A curly tale with a twist at the end

The sun is about to set on the last day of November and sitting on the beach watching his two daughters play is Edwin Nunes – owner of Curlies, the restaurant in south Anjuna where Indian politician, Sonali Phogat, last partied.

After her death, Curlies was demolished through a Supreme Court judgment and Edwin had to do the Houdini once the police from the Narcotics Cell of Hyderabad started scenting him.

“I don’t think I will be able to get over the pain that I was put through because I am innocent. When Scarlett died more than a kilometer from my restaurant, they tried to implicate me. When Sonali died, I was made a culprit and now because some people allege that drugs were sold on the beach below my restaurant, I am accused,” is how Edwin’s story line begins.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) handed over the Phogat case to the CBI. The Narcotics Cell of the Hyderabad police arrested Edwin because he was alleged to be supplying drugs to people arrested there.

“I went into hiding when I became aware that the Hyderabad police were looking for me because I wanted to see what was to happen to Steve D’Souza who they had arrested before,” justifies Edwin when asked to explain his disappearance.

Sitting alone on the beach with his two daughters, Edwin now oversees the operations of his fishing boats as he prepares to start one of his restaurants. “I started with four tables in 1976 and had 140 before the restaurant was closed,” discloses Edwin as he throws in the news that he is expecting his sixth child.

“In Hyderabad, I was kept in solitary confinement with just a small crack for a window. I was in one room and Steve was in the other and we used to meet once a day in the morning when I used to take my walk,” remembers Edwin.

The prison in Hyderabad, according to Edwin, was super clean because every night around 200 or 300 people were brought in for drunk driving and they were tasked with keeping the prisons clean.

Success comes with a price and for Edwin that price was days in jail with the accusation that he peddled drugs.

“I was told by the officer that someone arrested had informed them that drugs were sold on the beach next to my restaurant. The beach does not belong to me so how could the accusation stick on me?” questioned Edwin.

Edwin believes that he can come back to be a star in the restaurant business not just through his restaurant Curlies, but any other, because of his hard work; his abilities to give his best and get the best from his staff.

“I had 40 people in the kitchen and I was with them from beginning to end because I know the benefit of being there. I started working from a young age and I have the power to bounce back,” believes Edwin.

The night owl from south Anjuna is convinced that players from outside the State who invested here were the reasons for his downfall though he could not arm his claims with facts.

“Outside players have thrown in a lot of money in Goa and are not getting their returns. They were financial losers compared to me and hence I was made a target along with quite a few other Goans,” claims Edwin.

As the sun sets and the full moon begins to glow on the beach, Edwin says it is his tryst with God that has saved him from a meltdown, though with no clarity as to why he was being singled.

“They kept re-arresting me after I was being released on bail and they need to file a charge sheet within 90 days. I don’t know whether they have done that yet but I am not scared,” says Edwin as he rewinds into his story of gains through pain.

With the closure of Curlies, there is sparse movement of traffic in south Anjuna. For a change, tranquility prevails until Edwin decides on his next curly tale.