What’s in the news?

• The COVID-19 pandemic has provided an Assam-based trust the opportunity to focus on a near-forgotten form of string puppetry, the Putola Nach.
• The art form was used to take the messages related to COVID-19 to the public through social media videos.
• The videos were produced in collaboration with UNICEF. The names of the videos were COVID Shatru (enemy), COVID Bibharat (confusion).

About the art

• Usually, Putola Nach is used to perform scenes from the epics such as Ramayana or Mahabharatha. It is a traditional string puppet theatre from Assam. 
• Dolls are 1.5 metres tall and are made of hollow wood or bamboo. The heads are made of terracotta.
• Musical Instruments are used in performing the art.

Puppetry in India

• Oldest written reference to puppetry has been found at Tamil classic Silappadikaaram written around 1st and 2nd Century BC.
• The excavation sites at Harappa and Mohenjodaro have yielded puppets with sockets attached to them which suggest the presence of puppetry as an art form.

Types of Puppetry in India

1. Glove Puppets– The puppets are worn on the hand of the puppeteers like gloves.

1. Pavakkoothu – Kerala 

2. String Puppets- Strings are attached to small holes in the hands, head and back of the body which are then controlled by the puppeteer.

• Gopalila Kundhei – Orissa
• Bommalattam – Tamil Nadu
• Kalasutri Bahulya – Maharashtra
• Putola Nach – Assam
• Kathputli – Rajasthan
• Gombeyatta – Karnataka

3. Shadow Puppets– Puppets are placed on a white screen with light falling from behind to create a shadow effect on the screen.

• Thol Bommalattam – Tamil Nadu
• Togalu Gombeyata – Karnataka
• Chamadyache Bahulya – Maharashtra
• Tholpavakoothu – Kerala
• Ravanachhaya – Orissa
• Tholu Bommalata – Andhra Pradesh

4. Rod Puppets

• Kathi Kandhe – Orissa
• Putul Nach – West Bengal
• Yampuri – Bihar

Reference:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/assam-string-puppetry-rides-covid-campaign-for-revival/article34458600.ece