Milagrin Kazar zata kit ghô
The peace of the quiet morning is shattered by a piercing whistle; Milagrina already late for work looks around and sees JaqShimão on his bike, grinning widely...
‘O Milagrin, bor mhughô, kamam oita kitt ghô?’
(Hello Milagrin, how are you? Going to work, are you?)
‘Arré JaqShimão, oi, kamam oit mhurê. Tughem khit rhê,
dixti ponna murhê?’
(Yes, JaqShimão, yes I am going to work. And you not
to be seen)
‘Oi, kamam oit mughô? Anv Santan Carpinterabhoglek ass
mughô’
(Yes I too am going to work; I am working with Santan
Carpenter)
‘Aikna tôr tum! Kadde hapri zato murhê oir rabrabonu!’
(You don’t say! Staying up on the roof you will be as black
as a Black man)
‘Aghô, pixea, anv sokoll norré zattam mughô, anv oir
osnam!’
(You mad girl, I stay down dusting the tiles, and I do
not go on the roof)
‘Mak dissolem tum vhodló carpenter zal mhunonu’
(I thought you were a renowned carpenter by now)
‘Nam ghô!’ JaqShimão laughs loudly…’
(No way!)
‘Tuk Santan thó chamthó, kittu dit rhê?’
(That miser Santan, how much does he pay you?)
‘Aghô mak thó atxim ditta’
(He pays me eight hundred)
‘Anni Carpenter, kittu zoddtai rhê?’
(And the carpenters how much do they earn?)
‘Baharaíxim!’
(Twelve hundred)
‘Avois, kesso rhê thó, doddirhô, ordinar’
(What type of ordinary, dirty person is he?)
‘Zaun, assdhi, tughem Casa Portuguesa khex chollota? Bór
chollota mughô?’
(That’s ok, how is your Casa Portuguesa? everything
fine no?)
‘Chollota rhê, deva kurpen!’ ‘Choll, JaqShimão mak
uggot zata’
(Going on, by God’s grace, Ok JaqShimão, I am getting
late)
Milagrin, however makes no mention
of Gabru’s intense dislike for her, always referring to her father, now dead,
as ‘thô Peddó - the grave digger’.
Actually her Father had been a
respected coconut plucker, a well-regarded job in a village, but an accident
had left his leg incapacitated… Of course he could work at other jobs but his
coconut plucking days were over.
Oh! How he missed those days…Landowners pleading with
him,
‘Arrê Rosar, amghem keddom khot rhê…?’ (Hey Rosar,
when are you going to pluck our coconuts?)
And he with bravado,
‘Choia rhê…’ Kam chodd pollam’ (…’Let’s see, too much work’)
His swagger, his strong well
tanned body sliding up and down the coconut trunks and his wife bragging about
how handsome he was… And he was very handsome!
His songs, more of a ditty, up
amongst the palm fronds, criticizing the landowners, singing bawdy songs about
his fellow padekars…What would he not
give to be back high up on a palm tree, sometimes he had such vivid dreams of
his life up there amongst the palm leaves…
Slowly and out of deep
frustration he started drinking at Joãoaghelli gaddi João’s tavern)…Just before
being paralysed and bed ridden he had begun digging graves, the lowest of the
lowest job in a village.
Gabru was malicious, terribly
snide, the only thing he remembered were Rosar’s grave digging days…never once
did he remember his days as a padekar… Although, Rosar had been Gabru’s padekar
for a long time.
That hurt the family, but times
were terrible and the job at Gabru’s house was good because of Margarid bai who
treated Milagrin with love and affection.
‘Aghô, Milagrin, picturak ieai mughô…’ ‘Arré,
ieai murhê, borem Saturday ieai, tuk anv Kopllakore meddtam!
(Milagrin, let us go to a picture, Let’s! On Saturday?
Meet me near the Chapel)
‘Done’
Milagrina, hurries to the house
of Gabriel Sá de Miranda where she works…Gabru has already seen her when she is
at the Chapel…
‘Maldita mulher, não sabe respeitar as pessoas…Quem é
que ela julga que é?’
O pai dela, ..,.um bêbado a beber o seu salário no
gaddi de Juanv, escavava covas no cemitério, a mãe, ganha a vida a trabalhando nas
casas dos outros…
Gente pobre deve ser humilde, más não!!…Esta mulher
sempre com o seu, Gabru Bab…Gabru Bab, e aquele Good Morning!
Mas certo é que a Mãe, Isabel e o
bêbado pai sabiam respeitar , nunca lhe chamavam Baba, sempre Barkara.
(Stupid woman, does not know how
to respect people…Who does she think she is? Her Father, a drunkard, drinking
away his wages in Juanv’s tavern, used to dig graves in the cemetery, the
Mother who earns a living working at other people’s houses…Poor people should
be humble, but no!!...This woman always with her, Gabru Bab…Gabru Bab, and that
darned Good Morning!Truth is, her Mother, Isabel and the drunkard Father knew
how to respect, they never called him Baba, always Barkara)
Sabiam como respeitar, pessoas duma casta superior.
