Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SB)
Mangaluru, Feb 6: Kavita Trust on Saturday February 5 organised a rememberance meet in memory of Konkani Sardar Basti Vaman Shenoy at World Konkani Center here.
Addressing the gathering, Kavita Trust founder and poet Melvyn Rodrigues said, "We have passed a month without Basti Vaman Shenoy in our midst, yet we can still hear his voice in the pillars of World Konkani Center. We can experience his presence by remembering his signature smile and words. He was one of the ardent supporters of Kavita Trust and he was a regular guest at Kavita Fest. He continues to be with us in spirit, and his enthusiasm for excellence in Konkani and dreaming big things for Konkani continues to guide and inspire us."
Recalling his days with Basti Vaman Shenoy, Konkani poet Titus Noronha said, "In my childhood I used to visit Basti regularly at Syndicate Bank office in Moodbidri. He was the manager there. Basti sanctioned a loan to our new dream home without any technical hassles. Once on Christmas Day he visited our home too. After his promotion to divisional manager he was transferred to Mangaluru and at the time I was working in a shipping company in the city. Thereafter our friendship became stronger and we visited each other daily.
"Once I introduced him to Melvyn, who was then the secretary of Konkani Bhasha Mandal. He made him the member of Konkani Bhasha Mandal. It was then that he was attracted towards Konkani language and culture. Slowly he himself became completely dedicated to Konkani activities. For his visionary thoughts on Konkani and relentless work to promote and preserve the language and its literature, he earned the title of 'Sardar' of Konkani. He was a big brother for us, and will continue to be," he added.
Expressing his thoughts on Basti Vaman Shenoy's visionary activities in Konkani, writer and member of Kavita Trust William Pais said, "Basti lives with us in the form of 'time'. He did not write much in Konkani nor did he perform much in Konkani art forms. But still Basti is called the big brother of Konkani. To know why this is so, we should read the history of Konkani. He was the first person to build a temple for Konkani. He was the first person to dream of a generation highly educated in Konkani. The scholarship project of WKC was the brainchild of Basti Vaman Shenoy. He bought the entire Konkani community together without any discrimination in terms of dialect, region and culture."
He also appealed to the WKC to construct a statue of Basti Vaman Shenoy and exhibit his belongings for public.
A brochure containing three poems written by Melvyn Rodrigues, Gourish Vernekar and Smitha Shenoy on Basti Mam was distributed on the occasion. A special issue of ARSO monthly containing detailed Information on Basti Vaman Shenoy's Konkani mission was released by WKC president Nandagopal Shenoy, in the presence of publisher H M Pernal and editor Wilson Kateel.
A video clipping which had Basti Vaman Shenoy's speech delivered during Kavita Fest held at Thumbay Gardens in 2013 was shown to the audience.
Prior to the meeting, members of Kavita Trust and followers of Basti Vaman Shenoy paid tribute to him by offering flowers to his portrait.