The extravagant ‘Spirit of Goa’ festival has concluded with great fanfare and splendour. The Tourism Department organised the event in the South-Goa region at Colva after a decade, attracting a vast audience who enjoyed a three-day extravaganza filled with music, dance, and authentic Goan delicacies.
The festival kicked off with an inauguration ceremony on Friday at Colva Beach, featuring a variety of products, cuisines, beverages, and handicrafts. The event was graced by the presence of Shri Shripad Naik, Minister of State Tourism and Ports, Shri Rohan Khaunte, Minister for Tourism Goa, and other esteemed dignitaries.
Goa is renowned for its restaurants and home chefs, who offer both global and regional cuisine from different states of India. A total of 44 stalls were set up, tantalizing visitors with mouthwatering local delicacies, cuisines, and beverages.
Renowned Goan artist Lorna Cordeiro enthralled the audience with her melodious Konkani songs, followed by captivating performances by popular bands such as New World (Trio Band) live, Ambe & Ben Evangelist, Pure Magic, Black In White, Altitude, Uncut Diamonds (The Music Academy), Saidutt Kamat, Mercury, 24K, Raagas2Riches, Crimson Tide, and many more. The comedy duo of Ambe & Ben Evangelist added fun and laughter to the evening.
Expressing her joy at performing in South Goa, Lorna Cordeiro said, “I am happy this event has happened in South Goa after a long time. It is really nice and should be carried forward, and the government should host this event every year in South Goa.”
King Momo surprised the audience with his entertaining performance on the second day, and the third day included a workshop for ‘Feni distillation’ for the public, self-help groups’ stalls, cuisines, and Feni testing stalls. The three-day festival also included live band dance performances and comedy shows, with adherence to all government protocols.
Speaking about the event, Shri Rohan Khaunte, Minister of Tourism, IT & EC and Printing & Stationery Goa, stated, “We are delighted to bring back the festival to Colva after a decade, following demands from Saxtti MLAs, including Venzy Viegas, Aleixo Sequeira, Digambar Kamat, and Reginaldo Lourenco, to host a festival in South Goa. This is just the beginning, and you can expect to see many more festivals in Saxtti and the southern regions in the future.”
Over the last three days, the festival witnessed a huge footfall, including the large number of walk-in and walk-out crowds, locals and tourists. On the final day, the audience demanded an extension of the music festival, which speaks to the resounding success of the three-day Spirit of Goa festival.
