Documentary film ‘Guardian Spirits of Goa’, produced by Make It Happen, chronicles the age-old practice of paying obeisance to the protector spirits of the state
CHRISTINE MACHADO | NT BUZZ
Everybody loves a good ghost story. And after they released their first virtual experience, ‘Heritage Hues of Panjim’, the Make it Happen team found themselves receiving a lot of requests to focus their next film on spooky or ghost stories.
Inspired by this the team however decided to opt for a slightly different route.
“We wanted to unearth stories that were unnerving yet transcended reality and core to belief of the people of Goa,” says Maria Victor, the producer of the film and the founder of Make It Happen, which offers heritage trails and walking tours around Goa.
Thus was born the idea of ‘Guardian Spirits of Goa’ which dwells on the concept of tutelary. This practice dates back to the times when humans led hunter-gatherer lives. These beliefs were considered a basic necessity to ensure protection from calamities, disease, etc. And the documentary depicts the evolution of spirit worship and beliefs, their adaptations over millenniums from tribal times, civilisations, dynasties, colonial rule to this day.
Putting the content for the film together however was quite the task.
“Our initial research material was theses published by experts in this field, historical facts, etc. However, visiting a lot of these places that have statues, shrines and temples dedicated to these spirits and interacting with the locals gave us a lot of perspective. Several sessions of brainstorming and onsite discussions led to another maze of stories and made us realise that the topic is really vast and largely unexplored,” says storyteller, Make It Happen, Amreen Shaikh who serves as a researcher and script writer for this project.
“Through our interactions with elders of the villages, temple priests and historians, we learned about tribal rituals, unique adaptations across dynasties and cultures, repercussions owing to challenging the beliefs and the rare offerings made to appease these spirits,” says co-founder, Make It Happen, Murali Shankaran, who was also the producer of the film.
The team ended up having to choose from hundreds of stories about guardian spirits. “The stories eventually selected gave an overall perspective about the prehistoric concept of the tutelary, which continues till date and makes the experience immersive,” says Shaikh.
The entire team was involved in the making of the film and they came away from the project amazed by the inclusivity and harmony in Goa that people have in their beliefs, and the film is also an ode to this
inclusiveness.
“The lores of spirits not only differ between Goa and India, but also within specific villages in Goa. Although there are similarities in practice of spirit worship, there are subtle differences that can be observed depending on the geology, geography and the culture of the region. The major commonality would be to appease the spirit and pay obeisance to ensure protection from an unforeseen
circumstance,” explains Shaikh.
In fact, this belief in guardian spirits continued across various empires and even the Portuguese accepted this in their own way.
“During the colonial era, although people in Goa got converted to Christianity, their belief in tutelary continued. Since the Portuguese did not want the people to practice pre-colonial practices, the missionaries were given the charge to baptise the protector spirits and were given the name ‘Paulist’. These Paulists were considered patrons of St Paul and were patronised by the Jesuits. Paulists have some extraordinary and popular legends associated with them,” says Shaikh.
And while lot of these lores and beliefs in guardian spirits were lost in translation over generations, the practice, says Shankaran, can still be witnessed across the state of Goa. “A keen eye could not only spot this in the hinterlands and villages, but also in the bustling cities of Goa like Panaji,” he says. “The age-old belief system has been passed over generations and will most likely continue to prevail in times ahead.”
(‘Guardians Spirits of Goa’ will have their next film screening on February 6, 7: 30 p.m. at Island House, Divar Island)
