and with pleasure.
Awaiting
your first draft of the main story.
Best,
v”
My
mother-in-law happened to
have in her house a rare copy of the 1937 school yearbook of
St Theotonio Union High School (which
was later taken up by the Jesuits and renamed as the Loyola High
School). Since Valmiki was fascinated with historical/rare records, I
scanned a few pages of this yearbook and emailed it to him.
His
reply:
“Thank
you, Melvyn, for the photos attached to both mails. V interesting.
Waiting to see the rest, but take your time. Best, v”
I
later scanned the entire yearbook and forwarded it to Valmiki.
Whenever possible, I would also scan rare photos of some prominent
individuals (thanks to my in-laws for carefully preserving them) of
interest to him. He would promptly acknowledge these additions to his
collection.
After
my music project got completed in February 2022, I requested Valmiki
(and three others) to have a look at the draft and to let me know if
it would be of interest to the general reader. After all, this story
revolved around a group of musicians from the 1950s and I was unsure
if it would appeal to those unconnected with musicians in my project.
It was also the first book of its kind to focus on a band in Goa.
Despite the presence of several dozens of bands in Goa over the
decades, no one had felt the need and interest to document this
aspect of Goan society. That is, until now.
To
my happiness, Valmiki was fascinated with the story. “This
story is very interesting, and I am hearing of this for the first
time. It is certainly
worth publishing it in some form or the other,”
he told me. Thankfully, the three other reviewers also felt the same
and agreed it
would interest the general
reader.
* * *
My
music project was first published in my blog on February 25, 2022.
But with the encouragement of Valmiki, Frederick (Rico) Noronha of
Goa,1556 (the publisher) and a few others, I decided to take this
project forward in the form of a book. Rico shortlisted the name
“Symphony of Passion” for the book, and we discussed other
elements (cover design, chapters, images, etc.).
There
was one crucial element needed for the book: the Foreword.
I
could think of none other than Valmiki. For different reasons. He had
reviewed my initial draft and was familiar with the story. Second, he
had encouraged me to consider a book. Third, he had a geographical
connect. He resided close to the homes of four of the founder members
of the band, which was the focus of ‘Symphony of Passion’.
I
turned to Valmiki and requested him to write the Foreword, for the
above-mentioned reasons.
But
there was an unexpected problem, and one that took me by surprise.
“I
have never written a Foreword before,”
exclaimed
Valmiki.
Valmiki
had written numerous articles, and I was quite sure that Forewords
would have been part of his vast and impressive literary repertoire.
Well,
I could not think of anyone else to write the Foreword. Nor did I
want anyone else. I managed to persuade Valmiki to consider penning
his first-ever Foreword and he readily agreed to do so.
“Please
let me know the word count and what you want included in the
Foreword,”
replied Valmiki.
Assuming
his article would be around 1,500 words, I told Valmiki not to bother
about the word count. When it came to content, his wonderful article
‘Goan music: a long, twisted, and often colourful road across time’
came to mind. I brought this to his notice.
“How
about bringing in the four Konkani stage,
film and music greats, who
once resided in your vicinity, from
your previous article and
connecting them with the four lesser-known founder members of the
band in my music project. After all, they too were located in your
area,”
I suggested to Valmiki.
He
immediately accepted the plan and got down to work.
By
March 20, the first draft of his Foreword was ready, and Valmiki
emailed it to me and was kind
enough to include the following suggestion:
“Change
it the way YOU would like to see the Foreword in your book.”
I
opened the attached file and immediately noticed that Valmiki’s
initial draft was 4,682 words in length! To
put it into perspective, it constituted about
11% of my own
work.
But
more than the word count, the
master of history, mystery and the occasion controversy
had
touched upon sensitive issues. In his bold and inimitable style. He
made some references to caste, community and
clan.
I
mentioned to Valmiki
that my interactions with musicians during my
project as well as in my conversations with people in and around
Margao had revealed that many people were quite sensitive about
issues pertaining to caste, community and clan.
It
must be noted here that musicians in
‘Symphony of Passion’ certainly did not have
any of these issues and happily mingled with fellow musicians,
irrespective of social and cultural affiliations. After all, these
musicians valued competence, calibre and camaraderie, not caste,
community and clan. However, times had changed, and people preferred
to avoid references to these social structures and hierarchies.
Valmiki
had
also made a rather amusing reference to the large opening of a toilet
at the pigsty of
a church, which was used as a getaway by a youth who stole cash from
the church and fled to another part of India, eventually rising to
become one of the most prominent musicians in North India. While the
unedited portion was included in his original article, it simply had
to be edited in the Foreword to my book, to respect the sentiments of
those using church toilets!
