Saurabh
The write-ups on this page were generated by AI. The photographs and their captions are Saurabh's own, from his archive.

Three festivals in Goa

Heritage First Festival

Run by Heritage First Goa, a not-for-profit. This one is not a stage and a line-up — it is 32 heritage walks and workshops, held across November. You walk the place rather than watch it. The same people run Panjim on a Full Moon, an evening walk of the city's stepped streets led by the historian Jack Ajit Sukhija, and Walking with Icons, which takes you round a Goan legend's village with the legend, and their family, along for the telling.

Bang in the middle of Panjim. And I somehow never noticed it. I should walk the city more often.
Bang in the middle of Panjim. And I somehow never noticed it. I should walk the city more often.
Hole in the wall with Jejus. Right here in Sao Tome. Another little detail that I've never noticed as I walk a
Hole in the wall with Jejus. Right here in Sao Tome. Another little detail that I've never noticed as I walk about the city busily, engrossed in my own head.
Nature is reclaiming so many old Goan houses.
Nature is reclaiming so many old Goan houses.
Portals to magical places. In Quitula, Aldona, North Goa.
Portals to magical places. In Quitula, Aldona, North Goa.
Hard to believe that this is also Siolim.
Hard to believe that this is also Siolim.

Serendipity Arts Festival

The largest of the three by some distance, and free to walk into. Founded in 2016 and held across Panjim over about a week each December, it is an interdisciplinary festival — visual art, theatre, music, dance, film, literature and food, spread over venues along the river. It is organised by the Serendipity Arts Foundation.

Shubhaji visits Goa as part of the Serendipity Arts Festival. Free event. ऐसा सब सिर्फ़ दिल्ली में ही नहीं होतvideo
Shubhaji visits Goa as part of the Serendipity Arts Festival. Free event. ऐसा सब सिर्फ़ दिल्ली में ही नहीं होता है 😀
That's what big hearted artists do - promote upcoming artists in their shows.
That's what big hearted artists do - promote upcoming artists in their shows.
And of course the evening had to finish with this song. Looks like it is only here that the government is impovideo
And of course the evening had to finish with this song. Looks like it is only here that the government is imposing the no-music-beyond-10pm rule. But we must all begin somewhere 🤷🏽‍♂️

Goa Open Arts

The youngest and the most local of the three: artist-led, community-driven, and deliberately built around practitioners who actually live in Goa. It runs biennially at the Old GMC Complex in Panjim, in February, and entry is free. The programme leans contemporary — visual art, performance, film, and participatory workshops rather than headline acts. Details at goaopenarts.com.

No photographs here: there are none of this festival in the archive.