Sensational that the biggest highlight of the off-season Carnival in 2022 was the Exu played by actor Demerson Dalvaro in a float from Grande Rio – a school that ended up champion of the Rio special group. The farofa-spitting orixá surpassed in repercussion even the tiny fantasy of Paolla Oliveira, queen of the drums at the same school.
Before the parade, Demerson trained hard. According to a report in the Extra newspaper, he spent ten kilos of farofa in solitary trials inside the shower stall.
Wriggles, grimaces, eats flour, squirms some more, drinks water and spits it out in a jet. Sapucaí’s choreography in an apartment bathroom. With farofa. There’s a snippet of it in a video that Extra included in the article.
The best thing about the carnivalesque Exu is the “de-demonization” of both this orixá in particular and, in general, the religions of African origin. The famous macumba, a pejorative term that supporters of these beliefs decided to adopt to –pardon the word– give new meaning.
I am an atheist and I reserve the right not to swallow any religion, regardless of the origin of the matrix. I am also, by Brazilian standards, white.
I’ve lived a lot, seen a lot and I don’t think I’m stupid. I know very well that the “fear” of macumba as a spell to curse is nothing more than poorly disguised racism.
I don’t like religions, but I never considered breaking Catholic saints or burning evangelical churches, despite the pedophile priests and thug pastors that are out there, in little negligible number. The treatment must be equitable for mosques, synagogues and any space or object of worship.
Curiously, certain “good” people think it is fair to depredate the offerings of Candomblé and Umbanda, if not set fire to or demolish terreiros.
“Chuta, que é macumba” even became an idiomatic expression, it was so widespread. It is considered normal to treat as an uncivilized outrage the offers left along the way, with food and the like – chicken, popcorn, cigars, cachaça and, of course, farofa.
Scary, is it? You will see the ex-votos rooms of some churches, full of dismembered doll legs. That, yes, is macabre.
Exu is not a demon and, above all, the religions of black people are not diabolical. The hunky flour-spitting pop orixá will have done a great service if that message endures. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will. Pessimistic, perhaps. Realistic, most likely.
I hope I’m wrong. Long live the macumba farofa!
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I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
