The Evolution of Community - Devdasis of Goa by Mario Cabral e Sa

Some of the devdasis of Goa managed to use their traditionally inherited skill as musicians to build illustrious careers. More significantly, the community of former devdasis has not been totally decimated - a portion exists as an identifiable and organised community, many of its members, men and women, being high achievers in various fields. How this transformation took place needs to be studied in depth. This article provides a few glimpses of their past and present.

THE devdasis of Goa were who sat in the temples close to the deity encouraged by their parents to learn traditionally connected to the men of the and had semipriestly duties like fanning singing and dancing from the kalavants. Gowd Saraswat Brahman community. the image, carrying the earthen lamps and The updasis, who were concubines, How this connection came about is a lighting them for worship; and temple were at risk of being pushed into matter of dispute. According to servants like bhandis. prostitution. Devdasis too sometimes Malbarao Sardesai, well known Malbarao Sardesai claims that his got involved in nonmarilal unions with pkhawaj, harmonium and flute player, ancestors kept the kalavants free not rich pilgrims, priests, local traders and and scion of a leading Gowd Saraswat enslaved. Saraswat girls were landlords, and in the colonial period, Brahman family, the sometimes with British Saraswats came to Goa with Literal translation of original caption: “Gentile woman officers. their artisans, servants, breastfeeding child.” The woman is a devdasi in a temple. The Saraswats had soldiers and devdasis (slaves contrived a system known as to god) and updasis (slaves sessa whereby devdasis were to men). However, Dr T. Gune wedded to the temple or the former director of Goa god, before puberty. The Historical Archives, and a sessa consisted of an offering member of the Karad by an original settler of the Brahman community, which village, of a betel fruit pierced has a longstanding feud with by a sword and a coconut. the Saraswats, claims that the Often, the man who made the dasis already existed in Goa offering earned the right to when the Saraswats, on the enter into a union with the run from Muslim forays in the girl, which, however, took north, migrated southwards place only after she attained to Goa. It is possible that the puberty, as in any child devdasi structure already marriage. existed in Goa and got The temple priest also attached to the Saraswats performed a marriage when they settled there. ceremony for the girl, using There were different kinds the usual wedding ritual. A of devdasis attached to the woman, usually an older Saraswats: among them were devdasi, officiated as the the kalavants (from the root bridegroom in the ceremony. kala or ait) who were singers Her name was entered in the and dancers; the bhavinis records as the husband. As

NUMBER 56, 1990 25 in other systems of child marriage, at not clear. Nor is it clear how the Gomantak Maratha Samaj, thus creating puberty there was another ceremcmy, occupations and lifestyles of the for it a caste status. The inclusion of the known as hath lavni (touching by the community changed in the twentieth word “Maratha” in their assumed title is hand) which generally culminated in century. a pointer. Most Saraswats dismiss the sexual consummation. Me Kon (Who am I?), the community’s Maratha identity as a fad. Within the devdasi community, the autobiography of Rajaram Painginkar, the They argue that the original devdasis women sang and danced and the men illegitimate son of a Brahman widow were certainly not Marathas. But just as played the mridang, the tabla and the turned devdasi, recounts how he started Dr.Ambedkar tried to get the scheduled harmonium. The children of devdasis his life as a destitute but ended up a castes a new status by encouraging them were known as chheduanle or offspring prosperous mine owner. The book to embrace Buddhism, a casteless of girls. Even when women of the unfortunately indicts his own community, religion, the creators of the Gomantah community got married legally, their especially the women, as immoral, and Maratha Samaj opened for the legitimate children were still labelled therefore it annoyed the community. But community new possibilities of identity. chedduanle or even cheddianle, the it does give some glimpses into the trauma They could, for instance, migrate to offspring of prostitutes. suffered by members of the community Bombay, adopt Marathi as their language, However, devdassis actually had a who were looked down upon by the and seek their fortunes in the world of different legal status from prostitutes. others. the performing arts for which many of They were exempted from the enrolment Painginkar, along with others like him, them had the skills and basic training. and licensing system imposed on launched a crusade to abolish the sessa There, in a big city, their children could prostitutes by the Portuguese rulers of system of women’s betrothal and go to school without being haunted by Goa. As long as a devdasi lived in the surrender to the temple. Supported by a their past. temple precincts, she had the status of a legislator, Prof Narain Bandodkar, a Bill According to a report com Dr handmaiden of god; only if she fielded was introduced in the Goa legislative Germano Correia, professor of the Goa in the township as a prostitute did she council in 1930 and the sessa was Medical School in 1936, an average lose that status. abolished by law. devdasi in those days could earn a Exactly when and how some After its abolition some reformist substantial amount over five to six years. devdasis got involved in prostitution is members renamed the new community the The women who were kept by big Literl of Original caption in portuges: Dancing girls, and mridang players playing sarangi”