(They knew how to respect people of a superior caste)
‘Gabru Baba, Gabru Baba Good
Morning!’
‘Aghô,
Milagrin, mak tum Baba kiteak mhunt ghô?’
(Milagrin, why do you call me Baba?)
Milagrina is totally taken aback,
what’s this old coot talking about? So totally bewildered…‘Tum Gabru Bab nim?’(Are
you not Gabru Bab?)
‘Oi ghô, matt anv Gabriel Barkar, tuk tughê main kaim
xikoilo nam ghô!’
(Yes, yes I am, but I am Gabru Barkar, your Mother
never taught you anything?)
‘Borem, borem…’ (Okay, okay)
Sick and tired of this
cantankerous old man. Never happy always whining about the good old days when
life seems to have been a Paradise of ‘no theft, windows and doors could be
left open, wide open and no one would have dared rob anything, because there
was fear of the Portuguese police and there was honesty…’
That cantankerous old wretch
could go on and on, ‘about the good old days’ and sing those interminable
Portuguese songs, ‘Encosta tua cabecinha…’, truth be told Margarid bai was also
of the opinion that the good old days were paradise…
Treating her with utter disdain,
so what if she was poor and did not belong to his caste, did she not merit any
respect.
If it had not been for Margarid
bai, she would have left this house a long time ago. Margaridbai, was fun,
teasing her, advising her about her clothes, they discussed their lives when
they had tea together.
Milagrin knew that the old codger
hated when she and Margaridbai had tea together, he said a lot of things,
respect was one of them, and she understood that. But MargaridBai stood her
ground and the tea sessions continued with much laughter…Whilst in the balcão
the old wretch was ‘rangendo os dentes’ (gritting his yellowing teeth)
Come Saturday and Milagrina stood
at the Koppel waiting for JaqShimão, wearing her pink salwar over brown tights,
she did look nice.
JaqShimão arrives on his
rattfatti motor bike. Milagrin hops on it and away they go…
‘Kessom picture rhê JaqShimão, kesso mar poddla rhê thé
choraku’
(What a film JaqShimão, what a beating, the thief got)
‘Choram marru podpacho, teghê tennem poixe chollonaim
ghô?
(Thieves should get a good beating, didn’t he rob his
money?’)
‘Oi rhê, matt kesso mar, rogot vanvtalem? Mak murhê
tegelle churchurhê dissolem…’
(I agree, but what a beating, blood was flowing, do
you know I felt sorry for him)
‘Tum kit gho, pix zallam, chora churchurhê?’
(Are you mad? Pitying the thief?)
‘Tej padd poddum, att sang ghô, tuk haupa kit zaiem?’
(Go to hell with him; now tell me, what do you want to
eat?’
‘Bombay Café borem…’
(Bombay Café is good?)
‘Kit kathollem?’
(What do you want to eat?)
‘Arrê cutlet panv, tej barbor salad ditai murhê ani ek
chav.’
(Cutlet bread, they give some salad with it too and a
tea’)
‘Waiter don plate cutlet panv lau rhê, aur don chau!’
JaqShimão says with great panache.
(Waiter get two plates of cutlet bread and two teas)
‘Muj maim, tum Hindi uloit murhê…Avois!’
(Holy Mother, you speak Hindi JaqShimão? Holy Mother!)
‘Matxi, matxi anv Bombay asta mughô!’
(A little bit, here and there, I was in Bombay for a
while)
A shrill whistle rents the air…
‘Arré JaqShimão, tum murhê…’
(Hi, JaqShimão it is you…)
‘Aghô Milagrin , ek sang ghô maka, tuk konnem choilam
mughô… Tum Lesteraghelle baikacher zum, zum konn ghellolem?’
(Milagrin, tell me something, somebody saw you…You
went off on Lester’s mobike, zum, zum)
‘Arré JaqShimão, thó atam eila botir sonn, sang rhé tum
nenno thé tollea bandhar kesso ott hatta…Ten muddlem…’coming Milagrin’
(Oh JaqShimão, he has just come down from his ship,
tell me now, don’t you know how very hot it is on the Tollem Bandh…He said,
‘coming Milagrin’?)
Anvem soddsorit muddlem , ‘yes, yes coming’…Anni,
teghelli bike, foreign murhê, zum, zum konn oita! Kittu fast rhê!
(I immediately said, yes, yes, coming’ and his bike is
a foreign one it just goes zum, zum so very fast)
Jaqshimão could hear no more…
Slowly more and more rumours
started flowing past JaqShimão’s ears.
‘Aghô Milagrin, tum Modgovam Lesterabarbor dishti
pollolem…’
(Milagrin you were seen in Margão with Lester!)
‘Arré JaqShimão, Lester mhunpa lagolo, Milagrin coming
for picture?’
(Lester said, Milagrin coming for a picture?)
‘Anvem oi mhunlem, kesso picture rhê JaqShimão’ a love
story…’
(I agreed, what a picture JaqShimão, a love story)
Lesteran mak mhunllem ‘want to have a bite Milagrin?’