As such, I
omitted some colourful descriptions in Valmiki’s initial Foreword,
mindful it could be offensive to many readers.
Valmiki
readily accepted all of my suggestions (and explanations put
forth) and with
these changes,
the Foreword, revised and finalised on March 30, 2022, got reduced to
about 3,100 words. It was still a lengthy Foreword by most standards,
but flawless
for me and contained all the essential elements
that I would have wanted.
It
was only on reading his Foreword that I realised there was another
reason for his initial hesitation to write it:
He did not consider senior enough to do so!
My book ‘Symphony of Passion’ was released on June 1, 2022. I was
keen to have Valmiki present at the function. Unfortunately, he
declined my invitation because by that time, he refused
to move out of his home over fears of contracting Covid. He chose to
restrict his physical presence and interactions with people and
remained largely confined to his home.
Barely a day later, Valmiki was to provide
me with a lucky break.
He mentioned to me that one of his close friends, Bennet
Paes from Assolna, happened to know Damask
Braganza, a prominent trumpet
player at the time and one of the guest
artistes of ‘Music Lovers’. During my research, I struggled for
months to get details of Damask, especially since he was, very sadly,
virtually forgotten in his own village of Majorda. I finally managed
to connect with a neighbour, I J Gomes, who shared fond memories of
Damask.
I
was keen to meet Valmiki’s friend, Bennet Paes. Thanks to Valmiki,
I got this opportunity to meet this remarkable man at his palatial
house in Assolna along with two of my friends and well-known
musicians, Ravi Coutinho and Mercy Fernandes. Bennet Paes went on to
recall his fascinating association with Damask. He became the
room-mate of Damask by sheer accident, but their friendship
developed. Bennet went on to be the best-man at the wedding of
Damask.
Now,
both Ravi and Mercy were bandmates in ‘Muzik Mann’ and ‘Pure
Magic’. What is interesting about Ravi and Mercy is that three
decades earlier, their respective
fathers, Ronaldo Coutinho and Pedro
Santana Fernandes,
were band mates in ‘Music Lovers’, the subject of my book.
Ravi
and Mercy were to have an unusual connect with Valmiki. One
of their shows as musicians in ‘Muzik Mann’ was at
the Kesarval hotel in Verna on January 25, 1989. It was the wedding
reception of Valmiki and Daisy.
I did make it a point to drop
by Valmiki’s house to deliver my signed book for him, but his
instructions were clear. My book had to be placed in an envelope and
handed over to his watchman who would meet me at the gate!
The Foreword to ‘Symphony of Passion’ may have been Valmiki’s
first-ever Foreword, but it was
a perfect and befitting
prelude to the book.
I’m unsure if he wrote Forewords to other books after March 30,
2022, but I can say that the Foreword to my book was the first by the
legendary writer himself.
That will be my Treasure
#1.
* * *
I
got involved in another project in
an unusual manner.
I happened to visit my mother-in-law at Borda-Margao and noticed a
small booklet on
the history of the Borda Chapel. It was an
English translation of the original Portuguese booklet written by
Jose Ligorio da Natividade Dias in 1928. The
book had fascinating
details, but the English translation had
inadvertently
contained some inaccuracies.
I
was keen to work on a revised translation of this booklet along with
updated information, which would be provide a more detailed story of
the Borda Chapel. I got in touch with Fatima Miranda Figueiredo,
sister of the legendary artist late Mario Miranda and wife of
Anacleto Figueiredo, one of the founder members of the band in my
book. There was another connect: Anacleto Figueiredo was the maternal
grandson of Ligorio Dias.
Fatima
kindly offered to collaborate in this project and also agreed to
compose the entire original text in Portuguese, which would be
included in one section of the proposed book. The Portuguese text was
then sent to Fr Joaquim Loiola Pereira, secretary to Cardinal Filipe
Neri Ferrao, who kindly offered to translate the entire text into
English.
Fatima
and I decided to include a section on the frescoes of the late Dr
Jose Pereira in the Sacristy of the Borda Chapel, some details on Dr
Pereira and some photos of the Borda Chapel. I also wanted to add
another section in the book: A brief history of Borda and how it got
populated.
I
needed someone well-versed in the history of Borda to send me these
details for this proposed book. I turned to Valmiki once again, as I
could think of no other person for the task.
I
contacted him and put forth the request. Not only was Valmiki aware
of the booklet by Ligorio Dias, he also had a copy of the booklet in
his library. Valmiki was kind enough to have the entire booklet
scanned and presented to me – yes, via his watchman at the entrance
to his gate – so that I would have my own copy of the booklet.
As
before, Valmiki did not let me down and agreed to send me an article
on ‘How Borda got populated’.
