By Stephen P D'Souza

Melbourne, Sep 16: It was a perfect day of spring as all roads headed to Collingwood Town Hall, Abbotsford in the city for the ‘Monti Fest Celebrations’ that was held under the banner of Melbourne Konkan Community (MKC) on Saturday, the 5th of September. From 3 in the afternoon, the festivities carried on with much vigour, enthusiasm and gaiety culminating only at 10 at night in what turned out to be a memorable event.

It was a spectacle to see an assembly of hundreds of people from either side of the city dressed in their traditional best, meeting and greeting each other, renewing the spirit of happiness and sharing the joy. It was a perfect occasion to mingle, reliving the tradition of the Mangalorean culture, thousands of kilometres away from their hometown. 

The celebration commenced with the blessing of the new corn and showering of flowers to infant Mary with the background of the evergreen hymn ‘Sakkad Sangatha Melyan, Moryeik Hogalsiya’ followed by Holy Mass in Konkani, presided over by Fr Prakash Cutinha, Parish Priest, St Joseph’s Church, Northcote. In the homily, he highlighted the importance Mother Mary plays in our day to day lives, just like she was the pillar of strength to the Holy Family. The Konkani choir directed by Valerian Menezes enhanced the beauty of the mass with the traditional hymns sung, reverberating in everyone’s ears.

Following the mass, there was a short programme to commemorate MKC’s third anniversary of its formation. Fr Prakash explained how it all started with very humble beginnings from the backyard of member’s Richard and Philomen Fernandes’ residence. With the arrival of the Bishop of Mangalore, an Association was formed that gave an impetus laying a solid foundation and today has come a long way taking the Collingwood Town Hall in the city by storm.

After the tea/coffee break the comperes Stephen P. D’Souza and Priya Andrade took over and thence was a smooth flowing of the extraordinary extravaganza that unfolded. The ‘Welcome Dance’ by Dolly and group set the ball rolling for the competition amongst four cultural groups that followed suit. Joe Sequeira (Cultural Secretary) introduced the judges for the evening - Sonia Aithal, Jake Texeira and Wilson Kalakar.

One could see the fire and passion in the eyes of the participants of the groups ‘Badaga Che Tembe,’ ‘Parzhalchi Taran,’ ‘Manglorechi Mothiyan’ and ‘Godgodo.’ They gave it all they had providing the best - illuminating the hall with the greatest of entertainment on offer that saw a variety of mixtures. In between, the two Sequeiras – Joe and Dilraj, mesmerized the audience with their acting skills. The tiny tots sparkled with their exceptional talents and showed what they were made of.
However, there could only be one winner and with the results down to the wire, Group ‘Godgodo’ walked away with the coveted trophy with Group ‘Manglorechi Mothiyan’ declared as the runners-up. Taking into account the exceptional performance of the groups ‘Parzhalchi Taran’ and ‘Badaga Che Tembe’, were honoured with well-deserved consolation prizes.

During his presidential address, Valerian D’Souza, President of MKC gave an outline and presented the work done by the Association in the current term of the Committee and provided a hint of the future events to come. Jane D’Souza, Secretary thanked the huge audience for their support, the sponsors for their backing, the volunteers and MKC committee members for their hard work in organising the Event and making it a huge success.

The Chief Executive Officer of the City of Yarra (within whose precincts the Collingwood Town Hall falls) Vijaya Vaidyanath brightened up the occasion with her graceful presence and a brief message.
After the grace, followed a sumptuous traditional vegetarian dinner that included vorn and other desserts apt for the occasion. The delicious meal was followed by a game of ‘Marian Housie Housie’ conducted by Stephen D’Souza that had attractive prizes which included a large television set.

It was a perfect co-ordinated display and left people wanting for more. The Baila dance brought down the curtains of what was a fantastic day of fiesta, frolic and fun that carried through the night and lingered long after one left.

Link to more photos of the event - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1220317851327353.1073741841.477056208986858&type=3