“Free Konkani from the Shackles of Script”: Dr. Victor Ferrão’s Stirring Call at GULAB Awards

GOA, July 22, 2025 — Dr. (Fr.) Victor Ferrão, Parish Priest of St Francis Xavier Church, Borim, and professor of philosophy at the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol, delivered a thought-provoking keynote address at the prestigious GULAB Awards function held in Margao. In his address titled “Konkani Bhas ani Lipichem Bondon” (Konkani Language and the Shackles of Script), Fr. Ferrão offered a deeply philosophical and linguistic reflection on the Konkani language and the contentious issue of script politics.

Addressing an audience of writers, scholars, and cultural activists, Fr. Ferrão said, “Konkani is not just a language—it is the heartbeat of a people, carried in sound, emotion, and shared memory,” urging the audience to see beyond the lens of script and ideology.

He asserted that Konkani is much more than a tool for communication—it is a rich cultural and emotional inheritance that unites Goans across religious and regional lines.

Drawing from the philosophical insights of Martin Heidegger, Jacques Derrida, and Julia Kristeva, Fr. Ferrão critiqued the dangers of reducing language to a fixed script or singular form. He explained that language is not merely written—it is lived, spoken, sung, and felt. He likened the imposition of a single script to a form of symbolic violence that stifles creativity and silences alternative cultural expressions.

He emphasised how the unique sounds and intonations of spoken Konkani risk being erased when forced into a rigid, standardised script. Using insights from structural linguistics and psychoanalysis, he argued that Konkani’s beauty lies in its plurivocality—its ability to thrive in multiple scripts, including Romi, Nagari, and Kannada. He cautioned that privileging one script over others is not a neutral act, but often a reflection of deeper political and social dynamics.

“In this digital and AI-driven age, no single script can claim monopoly over a living language,” he affirmed. “Let us not reduce Konkani to a museum artefact. Let us allow it to breathe through diversity.”

Fr. Ferrão concluded his address with a passionate appeal for linguistic pluralism and cultural inclusivity. He urged Konkani lovers to move away from narrow definitions of authenticity and instead embrace the language in all its spoken and written forms.

Fr. Victor Ferrão is a priest of the Archdiocese of Goa and Daman who has been teaching philosophy at the Patriarchal Seminary of Rachol, Goa, for the past 25 years. He is also a visiting faculty member at Jnana Deepa Institute of Philosophy and Theology (Pontifical Athenaeum), Pune.

By Br. Malvino Alfonso OCD

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