But
there was one condition.
“I’m
very busy finalising my forthcoming book and will not have time to
write the article on the history of Borda. I will work on it only
after my book is launched,”
Valmiki told me.
I
was in no hurry, and happily waited because I knew Valmiki would
honour his promise and would surely send me another gem of an
article.
In
the meantime, I decided to meet up with Valmiki and update him on my
project on the Borda Chapel and two other ongoing projects. I had
planned to meet him on June 29. I sent him a note the previous day to
enquire if he would be free at about 5 pm, and if he continued to
practice social isolation.
His reply was clear:
“I meet one on one downstairs. Would appreciate if you could
make it a bit earlier, say by 4.00-4.15 pm, so that my house boy can
close the windows before he leaves by 5.30 pm.”
His message to me on the morning of our meeting would elucidate his
penchant for protocol:
“See you in the evening -- behind
closed windows.
The watchman on duty will let your car in, drive into the porch
and park.
My house boy, Elvis will open the front door and sit you inside.
I'll join you downstairs immediately after the watchman tells me
you have arrived.”
I was rather intrigued by Valmiki’s instructions and thought it may
have been dictated by his fear of the Covid pandemic. I
replied to his message:
“Remarkable protocol indeed...”
Within moments, I realised Covid was
not his only fear.
“Remarkable protocol dictated by mosquitoes!” replied
Valmiki.
At
the appointed time on June 29, I reached his house and followed his
instructions.
Valmiki
arrived to greet me, while maintaining safe distance, and led me to a
chair in his sitting room. He then walked to the other end and sat
some metres away!
His
wife, Daisy, joined us for some time and during our two-hour meeting,
I briefed Valmiki on my ongoing projects and reminded him of his
article on a short history of Borda. He reassured me that it would be
done after the launch of his book ‘Goa, 1961: The Complete Story of
Nationalism and Integration’, which was due on July 24. He went on
to tell me about the progress of his book.
As
with Valmiki, the topics of discussion soon turned to people, places
and events: a relative who (he believed) was a clairvoyant, a man who
inherited vast properties as part of an agreement to marry the
differently-abled daughter of a wealthy man and so on. Nothing, and
nobody, was excluded within the four walls of his mansion.
The two hours flew by, and it was time for me to leave. Interacting
with Valmiki was akin to taking a course in history. By the master
himself.
Sadly, that was to be the last time I would get to interact with
Valmiki in person.
I made it a point to acknowledge his hospitality and conversation the
next day:
Thank you, Valmiki, for the most pleasant conversation at your
home last evening. Every session with you is a fascinating
experience. Your knowledge of people, places and events never ceases
to amaze me.
His reply was simple:
No thanks due, Melvyn my friend. It's always a pleasure (time
permitting).
On August 22, almost a
month after the release of his book ‘Goa, 1961: The Complete Story
of Nationalism and Integration’, I messaged
Valmiki to remind him of his article on a
short history of Borda, as Fatima Figueiredo and
I were in
the process of finalising a revised and updated
English version of the St Joaquim Chapel in
Borda.
Valmiki’s responded
immediately:
“Oops, had almost forgotten about
it. Thanks for reminding, Melvyn. In a few days, to be sure. Am a bit
tied up with some time-bound things, else would have written and sent
you the piece tomorrow itself. Please give me a few days.”
I did not have to wait long.
On
August 25, Valmiki emailed
me his
article on 'How Borda Got Populated' for our
proposed book on the
Borda Chapel with the message:
“The
Borda story, attached, for your book on St. Joaquim Chapel. Hope you
like it. Feel free to change it any way you desire, no need for prior
permission. Only don't forget to email me the final version for my
records (we forgot to do that with the foreword to your earlier book
-- if available on your comp, please
email it). Best, v”
I
responded immediately by thanking him for his article. I assured to
have a look at it over the weekend and to send him the final draft
for his records. Following his request, I then sent Valmiki the final
draft of his Foreword to my book ‘Symphony of Passion’.
I
did have a look at Valmiki’s article on “How Borda got populated”
and it was just as fascinating as his Foreword to my book. I shared
it with Fatima Figueiredo and her reply was equally positive:
“I
finally had the opportunity today to read on how Borda got populated.
Very interesting indeed. This will add a full new dimension to the
book.”
I
had planned to send him the final draft of his article with minor
revisions sometime towards the end of October.
Sadly,
that was not meant to be, and he did not get
the final version for his records.
That
will be my Regret #1.
But
I am comforted by the fact that Valmiki honoured his commitment and
sent me his article. Barely 40 days before he departed from this
world. Quite likely, this could be the first-ever short history on
Borda. When the book is published, it would contain a fascinating
account of Borda by the literary master himself.
