Rewriting history

“In the actual story,Antu Barva is shown to be a poor character who owns a small hut in Ratnagiri. He has a few plants of coconut,mango and tamarind and does nothing to make a living. The portrayal of the character begins when Antu meets Pula at a tea stall in Ratnagiri and initiates the conversation in his characteristic Konkani accent,” says Moghe.

The original story narrates how Antu Barva’s first and only venture of starting a shop goes a failure,but since that day people start calling him Antushet sarcastically. “This story is about Antu Barva in his 100th year. But he is still young and enthusiastic. The narration goes like this- my friend and I go to Ratnagiri in search of Antu. While we are expecting a poor,bedridden individual,we are surprised to be led into a huge mansion that belongs to Antu. Sitting on a rich,classy couch,Antu welcomes us in his characteristic style. Looking at the rattled expressions on our faces- he explains to us- Pavna,manasane kala barobar badlave lagte,meaning human beings should change with time,” adds Moghe.

With an unexpected twist in the story,Moghe goes on to depict how Antu’s grandson owns a cyber café and has been involved in outsourcing. While people his age have passed away,one of the grandsons of his friend is selling Kokam in international market as Kokam cola. Antu not only visits London,America and Paris but also takes an adventurous boat ride at the Niagara. “I come from a small village called Koldhe in Konkan and Antu Barva is the personification of Konkan. Despite having been blessed with 720 km of beautiful,virgin beaches,no body realised the potential of this coastal belt of Maharashtra. It was about 10 years ago that the development started and today,Konkan is not only a tourist hub but is also participating in the global race. When Bhai depicted Antu,it was about a Konkani man who belonged to the innocent Ratnagiri. My portrayal is about today’s Konkani man who is willing to take on the world because in one of the sentences Antu says- The world changed. Even then,there were mangoes around,but then we were stupid to not realise what nature had bestowed upon us. Today’s generation is sensible. They know mangoes can be bottled and fate can be changed,” adds Moghe.