Goa on the surface is a personal project exploring the culture and daily life of Goa, a city on the western costal belt of the Indian subcontinent.

 

I had moved to Goa about 6 months back and was quite intrigued by their distinct culture and influences. After some reading I understood that a significant part of their culture is an amalgamation of Goan and Portuguese culture, who colonised Goa from 1650s to 1960s. 

 

I have tried to take inspiration from local Goa and capture aspects of daily life like work, chores of women, lifestyle, architecture, clothing etc. 

This is a Goan Porto villa with its influences from old style Portuguese architecture. 

 

Goan houses borrowed design elements from Portuguese architecture and started adopting more open spaces like verandas and balconies facing the street, where people met and gossiped.

 

The houses were also designed to withstand heavy monsoon and hot summers

An other illustration of a Goan window in these Porto villas. These windows are often big in size to allow the smooth passage of air in summers. 

This is a Goan bike taxi. The lack of public transport has given opportunities to these pilots, who use their bike as a taxi to take people around. 

A women making use of the sun and drying cloths in the backyard of her house. 

Because of the tropical conditions, most men can be spotted topless at least in the comfort of their homes. Here is one illustration of a man enjoying his morning tea. 

Front yard at noon, Goa. 

This street dog stays very close to my house. He lives with an old couple and has the best of both worlds, a secure home and the freedom of streets.

Banana tree, Goa 

An old lady in red at a jazz concert, Goa 

“There were once over 20 beetle cars in Mapusa”, an old man said proudly, “But now there are very few left” he continued... 

Well, do leave your comments about what you think of these illustrations! Thank you :)