Bonderam Festival

This year Goa’s Bonderam festival will be celebrated on August 24 at Divar Island in the state, stated a release. The annual festival is celebrated on the fourth Saturday of August. Dilip Parulekar, Minister for Tourism, Woman & Child Development, Government of Goa, said, “We are happy to promote this annual festival on the Divar Island which showcases our rich Goan history and culture. There will be colourful décor, flag parades, floats, music and revelry all over the island during this time. We welcome all tourists to experience this traditional festival.”

The name Bonderam originates from the Portuguese word ‘Bandeira’, which means flag. The otherwise laid-back island of Divar comes alive on the day of the Bonderam festival. The day begins with a flag parade from the main Divar junction, which is accompanied by a brass band. After this, the Bonderam festival is officially declared open. Later in the day there is a fancy dress competition followed by the traditional float parade and a live musical performance featuring the famous music bands of Goa.

During the Portuguese rule there were frequent disputes between the villagers on the Divar Island over property issues. Thus, the Portuguese introduced a system by putting up flags to demarcate the boundaries.