Puthalika Patrika- Volume 1 Issue no 3 January 2020

India, a land of rich culture, traditional ethos, and values is perceived as land the most dangerous country in the world for women has reignited the country's ongoing debate over women’s safety over high incidences of sexual violence, lack of access to justice in rape cases, child marriage, female feticide, and human trafficking. Where are we heading? what are we doing? Are we addressing the issues and generating awareness of respecting women?…. endless questions arise with bleak or no solution. Our folk arts and folklore did address issues relating to women, societal norms, and values.

I wonder, why did the traditional puppeteers perform episodes from Ramayana and Mahabharat? Are the episodes from the epics act as a guiding force? Was it to reinforce the common masses about the essential ethics to be followed for a harmonious living? or as a community counseling of changing scenarios, the mindsets of the people?

There must have been a good reason for adapting stories from the epics and Puranas-be it Sita Harana (Kidnapping of Sita), Draupadi Manabhangam (disrobing of Draupadi in the court), stories of Satya Harichandra, all acted as a guiding force and stood as a correction centre. Through the puppet performance, the puppeteers connected and compared the scenarios in the present-day context.

Through puppet plays and other folk art forms, the common masses were sensitized to sensitive issues periodically and strengthened morality.

Maybe there is a need to restructure and re-strengthen our art forms for our own benefit.

In this Issue:

Page-1-2 : Traditional Puppetry of Kerala State, India

Page-3-4 : T. Rangarajan-Storyteller, Theatre Artist, and Sri Vaishnava Scholar

Page-4-5: Natyashastra guiding encyclopedia of Indian Traditional Puppetry

Page5-7:Role of Puppetry in School Education

Page-7-8: DIY Tiger Puppet making

Safe New Year 2020!!

Yet another challenging year for all puppet lovers to explore in the field of puppetry enhancing the rich tradition, and cultural ethos towards strengthening a safe society for one and all.

Best

Padmini Rangarajan


Traditional Puppetry of Kerala State, India

Puppetry is an art form in which the performance is carried over by inanimate objects called puppets, lot resembling a human or animal figure, that are manipulated by an artist called a puppeteer.

In Kerala, puppets are of different kinds, such as ‘Nool Pava Koothu’ - String Puppets controlled either by threads or hands. In some areas, sticks are also used for the same and such puppets are known as Rod Puppets‘Pava Kathakali’- known as glove or hand puppets. There is one more kind of puppetry known as ‘Nokku Vidya Pava Kali’- the puppets are perched atop a pole that rests vertically on the upper lip of the puppeteer squatting on the floor wherein the small puppet is balanced in between nose and lips and is moved accordingly. A rare kind indeed. Then of course, the most popular puppetry form in Kerala is shadow puppetry or Tholpavakoothu’ or ‘Nizhalpaavakoothu’, in which the shadow of puppets is shown through the white curtain placed in front of the puppets in earthen lamp lights.



Nool Pava Koothu perhaps this one of the oldest puppet forms prior to Pava Kathakali thrived up to the early 20th century in the region of Ernakulum and around the temple of Tripunithura, where the puppeteer-showmen performed every year during religious festivals. However, these puppets remain under the care and custody of a royal family.

The puppeteers belong to the Nair community. Today Nool Pava Koothu performances have disappeared, but there are still forty-five puppets kept safely in the temple of Tripunithura. Pava Kathakali is a miniature depiction of Kathakali form with puppets. Puppets dressed in Kathakali costumes look stunning during the performance. The absence of a screen and live fire during a performance mesmerizes the audience. On the other hand, one can watch Pava Kathakali and Thol Pava Koothu performances even today.

Thanks to the brave young generation for shouldering the responsibility of preserving and promoting the art form and keeping it breathing. With regard to Nokku Vidya Pava Kali, it is only performed by K. S. Ranjini granddaughter of Moorzhikal Pankajakshi. On the other hand, Tholpavakoothu on Kambar Ramayana is performed by the Pulavar brothers. It entailed anecdotes from Rama’s journey to the forests to his coronation.

