Participants of the Shigmo parade dressed in colouful attire
Picture Courtesy: shigmofestival.org
With the Carnival festivities having just ended in Goa, another period of festivities – ‘Shigmo’ – has kicked off. Shigmo is one of the most vibrant festivals, celebrated by the Goa’s Hindus across the state. It is a festival of spring and is celebrated in two variants – ‘Dhakto Shigmo’ (small Shigmo) and Vhadlo Shigmo (big Shigmo).
During this festival, several villages and regions of Goa celebrate unique traditional practices and rituals. With gulal, gade and endless interesting aspects of Shigmo coming to light, this festival is definitely a one-of-a- kind festival, celebrated in the state of Goa.
While villages all over Goa celebrate Shigmo, a parade is held in major cities and towns of Goa as part of the festivities. The first parade is held in Ponda. This year, the festival will begin in Ponda on March 19, Mapusa on March 20, Vasco on March 22, Panjim on March 26 and Margao on March 27.
During the parade, the streets of Goa are all decked up, with bright saffron décor to usher in that Shigmo mood.
A tableaux depicting a scene from mythology
Picture Courtesy: shigmofestival.org
A display of rich mythology
The streets of Goa come alive with a a variety of tableaux, created and designed by various groups or mandals, who participate in the float parade. The themes of these tableaux are largely centered around mythology, with tales and stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata colourfully and creatively displayed through the tableaux.
Besides, the tableaux, you will find participants colourfully robed in costumes of various characters, in themes ranging from mythology, India and Goa.
Folk dance and music
You will also find people dressed in traditional attire, donning dhotis and mundashe. And, it isn’t just the men folk, who participate in the parade, but also the women. Revellers also use several local musical instruments like the ‘Dhol’, ‘Tasso’, ‘Kansalem’ ‘Ghoom’ etc to provide a musical combination, termed as ‘Romat’ or ‘Romatmel’. Folk dances like Talgadi, Tonyamel, Goff, etc. are specially performed during Shigmo. People can also be seen holding unique, colourful umbrellas (sontriyo) and merrily dancing along with them.
People move to the beats of traditional musical, and the synchronicity and rhythm is something that will more than amaze and is definitely worth watching.
You can see, both, the young and the old, women as well as men, participate in the Shigmo parade in large numbers. Over the years, people have strived hard to keep the originality and essence of Shigmo alive, thus showcasing Goa’s rich cultural heritage.
Details:
March 19, 2022 in Ponda
March 20, 2022 in Mapusa
March 22, 2022 in Vasco
March 26, 2022 in Panjim
March 27, 2022 at Margao