The second edition of the Heritage First Festival 2025, organised by the not-for-profit collective Heritage First Goa (HFG), got underway on Friday (November 14) at Panaji’s Azad Maidan, marking the beginning of a three-week-long celebration of Goa’s living, cultural and built heritage. The Festival was inaugurated in the heart of the state capital in the presence of experienced resource persons or pilots who are expected to lead the 41 walks and workshops that are part of its state-wide programming.
At the inauguration ceremony, guest speakers, including senior journalist and author Sandesh Prabhudesai, writer and historian Dr Maria Lourdes Bravo da Costa Rodrigues and former academician and award winning writer Shylendra Mehta, shared some of their intriguing memories about Panaji over the decades and how the city has evolved over time.
Rodrigues, who spoke majorly about her memories of the Central Library, shed light on the evolution of the library and how it functioned as a meeting point for all kinds of people. She also recounted her memories of the city as a child, “I am a third generation Panaji-resident. The planned city was built on the same lines as that of Lisbon, with squares and the river promenade. The roads were not named after people, but after emotions and other places,” said Rodrigues
Sandesh Prabhudesai, who spoke in Konkani pointedly did so as “We speak about heritage, but we often forget about the heritage of language.” Prabhudesai recounted how the locality around the Azad Maidan, especially the erstwhile Cafe Prakash and Varsha Bookstore, and how they played a role in creating movements, “We would start at Varsha Bookstore, reading the papers and move to Cafe Prakash to discuss current issues and then to the TB Cunha Hall upstairs, where meetings would be held to plan agitations at the Azad Maidan. So this area played an important role in most public movements,” recalled Prabhudesai. He also said that it is not only about preserving heritage, we also have to create it, citing the Charles Correa-designed Kala Academy.
Shylendra Mehta who was born and raised in Panaji, shared notes on the life of a commoner in the city in the bygone era, and ended with a poem on the Mandovi River by Pandurang Bhangi.
The festival features a diverse lineup of walks and workshops curated by artist Subodh Kerkar, environmentalist Kilian Hughes, ecologist Katrina Fernandez and architect Pritha Sardessai, among others, who will hold forth on various aspects of Goa’s heritage, including exploring the khazan ecosystems of Chorao, experiencing night trails in Panaji and village walks in Saligao. Other activities include a Caves Walk in Chicalim and a River Island Walk – São Jacinto guided by Cyril Fernandes, a petroglyphs workshop at Usgalimal in Rivona by Onkar Kshirsagar.
Workshops add a creative, hands-on dimension to the festival, allowing participants to engage directly with Goa’s living crafts and traditions. The Festival’s schedule incorporates hands-on sessions on Kaavi art with Darpana Athale and learning interesting facets of the traditional Kunbi weave with Mahalaxmi Bhobe. A poetry walk led by Meera Ganpathi through Parra’s fields and the community kitchen in Chorao hosted by Amreen Sheikh are also a part of the festival’s programming.
Founded by heritage advocates Heta Pandit, Jack Ajit Sukhija and Snigdha Manchanda, Heritage First Goa continues its mission to highlight the influences that have shaped the state’s identity. The opening event drew a wide cross-section of participants, including students, heritage enthusiasts and local residents, reflecting the growing interest in Goa’s cultural and natural legacy.
“It’s encouraging to see people of all ages come forward to experience aspects of Goa’s heritage that may even come as a surprise to long-time residents. This Heritage First Goa Festival 2025 is about sparking awareness and curiosity in our collective past and using that awareness to preserve it,” said HFG co-founder Heta Pandit.
In a unique synergy, participants and local patrons have pitched in with support, adopting individual heritage walks; a model that helps sustain operational costs and strengthens community involvement in heritage preservation.
Each event is limited to small groups to ensure quality engagement and respect for public spaces. Tickets are priced at Rs 750 per session, with advance registration mandatory. With its mix of expert-led storytelling, community workshops and cultural immersion, the festival promises to make the coming weeks a memorable journey through Goa’s layered history.
For more information and bookings, visit https://heritagefirstgoa.com; follow @heritagefirstgoa on Instagram or call +91 90216 62237.
