KOCHI: Indian puppetry has often entertained the spectator with its many forms- string puppetry, rod puppetry, shadow puppetry and glove puppetry. To give the people a taste of the traditional forms of entertainment that still exist, the Sangeet Natak Academi, New Delhi along with Kerala Fine Arts Society, Ernakulam is conducting a national-level puppetry festival till January 12. Titled ‘Putal Yatra’, the programme is a visual treat where traditional puppet theatre troupes from Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Assam, Gujarat and Maharashtra are participating.
String Puppetry is one form of a traditional Indian puppetry that is striving to stay afloat thanks to the efforts of two to three troupes who have mastered the art.K V Ramesh, a puppet artist from Kasaragod has been in the field for the past 36 years. Ramesh says he was introduced to this world of strings when he was just a child. “This tradition of string puppetry has been there since the days of my grandfather- late Parthisubha of Kumble who was known as the father of Yakshagana. In Kasargod district alone, earlier there were 30 troupes but now only eight troupes are left.” There are only two troupes who continue to perform Yakshagana, one led by K V Ramesh in Kasaragod and the other in Kundapura in Karnataka.
Ramesh, an expert in string puppetry says wooden puppets are used in this form of puppetry. Even the dress for the puppets are made by the artists themselves. Ramesh said, “There are eight artists in our troupe and we only make the puppets for our show.” For his expertise in string puppetry, he was awarded the Karnataka State Award in 2010. Besides performing string puppetry shows, he is an expert in carving puppets in wood, painting and manipulating both string and rod puppets. He does performances in languages like Kannada, Malayalam and Tulu.Ramesh’s troupe Sri Gopalakrishna Yakshagana Bombeyata Sangha is a registered organisation, which is working in the field of promoting Yakshagana through puppet shows in and around the state of Kerala and Karnataka.
About ‘Narakasura Vadh’,the play
The troupe Gopalakrishna Yakshagana Bombeyata Sangha has already presented more than 3,000 shows in India and abroad. The troupe has also performed great epics like ‘Ramayana’, ‘Mahabharatha’ and ‘Bhagavatha’ at National and International stages. The play ‘Narakasura Vadh’ is from the great epic Bhagavatha. Narakasura is the ruler of the third realm, Pathala Loka, the Land of Evils. Not content with only his own realm, Narakasura wants to rule the entire Universe, including Swarga loka, The Heaven, ruled by Devendra, and Marthyaloka, the Earth.
He undertakes penance for many years and is blessed by Lord Brahma, who offers him a vara of his own choice. Narakasura chooses to die only at the hands of his own parents. He begins his conquest of the other two realms, killing indiscriminately. Maharishis are interrupted during their yajnas. Narakasura attacks Lord Devendra. All the munis, rishis and Indra join together against Narakasura. They go to the court of Krishna for help in dealing with the ravages of the demon king. Krishna and Sathyabhama, riding Garuda vahana, succeeding in destroying Narakasura, restoring peace and harmony to the Universe. This great victory of good over evil is still celebrated today as Naraka Chathurdashi.
Performances and accolades
In 1987, the troupe participated in the 4th International Puppet Festival held at Lahore, Pakistan
Two-member team took its puppet for participation at the Foire De Paris held at Porte De Versailles, Paris, France in 2004.
In 2009, participated in a Kannada Festival held at Dubai, Gulf Country.
In 2010, the troupe participated in the 14th International Puppet Festival held at Prague, Czechoslovakia and got “Best Traditional Puppet Performer” – International Award.
In 2013, K V Ramesh participated in the International Folk Festival held at Guiyag, China and gave a demonstration of Yakshagana Puppetry.