radhica.sookraj@guardian.co tt
It was a funeral fit for a Carnival king yesterday, as renowned mas icon and king of traditional mas Lionel Jagessar made his final ride through the streets of San Fernando.
Wearing feathered costumes which Jagessar designed more than a decade ago, hundreds of masqueraders chipped down the streets of San Fernando in the blazing heat for a final tribute to the iconic masman, who died last Saturday.
Every detail of the funeral that Jagessar outlined before his death was fulfilled by the family, including his dying wish to be buried near the grave of his father Jaggassar Chatoo.
The traditional costumes that Jagessar determinedly preserved when many other bandleaders opted for bikini and beads were on show in yesterday’s funeral procession.
The Paramin Blue Devils pranced wildly and the Fourth Generation Rope Warriors Whipmasters created excitement, cracking their whips loudly on the steaming asphalt road.
The masqueraders journeyed from Coffee Street to Mucurapo Street and finally to Gransaul Street, where his funeral rites were held.
Children from the Grant Memorial Primary School screamed when the Jab Molasi and Gorilla mas characters ran up to the gates of the school.
Calysoes blared from music trucks and people lined the street to wave at the passing hearse. Police, led by Senior Supt Cecil Santana, kept the traffic at bay, diverting motorists as needed to clear the way for the entourage.
Jagessar’s wife, Rosemarie Kuru-Jagessar, stood looking on as mourners waved their feathered staffs and headdresses.
Speaking to Guardian Media, Kuru-Jagessar said she was grateful for the love and support.
“I always wanted to do something like this. I felt like my husband is still with me. I am not burying him today, I am honouring him today,” she said.
She added: “I am so happy to see so much love today and over the past few days. ... I am going to carry on. I was his queen and I am going to walk that way,” she added.
As the procession broke the corner of Sutton and Gransaul Streets, the calypsoes were replaced with Indian bhajans. Jagessar’s sons Lionel Jr and Larry stood together side by side to receive the body.
Jagessar’s favourite tune, “Sona Sona Laghay,” blared and relatives wept.
The coffin was then taken for a final time inside the humble wooden house where Jagessar lived and worked for 72 years.
San Fernando Mayor Junia Regrello said Jagessar’s legacy will live on.
He said after Jagessar’s death he visited the bereaved family. That same night, he said he dreamt Jagessar, who expressed happiness that “he had a good life and a good wife.”
In the dream, Regrello said Jagessar expressed a desire to have Gransaul Street renamed Lionel Jagessar Street. Regrello said Jagessar, whose Fancy Indian name was “Sitting Bull,” told him in the dream that he had a desire to teach his artform to students and lecture at the University of Trinidad and Tobago.
Regrello said since Jagessar’s passing, many people had approached him to have a street named in Jagessar’s honour.
Meanwhile, Junior Bisnath, the founder of Kaisokah School of Arts who led an entourage of moko jumbies at the funeral, said he too was privileged to know Jagessar. He said a museum should be set up in Jagessar’s honour to showcase T&T’s traditional mas.
“We are the mecca of Carnival and when we have these elaborate and beautifully made costumes we see it at the Savannah and then it is dismantled and goes back to a mas camp. But we need a place where our mas can be showcased, a museum to show the journey we have made over the years,” he added.
Pundit Omadath Maharaj, who officiated, said Jagessar’s contribution to T&T’s culture will always be remembered.
Following the funeral rites, Jagessar’s body was buried at the Paradise Cemetery.