Obituary

Loss of - Thol Pavai Koothu artist Kalaimamani R. Kuppusamy

Puducherry-based shadow puppeteer Kalaimamani R Kuppusamy passed away after a prolonged illness in his hometown in the Union territory. A ninth-generation shadow puppeteer he breathed his last in November 2018. He was 60. He was battling duodenum cancer over the last two years. He managed Rajappa Tholpavai Koothupattarai until his health deteriorated. He is survived by a son and daughter. (Source-Times of India-Puducherry November 13, 2019).

Announcement:

“Katha Sangraha”- Call for short stories to be featured in Puthalika Patrika. The best Stories will be awarded and adapted for our in-house production.


लोकत्र यविरत्नताक तन्त्रवास्तु
प्रस्तावन प्रतिसमपनसुत्रधरः
--दुतघतोत्वकचं-भास

T. Rangarajan- A Storyteller, Theatre artist, and Scholar

नारायण त्रिभुवनैक परायणो व:, पायादु पायशतयुक्थिकर: सुराणां, लोक त्रायाविरत नाटक तन्त्रवस्तु, प्रस्थना प्रतिसमापन सुत्रधार:
--दुतघतोत्वकचं-भास

“Saviour of Gods, vanquisher of evil, One and only last resort of the three worlds. O’ Narayana, the string holder of the perennial drama of life, with the universe as its stage, I humbly bow before you; protect us all! “ O’ Narayana, You are the string holder – Sutradhara-of the perpetual drama of life enacted on the stage of the universe from its beginning to end”—Dutaghatotvakacham Bhasa.

“योवन्त प्रवॆश्य मम वाचं एम्म प्रसुक्तं संजीव यति अकिल शक्ति दर स्वधामन, अन्नयं च हस्त चरण श्रवण तवक्क अदीन, प्रनान नमो भगवते पुरुषाय तुम्भ्यं”




The above Shloka which little Dhruva pronounced after he attained Sri Hari’s vision in the midst of dense forest during - Shri T. Rangarajan, began to narrate the story of “Little Dhruva”. Within the same story there was a sudden twist and yet another story. So, one could easily get to learn 4-5 short stories within the main story. Filled with humor, satire, and voice modulation to inculcate strong confidence in young children. Just a normal conversation leads to storytelling for Shri. T. Rangarajan. ‘Our own life experiences are the best stories we can learn from’ –he opines.

Born in an orthodox conservative Iyengar Brahmin family in 1936 Shri. T. Rangarajan was exposed to religious and spiritual readings, Shloka recitation, and listening to Ramayana, Mahabharatha, and Thiruppavai Upanyasam discourses from his younger days. His mother Rajammal fondly called by all as ‘Chitti’, use to tell short funny stories with proverbs and Tamil language saying based. So, from the beginning, he was open to more of the listening skill “Shravana”.

As most of the discourses were oral in nature, this helped in developing listening skills. As always, his emphasis on youngsters listening and developing this skill well. As he grew older, he developed an inclination towards reading rich scripture books, short stories, and novels in Hindi, Sanskrit, Kannada, and Telugu. Tamil and English languages. High school days participated in Kannada and Sanskrit drams during school day functions.

Then it was his high school senior student Shri N. B. Narayana also known as Drama Narayana and fondly called by all Nani. Then he became makeup, Nani. It was Nani the main wire puller towards theatre, dramas, and plays.

