Puppets: a dying traditional art

Lifestyles have changed so rapidly that many of our traditional crafts and pastimes have been relegated to the archives. Television and videos occupy our free time, and the incredible Information Superhighways have turned us into obsessive-compulsive monsters who can’t take their fingers off the mouse. We have gone cross-eyed, staring at computer screens, and kyphotic, hunched over in our high-backed chairs. The tragedy is that even our children have caught the bug and prefer the computer to other carefree games and pastimes. We haven’t read of three or four year old prodigies who have already become cyber addicts!

Stress is inevitably the internal reaction to these high-tech stimuli, and the everlasting need to be one with the crowd is leading many young people to depression, nervousness, peptic ulcers, and chronic fatigue. In light of these realities, it would be wise not to lose sight of our old traditional pastimes that could be therapeutic but sadly die for lack of patronage.

One of them is the art of puppets. Puppetry originated in India, under the rulers of the Vijayanagar Empire, in the 3rd century AD. It was refined into a theatrical art in Andhra Pradesh. He helped propagate the works of saints and religious leaders, and also acted out stories from Hindu epics.

Later, it spread to Southeast Asia. Cambodian puppeteers inspired the Thai, and in the 14th century, Thai shadow plays rose to prominence. Java and Bali followed, although he was unsuccessful on Sumatra.

The Malays followed the Siamese and Japanese styles in the 19th century. At the Negara Museum in Kuala Lumpur, a gallery of shadow puppets from sixteen countries has been exhibited. In all these countries, Rama, Sita, Hanuman and Ravana are the main puppets, while the tales of the Ramayana are staged. The stories of the Mahabharatha also lend themselves to interpretation by puppeteers.

Puppets are more than 1500 years old in China. His stories are never from Hindu epics, but from ancient Chinese classical literature. In the days of yore, the Imperial Court was the main patron of the puppeteer.

Greek puppets originated in the 5th century B.C. C. and were made of small-jointed clay figures. There is also evidence of puppets in ancient Egypt, mostly miniatures of gods.

The word puppet is derived from the Latin word ‘pupa’, which means ‘doll’ or ‘girl’. In the mid-19th century, it was called a ‘marionette’ because the Mary puppet was used in Christmas plays. Puppets survived the Middle Ages, despite the fact that the Church prohibited Drama and Theater.

In the 16th century, during the gold rush to Honduras, a man named Cortés entertained these pioneers during their long journey from Mexico to their El Dorado.

In Italy, Germany, France and England, puppets flourished from the 16th century. The adorable Punch and Judy are friends from our childhood. Surprisingly, they did not originate in England. Punch was the brainchild of an actor from Naples, who called his character “Polcinella” (little chick) and described the adorable qualities of the chicken. This puppet became so famous that in 1660 he came to London as “Punchinello”. The name was quite complicated, so it is abbreviated as “Punch”.

Punch acquired a wife named Joan, in Philadelphia. With these two puppets, he produced and performed “Punch Opera” in New York. Joan became Judy in 1825. These colorful characters have delighted children and adults the world over, in theaters or on sidewalks, in museums or on street corners.

Little by little, puppet characters were added to the repertoire. The puppets became more sophisticated in appearance as skilled craftsmen began to make the models. The puppeteers trained as artists and many original works were performed. What was once a one man show became a family occupation involving several family members or small companies of men.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, puppet theaters became very popular in artistic circles. Writers like George Sands and Goethe put on their own well-prepared puppet shows to entertain their friends. Famous men like Samuel Pepys, wrote down in their diaries the names of the shows they had seen. George Washington even wrote down the amount he had spent to bring his family to the show. Puppet shows have been mentioned in literature by Shakespeare, Ben Johnson, and many others.

Guilds and societies were formed throughout Europe and in London. Books on the history, theater and technique of puppet shows were published.

However, with the advent of World War II, there was a decline in puppetry. Most of the young men were called to arms. Here and there, a lone puppeteer with his portable stage would put on a show in camps, bomb shelters, or hospitals.

Basically there are three types of puppets.

