She is a mother of six children and 19 grandchildren, but most importantly she is a woman who made them all understand their roots and the love for the language, Konkani, no matter which part of the world they live in. Nonagenarian Antoinette Regina Anna Fernandes vividly recollects her precious memories of being a young girl in the village of Salvador-do-Mundo, to a young bride that travelled with her husband, Bernard to Africa and returned to Goa for a decade before making it to the third continent of Europe to join her husband in the UK with her children. Now living a peaceful life with her son, Marius in Divar, Antoinette was surprised when her 92nd birthday included the release of the book, ‘Across Three Continents: The Legacy of Antoinette Fernandes.’
Mother of Goa’s Festakar, Marius, the 68 pages of the book are brimming with stories that date back to the 1940s with canoe rides and simple living on the islands in Goa with sepia and coloured photographs spanning the three continents of Asia, Africa and Europe. Married in 1958, she recollects her day as a bride, “We got the dress and everything for the wedding made in the village. What I remember most is taking the vhoddem from Saloi to Old Goa all dressed up,” reminisces Antoinette. Authored by Nicole Suares, the book features contributions by those whose life was influenced by her, her favourite songs and recipes.
The book was Marius’ brainchild and has been well received by people from around the world through social media. “In Goa, it's imperative that written documentation has to be done as everything is oral. With so much migration nothing will be left in Goa. She is perhaps the first to bring a religious pilgrimage to Goa in 1987. She brought about 40 English people to Goa on a pilgrimage to Divar Church, Old Goa Church and then put them in Colva. We are Catholics from Sacred Heart Church in England which had very few Goans. She filmed the whole thing in 1987. That is documentation,” says Marius.
He was happy when Nicole took up the challenge of writing the book. “She spent one year with mom. Her routine is to read your newspaper first. Then talk and go for lunch and siesta. Nicole had to get used to the timings to come and talk to her.”
Antoinette was instrumental in organising the first tiatr in the UK for Goans and that too of one of the most renowned tiatrists of that time, Alfred Rose on March 9, 1986 in Harrow. “I wanted them to speak Konkani at home so they wouldn’t forget our language, and they could use English outside,” says Antoinette, who gave utmost importance to Konkani.
“We all knew Konkani from a young age and the hymns and songs made our stay in Goa easier. When we went to England, we were the only family to speak Konkani. The club was just formed called Goa Overseas Association (GOA). People from Africa had just arrived and the children didn't know Konkani, so in our own house, she used to teach all these kids basic Konkani and songs. Till today, those people remember her saying, in the 70s, she used to teach them languages and connected them to Goa actually,” adds Marius.
Nicole shares her experience of penning the book, “Marius informed me that he wants to document his mother’s memories and experiences in a little booklet because she has lived across three continents. I've been meeting her for the past many years, and I've always sat with her and listened and she's the first one to share her story. The book is like a family heirloom, to document her legacy for the entire family, everywhere across the continents. It also serves as a reminder of their contributions that they have made, not only in the lives of the family, but either to society or to a wider audience. People have sent in their stories about her and how she has touched their lives.”
She adds, “We had to source a lot of photographs from her albums. And then for this process, we also discovered her scrapbooks, which she started when she was in the UK. She would cut pieces of news, whether if it was regarding to the Royals, whether if it was, other information regarding to Goa. She did a few jobs when she was there. The last, she started in her later years, she ran a cafe also called the Leicester City Cafe for a few years, which then she stopped and she started giving Konkani tuitions.”
Gwendolyn de Ornelas, the publisher of the book, was influenced by the life of Antoinette in many ways. “Marius made a mention to me that a book had to be written a year ago. I was really thrilled because meeting Donna Anna Regina, I have transformed my life. I am so indebted to her for teaching me so much, not only about Goan culture, traditions but how our communities behave and music, and Goan cuisine, especially the forgotten dishes. I said to him that I will gladly offer to publish the book,” says Gwendolyn.
She was so inspired by this book that she now plans a book for her father. “My father, Zito De Ornelas Rodrigues Gomes was a legendary musician, and perhaps formed one of the first band in Goa after liberation, called Tuna Los Coimbranos which was formed on August 15, 1962. The band members included Zito de Ornelas Rodrigues Gomes (acoustic guitar), late Norman de Ornelas (Lead Guitar), Andre Dourado (Mandolin), late Mario Gago (Drums)
and Jose Fernandes (Violin) and performed at Clube Nacionale, Clube Gaspar Dias, Clube Vasco de Gama etc. My father was inspired to form the band from groups that came to Goa from Ecuador and other countries back in the 1950s,” she says.
“It is important to document these stories. It is very important that you know what your great-grandfather’s name was and what their profession was and which villages they visited, what they did. Hardly any of us have that information. So it is very important to document all this for the future generations,” she concludes.