That
will be my Treasure #2.
* * *
Shortly before the launch of his book ‘Goa, 1961: The Complete
Story of Nationalism and Integration’ on July 24, I messaged
Valmiki two days earlier to enquire if he could reserve a signed copy
of his book for me. I insisted on paying for his
book.
Valmiki’s reply was prompt:
“Ok, done, will keep with me -- but no way you are going to pay.
For two sound reasons:
1. I don't write books for money, and
much less sign them for money! and
2. When I got your book, I
didn't pay for it.
So decided: I sign and keep the copy with me.
Whenever you are coming to Margao, you would let me know and I'll
pass on the copy to you. Done?”
On July 27, I messaged Valmiki to let him know that I would be
visiting Margao the next morning and wanted to know if I could
collect the signed copy of his book.
Valmiki’s replied with
the usual protocol:
Book will be with watchman on duty by 10.00 am tomorrow. Just say
"Melvyn" and the envelope will be given to you.
As promised, I collected the book from his watchman and sent him a
message to thank him for the complimentary copy. While letting him
know that his book would surely be in my
prized-and-never-to-be-loaned category of books, I mentioned to him
that I looked forward to reading the book some time soon.
Valmiki replied:
No thanks due. Once you have finished reading, do favour me with
your honest opinion, esp. critical ... shortfalls, improvements.
Thanks!
I got caught up in additional work over the next few weeks and did
not get the opportunity to read Valmiki’s book. As a result, I
could not honour Valmiki’s request in sending him my opinion of his
book.
That
will be
my Regret #2.
* * *
I came
to know that my 15-year-old daughter, Megan, had an unusual
connection with Valmiki. I found this out at the Annual
General Body Meeting of the PTA of The Rosary High School at
Cujira-Bambolim on August 19.
Shortly before the AGBM,
I happened to meet Marjalisa da Graca Fonseca, a teacher at the
school. She had taught
Megan in Std 8 while online classes were being conducted on account
of the Covid pandemic. Ms Fonseca mentioned to me that she is the
niece of Valmiki Faleiro and we immediately got chatting about her
acclaimed uncle.
As chairman of the PTA, I was given the privilege of felicitating
students who had excelled at
their SSC exams in March 2023 and one of them
happened to be Moriah, the daughter of Ms
Fonseca. It so happened that Ms Fonseca was also felicitated at the
AGBM on officially completing 20 years in service at The Rosary High
School (unofficially, she had been a teacher for four additional
years before confirmed as a teacher).
Photos
of Ms Fonseca and Moriah being felicitated by the PTA were posted in
the Faleiro family group which, incidentally, had been set up by
Valmiki. He promptly forwarded the photo with the message:
“Moriah,
daughter of my niece (and godchild), Marjalisa da Graca Fonseca,
teacher at The Rosary High School. Saw you and
thought of sending.”
I
made it a point to mention that Ms Fonseca is a really good teacher.
As always, Valmiki was quick to reply:
Thank you. Glad you think she is a good teacher.
I went a step further:
Besides
being really good in teaching, I have appreciated her for being
honest and upright. She is not hesitant to point out issues, when
they need to be raised. I have thanked her for that.
Regards.
Valmiki appreciated the compliments:
Wow, that's nice. Didn't know my niece could be so appreciated!
* * *
I would have regular telephonic conversations with Valmiki over the
last three years. The
topics would range from the nickname associated with his family, the
compulsion to change his schools on account of an unusual
indiscretion, his book ‘Soaring Spirit’ – 450 years of Margao’s
Espirito Santo Church’, the Goan army officers, details for some of
my reports in The Goan newspaper, the affairs and controversies in
the area. And much more.
I have been left thinking about Valmiki following his shocking and
untimely demise, and
wonder what might have been the reason for Dr
Jose Manuel and Olga Sa Faleiro to have chosen to baptise their son
with the names of a legendary thinker (Socrates) and a revered writer
(Valmiki). Perhaps, the two names may have inspired our
eminent writer and researcher to achieve fame in
his own right and time. Of that, there is no doubt.
This tribute is rather lengthy, 4,682 words to be precise. This
number is significant to me. Readers may recall
this number
mentioned previously in this tribute. It is the exact word count of
Valmiki’s initial draft Foreword to my book!
To all those who loved him and all
those who admired him, Socrates Valmiki Faleiro
was simply the Best, v.
END
To
read Valmiki Faleiro’s Foreword to ‘Symphony of Passion’, you may download the free PDF version of the book:
http://melvynmisquita.blogspot.com/2022/06/symphony-of-passion.html
