Do you have memories of attending over-night puppet shows that naratted stories with mythical characters? If not, then grab this opportunity. Indiranagar Sangeeta Sabha in association with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan will present The Dhaatu, a three-day puppet festival from April 12 to 14. The main aim of the event is to revive this dying art form and bring awareness about it.
Speaking about the festival, H N Suresh, director of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan said, “Puppet show is a unique art and has become popular across the world. But due to modernisation and urbanisation, the art is on the verge of extinction. Also, this art has not received encouragement and good support from people.” This 3,000 year old art form was a medium of communication in the olden days. “Earlier, puppet shows were usually conducted in villages and temples. The urbanisation has eaten up the villages and in turn culture of India is getting affected. The artistes are in search of jobs in the city to earn money,” he added. The uniqueness of this puppet show is that the songs are based on Indian classical music.
In this event, the puppet parade will take place within the radius of 1.5 kilo metre in and around Indiranagar. Over 100 children are expected to participate in the event. They have also prepared placards to save this dying art. “We have invited over 10-12 schools to participate in this programme. Though this is one of the oldest art forms, we have chosen some of the themes which are appropriate to the contemporary audience. The show has been organised keeping in mind the attention span of audience. Mythological stories like Vijayanagara Vybhava, Jarasanda Vadhe, Ashtavakra, Aneya Garva Bhanga and others will be performed,” explained Suresh.
This festival will bring string puppet theatre, rod puppet shows, shadow puppet shows, specialised string puppets of Eachanuru and glove puppets on one platform. Do not miss this opportunity to witness the ancient art form. For more details contact: 2521 5525.