During his younger days, he was a voracious reader, and a good information gatherer, studying about culture, cultural practice, body language, language usage, diction, and pronunciation, and studying the script thoroughly. His good command of languages adds to his theatrical journey.  He is grateful to his theatre-passionate colleagues serving in Indian Railways for exposing him to various drama cultures present then. He got to learn more about ‘Veera Shaivisms’ philosophy and great personalities. Similarly, his inclination towards the spiritual path from his younger days also made him open to exploring the great philosophy of Sri Shankararacharaya, Sri Ramanujacharya, and Sri Madhvacharayas. In 1980, he gave his first Thiruppavai discourse at Hubbali. Here, it was Upanayasam – yet another form of Storytelling. The first emphasis on the emotional scene, navarasa, voice modulation, theatrical gestures, pauses, and space made the normal discourse filled with cinematic effects, a therapeutic form, the artist should be aware of Bhava, Tala, and Laya.

Storytelling – be it Harikatha or discourse to make it applied form or Need to know to sing, know the lyrics well, be able to enact with a good voice, should be prepared to answer the queries or the questions related to the stories from the epics, Puranas. So, need to be a good scholar all through. ‘We should feel the story and make others also feel the same. This is the effect of the ‘storytelling is a therapy’ opines T. Rangarajan.

Natyashastra guiding Encyclopedia of Indian Traditional Puppetry

'Natyashastra' is a Drama Handbook of Dance and Drama by Bharatamuni in the 2nd Century. According to Shri T. Rangarajan (Storyteller, Theatre artist, and Scholar), ‘Natya Veda’ is considered as Panchma Veda, i.e., the Fifth Veda created for the recreation of mankind. It is further believed that Bharatamuni gained the Natya Veda Shastra directly from Lord Brahma and recorded it in the form of a written text manual. This is the only comprehensive guiding handbook of classical dance and theatre forms in India.

Natyashashtra handbook applies to traditional puppetry of India. The foremost reference is about the ‘Sutradhara’ who manipulates the doll or Puthali with 'Sutra'-the strings from inside. The Sutradhara is literally the holder-'dhara' or manipulator and strings-the sutras: this directs to the play of God who upholds the strings of the destinies of human beings in his hands and he is the chief Sutradhara.

The 6th and 21st Chapters of Natya Shastra connect with the Indian Traditional Puppet theatre. Natya Shastra guides with regard to Puppet theatre-puppet looks, puppets and colours, costume and ornamentation, speech and emotion part, puppets movements and posture. This is called Aanghika, Vachika, Aahaarya, Sattivika, and Abhinaya-which can be seen and preserved in traditional Indian Puppet theatre.

Aanghika - Movement of the limbs: Head, hand, breast, sides, waist, feet, eyes, eyebrows, lower lips, jaws, and so on.

Aanghika- Movement of the limbs: Head, hand, breast, sides, waist, feet, eyes, eyebrows, lower lips, jaws, and so on. Vachika- the speech-connected parts. Aahaarya construction, colour, ornamentation, costume, Saatvika- the emotion. Abhinaya- the word “Abhinaya” is explained in the Natya Shastra as “Abhi” (towards), and “Naya” (to carry), or to carry the spectator towards the meaning. Abhinaya can therefore be translated as communicating to the audience.

All the above four main components are put together before the audience- Here, the emphasis is on the ‘Postures’-Standing or Reclining Postures, and Sitting Postures with the supportive Hasta movements known as the hand gestures.

Nevertheless, the adaptation from the Natyashastra by the traditional puppeteers is within the limitation of puppet form and style.

Role of Puppetry in School Education:

Puppetry as an inexpensive teaching tool provides teachers with one of the most powerful teaching aids in the classroom. The benefits of puppets are numerous. They let children into an imaginary world. This is the foremost important brain exercise or activity which developed well to enhance learning skills. Working with puppets helps to check emotional stability. The teacher will know the ‘real-self’ student/s and their emotional problems. Children learn to learn from themselves with cooperation when working in a small group to produce their own puppet play. There are many openings for sequencing, organizing, verbalizing, sorting information, and gaining self-confidence. In a nutshell, puppet-based learning helps students in thinking, approaching, writing, how to work in collectives, and most importantly expressing freely and learning without fear.

