CHENNAI: In the golu season, Thejus, specialists in gold and multi-metal plated articles, is organising Swarna Kolu, an exhibition of dolls and idols. The theme for this year is 64 Thiruvilayadals of Lord Shiva, with 64 micro setups showing a scene from 64 stories. Immaculately detailed — from tiny platters of sweets and savouries in the wedding scene in Thirumana Padalam (5th story) to the clouds in the 15th story Meruvai Shendal Aditha Padalam, the more you look, the more you see!
“God will bless everybody —from devas and asuras, to kings, subjects, animals...and everyone. That is the overall concept of Thiruvilayadal,” explains Shanthi Chandrashekar.
Working over four months, Shanthi and Prabha Ananth researched stories and finalised the storyboard. The props and dolls were improvised and made over two months. “We referred to many books and the internet. There are many versions of these stories, and we adapted a version that is acceptable to everyone,” she explains, adding that her mother-in-law, Kalaimamani D Pattammal, had composed songs on the Thiruvilayadal which inspired her to do this. “She gave a gist of the whole story in just eight lines! We are planning to release a booklet on Thiruvilayadal soon,” she smiles. There will also be an audiobook, with a voice-over of each story as well.
All dolls and props were collected over time, while most of them were made from scratch. Even the platters of bananas, sweets and murukku were made for a wedding-themed golu two years ago. “Mostly, the dolls are needed to portray rajas, warriors, ministers, princes, and so on. We change their clothes and paint if necessary each year,” she recalls and adds that they have done multiple changes to the dolls that have acted as carpenters, tailors, jewellers, and what-not! “For a story, where Shiva converts all the foxes into horses — we took horses from keychains, and printed foxes and stuck it on either side of the horse!” she laughs.
The palaces, trees, cradles, thrones, a royal bed — were all cut, stitched, tailored and stuck by their team, and they managed to create a code of sorts to find who Shiva is in each scene. “Shiva can be identified with the tiger skin cloth — either as a head band or waistband. Likewise, all the Pandya kings are shown to wear a green veshti and pink top,” explains Prabha. Over the past nine years, they have arranged themed golus, such as Dasavatharam, a theme on ‘Nava’, bazaars and festivals.
Panri Kuttigalukku Mulai Kodutha Padalam (Lord feeding the piglets)
Twelve naughty sons of a Brahmin one day see a guru doing tapasya in the forest, and throw stones at him. Enraged, the guru curses them and they turn into pigs, who lose their parents. Lord Shiva, then appears as a pig and feeds them. Parvathi asks him why being a god, he wants to feed pigs, to which he replies that in the Puranas, Shiva is considered a mother, and every hungry being has to be fed. Since the piglets were fed by the lord himself, they become intelligent. In the next story, Shiva goes to a Pandya king, and asks him to engage the 12 piglet brothers as ministers in his court. He gets them married to the minister’s daughters, and ultimately the piglets become shivaganas for Shiva.
Malaya Dwajanai Aayazhthai Padalam (Malaya Dwajan recalled)
According to the Puranas, it is considered auspicious to hold the husbands, or sons or a cow’s tail and take a dip in the ocean. Kanchanamala, Parvathi’s mother, lost her husband, didn’t have a son, and being the mother-in-law of Lord Shiva, she couldn’t hold a cow and take her dip. So she asked Shiva to bring her husband back, which he does, and she finally takes a dip in the ocean.
(Visit the golu at Thejus on GN Chetty Road, T Nagar till September 30 from 11 am to 6 pm.
For details, call: 28156370 )