The Goan writer José da Silva Coelho was the author of several hundred pieces of wickedly satirical short fiction in the 1920s and 1930s, published for the most part in the Portuguese-language newspaper O Heraldo.

Biography

José da Silva Coelho was born in Margão in 1889, one of fifteen children. After attending the lyceum in Panjim and pursuing private law studies he became a public notary in Bicholim

Bicholim

Bicholim is a city and a municipal council in North Goa district in the state of Goa, India. It is a town in the territory of Goa, and the headquarters of the concelho of the same name; the Concelho of Bicholim, located in the north-east quarter is one of the seven that make up the Novas...

, where he worked for the rest of his life.

Contos Regionais

Silva Coelho published around 40 stories in the series 'Contos Reionais' (or Regional Tales). It is these tales that led Vimala Devi and Manuel de Seabra to call Silva Coelho "one of the most notable Goan short-story writers". The two critics write that Silva Coelho 'was able to depict his people with an authenticity that hurts even today'.

Lendas Indianas

Silva Coelho, who lived in the Novas Conquistas

Novas Conquistas

The Novas Conquistas are a group of seven administrative districts or concelhos of mainland Goa, India, which were added onto Goa at a comparatively later date than the original three concelhos that make up the Velhas Conquistas....

, was a keen hunter (which took him all over the interior of Goa) and spoke fluent Konkani

Konkani language

KonkaniKonkani is a name given to a group of several cognate dialects spoken along the narrow strip of land called Konkan, on the west coast of India. This is, however, somewhat an over-generalisation. Geographically, Konkan is defined roughly as the area between the river Damanganga to the north...

, also collected a number of ('Lendas Indianas' or Indian Legends). These short pieces were published in a series of the same name in 'O Heraldo'.

Malicias Orientais

Silva Coelho also wrote a series of stories about Hindu characters. These were never published in his lifetime.