San Fernando East Secondary honours Junior Bisnath

FOR close to 30 years, Junior Bisnath has paid tribute to people who influence and shape the landscape of TT.

On Fantastic Friday, San Fernando East Secondary School, Pleasantville, chose to return the favour by honouring the Kaisoca Moko Jumbies founder.

Tribute was paid to him by students in extempo style and using the Santimanitay melody encapsulating his life’s work in verses and chorus at a celebration held in the school.

Bisnath was also presented with a portrait as well as a brochure by an art student, Briana Thompson, who did them as a project for her CSEC English B SBA.

Thompson, 16, said she had a choice between Stalin and Bisnath, but felt the latter was more deserving as not as much was known about his work.

She said it was hard work doing research and having to interview him for the brochure, but rewarding.

Bisnath said he was humbled and honoured.

“Not every day a person is honoured and when a school, students, teachers and principal come together and recognise the work that you are doing for your country, you have to come good.

“I feel very proud to see this day and even walk in the footsteps of people who have been honoured before like Black Stalin, Mighty Duke, Calypso Rose, Roy Cape, and Scrunter.

“I am seeing lately that people are being honoured while they are alive and that is good.

Head of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, as well as the school’s carnival committee, Paul Julien, said they have been paying homage to one cultural icon each year.

“Usually we honour a calypsonian or someone in that genre, but Bisnath is so involved in the culture and instrumental in keeping the moko jumbie tradition alive in a big way, we decided this was his year. He is a moko jumbie icon.”

Julien said by honouring calypsonians, it has brought them to their school and afforded students an opportunity to live the culture.

Theatre Arts teacher Andy Mootilal said one of the hallmarks of the theatre arts syllabus is promoting the traditional art forms of culture.

“It is nice to see we are honouring someone who has given such yeoman service to the traditional art in TT.”

He said he is hoping it could spread, “Where we have an awakening of the contribution and the importance to traditional mas, not just in TT, but to theatre arts as a whole.”

Mootilal said traditional mas was TT’s contribution to the world. “I don’t think we have enough appreciation of our characters and the value and the potential of these characters to reach out to the world.

“Mr Bisnath shared with us that the most prominent circuses in the United States, when they want moko jumbies, they reach out to him.

“It’s good to see we are keeping traditional characters alive. We have to start with the children because they are the future. We have to inculcate in them that sense of tradition and knowing where they came from for it to grow.”