Why Goans are angry? it seems that Goans are entering the civilization where as small people are not invited to the celebration of life. This feeling uninvited for the celebration of life has compounded over years. It has made us become alienated humans of promise. We have dreams to live for. We have promises to keep. But the we are displaced from Goa day by day and Goa is fast becoming a land of lost dreams for Goa. Without landing into cynicism, Goans have chosen anger to vent their sense of alienation.
It appears that it is development-toxification that is afflicting Goans. Goans seem to be fast entering into what Pankaj Mishra names as the age of anger. The rage of this anger is still to come. But anger of Goans is visible in the way Goans resist development. The kind of development that is forced on Goa is alienating Goa and exiling Goans in their own homeland. It seems that all the we stand for as Goans is falling apart. The Goan credo is crumbling down. Our politics, commerce and development appear to be responsible to this apparent fall from grace.
Goans do not want to be the losers of history. We do not wish to be left behind by the so-called development. Development has become toxic and Goans are up in arms against it. There are dangers of this anger trap but when the very survival of Goa and Goan-ness is at stake what other options do Goans have ? It is an angst of the lost future for Goans alive and Goans to come that seems to be driving this state of anger.
Goans do not wish to provincialize Goa and do not want to let Goans be provincialized too. Such provincialization attacks the honor and pride of Goa and Goans. Provincializing Goa and Goans reduce Goa into an economic land of milk and honey that is then the exploited to create wealth. Such a provincialization or reduction of Goa is insensitive to complex process of goanising that has created Goa and Goans over a long time.
Goans cannot numb themselves over the present of their development. Development has a janus head. It is displacing Goans while others seem to make hay while the sun is shining in Goa. Therefore, the anger that we are witnessing is a fruit of political awareness. When Goans feel that beloved Goa is on the verge of death and Goan society is sliding into inequality, and Goans terribly angry about it.
Anger is a mode of resistance to this felt disappearing of Goa into a blackhole that is presented as development. The toxic development forced on Goa is brewing discontent and is a time bomb that might explode in the days to come. Here, there is no attempt to do a genealogy of this discontent. Latest one can remember is the time of GBA agitation which was quicky respected by the powers that be at that time and change was initiated to appease the anger of the people.
But as days went by the land of Goa came to be seen as a powerful economic resource and several Goans and outsiders began to build commerce and tourism around it. When this land-life symbiosis began to breakdown, when villages began to lose their village character, when roads began to see road rage and rash accidents , when our smart city began to look like being built by idiots the smearing anger began to show up. This anger is redoubling with every passing day.
Goans are not against progress but when progress becomes degoanizing what could Goans do ? This is why Goans as chief stake holders of what is imposed as development feel left out and powerless. Goans are tolerant and susegad but to a point. it appears that the boiling point of Goan blood is fast coming and the angry Goan (of today) is pointing toward this horizon.
Some politicians have already embodied this anger. We can see this is Vijay Sardesai of Goa Forward, especially in the legislative assembly and young youth belonging to RG in the villages. Angry Goan is standing for Goa. he / she is deeply angry and discontent and we cannot this anger away. There are those who say that the ruling BJP has sense it. Hence, it is said that BJP has sprouted Revolutionary Goan party to alienate the angry Goans from Congress. This means an effort is made that Congress or even Goa Forward do not win by capitalizing on the anger of Goans.
Last assembly elections in Goa seem to manifest that the anger of Goan was craftily managed with the entry of RG and TMC entering the election foray. This management of anger produced new cycle of anger. Goans do not want to be on the losing side of history. Goans cannot and will not surrender to the desires of the Others who are out to sell Goa and it natural resources. When our Government seems to be submitting to desires of vested interest that is anti-Goa and Goans, Goans cannot but be angry. Goans do not want to uprooted humans. The development forced on Goans is uprooting Goans from Goa and Goan-ness
Goa and Goan-ness are seductive. Tourists and business men are seduced in the way Goa is presented to them . They see Goa and other India and flock to Goa to indulge into abundance that is transgressive and breakaway from their every day life. In some way Goa being other India for Indians becomes a seductive momentary space of being unIndian.
This excessive and transgressive desire of going away from daily life of an Indian is at the heart of our casino driven tourism industry.
We are not yet seeing the rage of anger of Goans. This rage is in the coming. Hence, we have difficult road to travel. But as Goans, we have the challenge to stay calm and work consciously against the escalation of anger. This does not mean that the anger of Goans is not grounded. It is certainly legitimate. Anger is a weapon but it is no solution for to achieve our dreams. Staying calm will enable the fight to save Goa and Goan-ness. Fight for has to go on.
