The beaming face that
rings in the four days of festivities in Goa is that of our beloved King Momo.
As the streets get crowded in the cities for Carnival, everyone waits for him
to declare the four days of festivity open. This honour is given to King Momo,
a charismatic and jolly person with a bright smile. With hordes of people
cheering and falling over each other to get a glimpse of the royal King Momo on
the leading float followed by floats representing the heritage and lifestyle of
Goans, this year the Carnival will be held from February 18 to 21. Goa Tourism
Development Corporation (GTDC) had formed a special committee to select this
year’s King Momo and it is none other than Margao-based Russel D’Souza.
Russel D’Souza has
been selected as King Momo for Carnival 2023 that will take place with parades
in Panjim, Margao, Vasco and Mapusa. With his towering height at 6 feet 6
inches, he will be noticed by everyone in the parade. Born and brought up in
Margao, Russel completed his Hotel Management Diploma from IIAS, Miramar
followed by his industrial training from Leela Palace, Goa. However, the people
in Margao will be familiar with Russel running his 100 year old family business
in the heart of the city, Souza and Sons and also his venture Kyra and Zoe
Restaurant in Margao.
The love for carnival
was always imbibed in him right from his childhood as he never missed the
parades. During his college days, he also participated in a friend’s float for
the parade. However, the idea of participating as King Momo was introduced to
him through his sister-in-law, Svedlanska Pires. “She informed me about the
auditions for King Momo and motivated me to audition in the first year. Since
then, I felt that I had the potential to be King Momo and this was my fourth
year of auditioning which clicked,” says Russel, who loves karaoking.
“I always wanted to
be King Momo. Last year, I was the runner up. The title of being King Momo
brings with it great recognition and an opportunity to showcase your
showmanship for which you are selected by people from all over Goa. For the
auditions, I had to introduce myself and explain why I wanted to be King Momo.
I also had to sing, speak in Konkani and read the decree which is given on the
spot,” he says.
Being King Momo also
comes with the physical challenges of being on the floats standing for long
hours showing no signs of fatigue. Russel is up for the four day challenge, “I
was tested positive for Covid-19 during the pandemic and I lost 20 kilograms. Now,
I go for a walk in the morning and my fitness regime has changed a bit as we
get closer to the date,” says Russel, who loves listening to music from the
80s. He was also trained by tiartist, Humbert Fernandes, who helped him with
his Konkani diction.
While
the plans for what can be expected from King Momo’s float is still not
finalised, Russel is sure that there will be important issues that will be
highlighted through the parade floats. “There will be great floats on various
issues and the parade will definitely have floats on the Save Mhadei issue,”
concludes Russel.