KASARAGOD: "No one has been born yet to kill me," thunders Coronasura. He is on a spree conquering the world and has reached India.
The king of Bharat Khand approaches Dhanvantari, the Hindu god of medicine, for help. The god drops his sword for a soap sprayer and slays Coronasura.
Coronasura is the brainchild of Yakshagana exponent Ramakrishna Mayya and Yakshagana puppeteer Ramesh K V. The two masters have come together to deftly blend mythology and modern knowledge and dish out a 30-minute Yakshagana puppetry video on how to fight COVID-19.
"Yakshagana is a popular art form in Kasaragod, Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, and western parts of Chikmagalur districts. So we thought of using a popular art form to drive home the message," said Ramesh, the only Yakshagana master puppeteer in Kasaragod.
And in these times of social distancing, puppeteering is safer to shoot than organising a real Yakshagana show, he said.
In more than three decades of Yakshagana puppeteering, Ramesh had never before had transgressed from mythological script until Ramakrishna Mayya came up with Coronasura.
They have recorded the puppetry show in English, Hindi, and Kannada and are working on a Malayalam script. "The idea is to reach a large section of people, irrespective of their language," said Dr Ratnakara Mallamoola, coordinator of Yakshagana Research Centre at Kasaragod Government College and assistant professor of Kannada in the college.
He has helped in writing the script and also performed as a voice artiste for the puppetry show.
"We have used mythological figures to give contemporary messages," he said.
So, Lord Dhanvantari does not break into a celebration after killing the Coronasura. He reminds the king about the duties his people must do to keep the 'asura' away. "Else, he will return," the god tells the king.
"Prevention is the cure for this disease. Stay home, ask people to stay home, and get out only if necessary. And if they are going out, wear masks. Maintain distance from one another. Wash hands and do not touch eyes, nose, and mouth," Dhanvantari said.
"Only if you follow these rules, I will be able to kill the Coronasura," he said.
Ramesh's puppets wear the full attire of real Yakshagana artistes, and the puppetry strictly follows the norms and standards of the traditional theatre form that draws stories from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and the Bhagavata. "This time, the story is current. We cut down on the mythology to focus on the messaging," said Dr Ratnakara.