A good opportunity for teachers to teach subjects and languages effectively using puppets. The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) provides comprehensive and integrated training in the preparation, manipulation, and production of such puppet programmes which may be used in a variety of formal and non-formal teaching situations. This training programme is held in all four centres-Delhi (North), Udaipur (West), Hyderabad (South), and Guwahati (East) all through the year.



















Some of the teachers who get trained put into practice and train other teachers too. Recently, Ms. Pushpa, Mrs. Kusuma Nagaraj, Mr. Lakwinder Singh, Mr. Saravanan, Mr. Phunde, Mr. Swaraj Kumar Sen, Ms. Mahamaya Biswas, and many others have applied puppetry in academic and non-academic teaching and received accolades for their work. This pushes the zeal of the trainers too.

Recently, Mrs. Kusuma Nagaraj School Assistant and CRP in charge of Padumpanambur Cluster organized a two-day workshop on “Role of Puppetry in School Education” at UBSC Government School Haleyanagadi, Udupi, Mangaluru, Karnataka State on December 13-14, 2019. First-hand experience in making and manipulating puppets by 30 teachers and students. 

UBSC School students from Haleangadi, Udupi, Mangaluru, Karnataka made these finger puppets from felt fabric material. 

Once comfortable to do with chart sheets then can try felt fabric materials. Can use hot glue or fabric glue. Stitching with a needle and thread is recommended for a longer stay. It is a good activity for primary school students of class IIIrd onwards. They get to learn one more skill.

Shri. K. Saravanan, Headmaster, Dr. T. Tirugnanam Primary School, Madurai, Tamil Nadu uses Puppets during weekends to create social and educational awareness. Puppet plays on ‘Child Care and protection’, ‘Good Touch and Bad Touch’,  and ‘sex education’ has received a good response within the vicinity of the school. Recently, his works were well captured by both print and electronic news media.









Thus, there is ample scope for the exploration of the use of puppets in the present Nanotechnological stage.

DIY Puppet making



Things You’ll Need:

1. 14 X 14 cm chart sheet paper or craft sheet paper of yellow or orange colour.

2. Black sketch or marker

3. Scissors and White glue

4. Half the 14X14cms, colour chart sheet paper or craft sheet paper of yellow or orange.

5. Black sketch or marker

6. Scissors and White glue. 

Now Steps: 

1. On the chart sheet draw the face of the character: Tiger for instance. For this draw a small circle.
Within the circle draw two small circles for the eyes.
2. In the two small circles now draw two smaller circles and fill them with black colour for the eyeballs. Draw two leaves-like shapes for two ears on either side of the big circle.
3. Draw a numerical ‘3’ upside down for the nose. Mark the center point with a small black circle. Then either side, draw small black dots and draw whiskers.
4. Draw a small ‘U’ below the nose for the mouth.
5. Tigers have black stripes. Now make small stripes with a black sketch pen on the forehead. Then on both cheeks.
6. Then cut the face of the tiger-cut along the outline well with both ears intact.
7. For making it into a finger puppet body- we need to make a roll. For this take the remaining yellow colour sheet and measure the size of the one’s index finger. This is the length of the finger puppet.
8. Now make a roll of the sheet of one’s index finger size. And secure the ends with glue.
9. Glue the tiger cut face on the top of the body. Then mark stripes on the body too.
10. Cut one strip in a yellow sheet and draw stripes on it and fix it on the back of the body for the tiger’s tail.

Ola!! The Tiger Finger puppet is ready!!

Similarly, try making giraffes, frogs, lions, or even elephants and have fun. Send us your Finger Puppet pictures to get featured in the Puthalika Patrika magazine.

Announcement:

Artists, Art lovers, Parents, Teachers, and anyone passionate about traditional and folk arts are welcome to contribute articles for Puthalika Patrika Puppetry News Magazine

For enquiries about Storytelling, storytelling with puppets, Puppet shows, puppet-making workshops, and customized puppet-making contact:


Editor: Padmini Rangarajan