SOMBRAS puppets are made of translucent leather and colored vegetable dyes. Buffalo, goat or sheep skin is treated so that it becomes translucent. The limbs are loosely articulated so they can be moved separately. A stick is attached vertically in the middle. The movement of the sticks causes general movements. But for special movements, individual ropes attached to the limbs are used.

These leather puppets are projected onto a screen, which is illuminated by a light source placed behind the puppets. The Indian shadow play is different from other countries in that the flat puppets are pressed against a white screen so that the audience sees a light colored shadow. The puppeteer sits behind the light source and manipulates the puppets to form moving shadows on the screen. He also speaks the parts, sings or is accompanied by music. The light source is a bowl filled with castor or coconut oil and lit by a wick. These are now being replaced by low wattage electric bulbs.

In South India, shadow puppets are called Tholu Bomalatta or Thogalu Bombeatta. In the good old days, troupes of artists would tour the countryside and put on evening performances in the villages. It had mass appeal to rustic folk. These puppeteers belonged to a semi-nomadic tribe called ‘Kiliikyathas’ and hailed from Andhra and northern Kanara. As this was not a lucrative profession, they did manual labor during the day and only put on shows at night.

They performed by invitation only. The performance was booked with a token fee of ten rupees given along with a betel leaf and a piece of areca nut, by the village head.

The sutradara (main puppet) performed the invocation of the local deities. This ceremony called ‘karagallu’ was to prevent famine, pestilence or evil in the village.

The puppets were transported in cane baskets, and they retained their color for years. The disposal of the puppets when they were no longer useful or when there were no people to carry out the show, was by immersion in a river or sea.

There is another form of puppet theater in South Kanara. Here the STRING puppets are manipulated by six strings. The performance takes place on a stage that is six feet long and four feet wide, with a backdrop of blue or black cloth. Puppeteers or magicians are never seen. They wear anklets that produce the illusion that the puppets themselves are dancing.

The main narrator (Bhagvata) recites the plot, while the puppets perform, and the puppeteers provide the dialogue and music. This Yakshagana puppet theater is 300 years old and travels with the field theater troupe, which performs throughout South Kanara. Puppet shows are held during the intermission, as the dramas continue throughout the night.

The puppets need only a small investment in money, material, labor. Both the stage and the puppets are portable. The area of ​​action is small. Shadow puppets originated in the east and traveled west.

ROD puppets are of western origin and have traveled east. They are also called stick puppets and are built around the main central bar. A short horizontal bar serves as the shoulders, from which the upper limbs hang. The arms are made of cloth and stuffed with straw or paper. They are joined or manipulated with other thinner rods. These puppets can be the size of a man or larger. They are dressed in different costumes and the puppeteer hides behind the puppet and manipulates it. The face, neck and hands are flesh-colored. The face may be made of papier-mâché or straw-filled cloth and covered with clay and starch paint. The features are outlined with a brush. Limb coordination is only achieved through practice.

Soft or BODY puppets are made of cloth and manipulated with the hand and fingers. Dexterous fingers are required for movements and a ventriloquist voice to simulate speech.

The visual impact of the puppets is impressive. In addition, the public can participate wholeheartedly with their comments and encouragement. Provide clean family entertainment.

Puppet building is a rewarding hobby. You need good powers of observation and the ability to replicate characters, sort of like a cartoonist. You need a basic knowledge of anatomy and the ability to make joints move. Innovation with various materials such as cardboard, cookie tins and even banana skins is possible. With a little imagination, skits or plays can be produced to educate or entertain.

Puppets are a good means of communication for rural audiences. Health, hygiene, family planning messages can realistically be propagated. Countries like Africa are already using puppets for health propaganda.

The manufacture and performance of puppets is a good occupational therapy for convalescents and physically disabled. Muscular coordination and manual dexterity improve with effort.

The psychoanalysis of children is also possible by analyzing the comments they make about what they see.

Rural advertising is another possibility. Promotional skits can be organized to inform the public about new products available.

However, the best use of this art is as a hobby. Creating and performing puppet shows can provide delightful hours of fun for young and old alike. Let’s not let the puppeteer die.