26 MANUSHI traders, nawabs, rajas and highranking to give up secular music. Thereafter, she Meenakshl, film actresses. British officers, had an economic base sang only devotional songs. Even more remarkable are the number to build a new future. According to the 1904 census, the of achievers outside the world of The Gomantak Maratha Samaj community numbded about 20,000. performing arts - the internationally formed a ladies’ association, wherein Today, they are about 150,000 to 200,000. famous gynaecologist, the late Dr. V. women of the community who had taken Yet, such a relatively small community Shirodkar, the late criminal lawyer Sushil to other means of earning and were has produced a disproportionately large Kavlekar, the novelist Chandrakant prospering, taught less well-off devdasis number of high achievers who have Kaokadkar, the late air marshal new skills, conducted literacy classes for excelled in their fields. In the performing Mulgaokar, editor S. Mulgaokar, hoteher them in Marathi, and encouraged them aits, Murarba Pednekar, said to be the Ajit Kerkar, the late Telco chairman to send their children to school. The creator of the sursingar; Dinanath S.Mulgaokar, Goa’s first chief minister former devdasis contributed liberally to Mangeshkar, a great singer and father of Dayanand Bandodkar. the Samaj, and the Portugese Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhonsle, A remarkable feature of the Gomantak government also gave the Samaj grants. living legends of song, and also of their Maratha Samaj is the immense pride of According to Malbarao Sardesai, brother, the film director Hridaynath; many members in themselves. Unlike some Goan kalavants became prominent Labhaskar Parvatkar, described by those from south India, many performing in the Jaipur gharana. ln Assa Ashe Dneshwar Nadkarni as a “miracle in artists and other high achievers do not Maaza Gomantak (Such Was Our rhythmics”; the only woman playwright try to hide their origins or forget their Gomantak) by Gopalkrishna Bhobe, the of her time, Hirabai Pednekar; the past. Rather, they regard it as worth women are said to have been taught by incomparable singers Kesarbai Kerkar remembering and acknowledging. Vithobanna Hadap and Anantbuva of and Mogubai Kurdikar, both pupils of Recently, the Samaj celebrated its golden Gwalior. Saraswati Bandodkar and Alladiya Khan, and Mogubai’s daughter, jubilee, and soon after, the birth centenary Hirabai Bandodkar, both kalavants, Kishori Amonkar; Sridhar Parsekar the of the late Dr Mulgaokar, a famous migrated from Goa and made a name for violinist; Mudhukar Pednekar the surgeon who belonged to the themselves nationally. harmonium player; Jyotsna Bhole and community. Kesarbai Kerkar, born in Keri, a Goan Ashalata Wadgaonkai, Marathi theatre Illustrations from India Portuguesa village in the precincts of the temple, in actresses; Ratnaprabha, Jayashree and by A. Lopes Mendes, 1986. the area set apart for devdasis, developed into an artist who, in the words of Ashok Marriage Market D. Ranade, in On the Music and We Musicians of Hindoostan, “was one of are commodities those artists who exercised an furniture on sale. undisputed sway over at least two Some elegant generations of musicians in this century.” made of ebony, Mogubai Kurdikar was another case of intricately carved; a success story in the world of music. others She transmitted her heritage to Kishori plain, bare, Amonkar, her daughter, who is today a not even polished widely acclaimed singer. standing That the rise to the top of their awaiting vocation was often more difficult for endlessly these women because of their past, IS reluctantly indicated in the life of Anjanibai biding our time Malpekar, a very beautiful and talented for the right bidder. singer. Trained under Nazir Khan To be sold Bhendibazarwale, she was in great demand as a singer, but it depressed her by the very hands that had carved that her beautiful looks often drew more us, attention from men than did her voice. to our customers Once, after a particularly stressful recital, at a bargain she lost her voice and was unable to sing - our future for years, until a holy man, Narayan to decorate Maharaj of Kedgaon, sent her a prasad someone else’s house. or blessing. She recovered but decided - Archana Lakhera

NUMBER 56, 1990 27