WISHES are horses… for sure. When we began this project three years ago, all we had was a wish. Unsure how to move forward, we examined possibilities, studying the pieces of the puzzle as they appeared and wondering if they would all fit together. Today, three years later, we present you with the large picture that has emerged of the river Mhadei. We could not have done this alone. At every stage of the way we were helped by good neighbours, interested bystanders, curious academics, and kindred souls. They were with us as we translated that early hazy wish into an edited book, a documentary, and a repository of articles on the river Mhadei. As we near the end of our endeavours, we now wish to place on record our thanks to all those who wittingly and unwittingly helped us along, from the lady who served us the most delicious fish thali in a khanavar along the river’s banks, to the villager who challenged our science when it came up against his folk wisdom, to the expert who did not respond to our requests for information, to the activist who encouraged us when he said “go ahead, I am there no?” To all of them, dev borem korum.

Some, however, require our special gratitude. Professor Keri Facer was welcoming and trusting when she invited us to join the project. If one must wish for an ideal Principal Investigator to lead any project let it be a Keri Facer clone. Her light touch, and her ready but critical approval of what we were doing, enabled us to move with little anxiety to the next stage and to align our work with the other components of the omnibus research project. Professor Rukmini Bhaya Nair also encouraged us especially during those moments when the currents were too strong and we thought we should give up, by telling us that we had only two choices, to either sink or swim. Going back was not an option. We swam. Professor Errol D’Souza joined us early as a reviewer and not only lent his academic wisdom to our work but also his deep love for the river, acquired during years of trekking along its banks. We were fortunate to have Georgina Fitzgibbon, Maria Suchcitz, and Barbora Krasova of the British Academy, who, although they stood some distance away, encouraged our work to flow. Sarah Cox of Bristol University was most supportive as she managed the administrative requirements of the project. To all of them, salaam.

Closer home we are grateful to all the contributors who came on board, some as scholars, others as activist-scholars, and still others as children of the river Mhadei. Our study required their ballast. We are thankful to all who attended the two workshops we organized to listen to our midterm reports and to give us the benefits of their insights and suggestions. The faculty of BITS Pilani, Goa Campus, gave us access to the seminar rooms for our workshops and their staff helped us with the logistics. They have our deep gratitude. Gasper, Shrinivas, and Ethan have infused our project with an aesthetic that has taken it to an altogether different level. The brilliant documentary they have produced, over many months and with tons of patience, is for the ages. Frederick Noronha has allowed us to be a part of a long history of Goa in print, beginning with 1556, and for that we are very grateful. His advice on the publication process and the e-dissemination that it required has, as expected, been invaluable. And finally, we must acknowledge our debt to Sucharita Ray who took up the challenge of converting a set of essays into the chapters of a book, gave it a publishable form, and gently persuaded over-burdened authors to make corrections to their cherished texts. Sucharita brought her professional eye, red pen, and gentle ways, to comment on both text and photographs, relieving us, in the process, of the huge task of making a book out of a manuscript. To all who joined us in this wonderful journey, both down and up the river, once again, dev borem korum.

Peter Ronald deSouza

Solano Da Silva

Lakshmi Subramanian

18 June 2025.