(Lester said, want to have a bite Milagrin?)
‘Bite? Bite kit rhê Lester,…Kesso smile uddoilo rhê
tennem, Milagrina do you want to eat something?’
(Bite?, bite? What’s a bite Lester?...What a smile he
gave me, Milagrina do you want to eat something?)
‘Thô kit ghô inglishu ulloita?’
(So does he speak only English then…?)
‘Tek murhê JaqShimão botir suoim zallea, guestamkore
inglish uloipachi’
(You know JaqShimão, he has gotten used to speaking
English to the passengers on the ship”)
Anvem muddle yes ‘cutlet pav’
(‘Then I said, cutlet pav’)
‘Kutlet pav? No, no we will eat something better…’
‘Maghir murhê JaqShimão ammi Kolvea rosteacher chicken
khailem…Kesso lagota…’
(Then you know JaqShimão, we went to the road leading
to Colva and ate chicken, how delicious it was…’)
Over the days, rumours floated,
carpenters told JaqShimão about Milagrin being seen with Lester frequently…
JaqShimão tried his best to corner her on her way to
Gabru Bakar’s house, he went early, he went late…
There was no Milagrin, he would have asked Margaridbai,
but that cantankerous old Gabru was always sitting in his balcão, looked like
the old crackpot lived in that balcão, snoozing in that armchair, his coffee,
his soup being served there.
Hateful, rude man…Bakar…Living in times when everyone
had been poor…
And then one day, Xavier who always was kind said… ‘JaqShimão
tum oss naka tek sodpak, ten Lesterabarbor sokkanimchem Gabru Babaguer oita. Lester
soddam tek paoita’
(JaqShimão do not go in search of her, she goes to
Gabru Bab’s house early in the morning, Lester drops her everyday)
JaqShimão’s heart broke… He was a
zombie at work…
That evening JaqShimão returned
home in a sad and pensive mood.
‘Kit zall rhê
JaqShimão, dhukest lagott murhê…’
(What’s happened JaqShimão, you look sad…)
‘Khaim nhi ghê…’
(Nothing Mother…’)
After the Rosary and during dinner which seemed to be
very silent because usually JaqShimão regaled his mother with happenings of his
day. How the miser Santan treated everybody, the long hours at work…The eight
hundred rupees given to him whilst Santan pocketed the remaining four hundred!
All this was absent…
‘Kitt zalam rhê baba?’ Asked the Mother
(What’s happened, my son?)
‘Maim tukkhole anv ek favor magotam, Milagrinager voss
anni teghe maink sang anv tecko cazar zaupa sodditam nhunnon.’
(Mother I am going to ask you a favour, go to
Milagrin’s house and tell her Mother that I want to marry her’)
Now, JaqShimão’s Mother Isabel
knew about her son’s deep affection for Milagrin and she too liked her a lot.
But she realized that they were all poor and Lester had shown Milagrin, so many
good things, fed her wonderful things…
‘Oh gharan, oh gharan, konn nhaim ghô?’
(Hello, hello, anybody there)
‘Konnu ghô? Aghô tum ghô? Isabel?’
(Who is there? Oh it is you Isabel)
‘Bormughô Esmerald?’
(You are fine no Esmerald?)
‘Oi ghô…’
(‘Yes I am…)
Isabel talks for a while and then
dives in straight to the issue…
‘Aghô mughe cheddo JaqShimão
tughe chedvakore kazar zaupap soddita mughô’
(My son JaqShimão, wants to marry
your daughter’)
Esmerald, Milagrin’s Mother keeps
quiet for a long time…
‘JaqShimão bhoro burgho, bangar cheddo pun…’
(JaqShimão is a very good boy, heart of gold, but…)
‘Oi anv zan ghô tekkodhe chodd poixé nai munnon…’
(Yes I know he does not have much money…)
‘Mak zahalollem tennem Milagrinakoddé kazar
zaupachem…Mat teghê mon boldolam… Tek thô Lester mell mughô…’
(I wanted, continues Milagrin’s Mother that Milagrin
should marry him, but her mind has changed…She has met that Lester now…)
‘Oi ani Lesterakodde borrhe poixe hai ...’
(And yes, Lester has a great deal of money…)
‘Texkhonn nighô Isabel…Amkodde khaim na mugho, ani thó
Lester tekha ingha thingha borborem dakoita ani borborem khaoitha’
(It is isn’t that way…we do not have much, and Lester
takes her here and there, shows her so many good things and feeds her so many
things too’)
Isabel sighs deeply, she
understands Milagrina perfectly, a chance to see things and most of all to eat
foods she has never eaten before…stekbread., cutlish pav, fallooda, cold
coffee, harabara chicken, things she can never afford to eat…
With a heavy heart she returns
home…
Another excellent one Sonia, love the way you negotiate the languages, your konkani ofcourse is delightful..
ReplyDeleteThank you very much. Really kind of you and I am very glad you enjoy my Konkani. Xasti Konkani!!
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