The calm and serene foothill of Keezhakuilkudi Jain Monument was abuzz with an unusual activity.
On one side people roamed around with painted faces -- some funny, some scary and some happy or sad. All the faces were expressive carrying unequivocal emotions trying to communicate something to the onlooker. On the other side, artists were giving shape to their wild imaginations on the faces of young theatre artistes. They all camped here to study the evolution of Tamil clowns.
“The three-day camp is part of the pre-production work for our next project that revolves around the world of clowns,” says S. Murugaboopathy of Manalmagudi Theatre group. “Before embarking on this new assignment we wanted to understand the language of clowns and how they are seen by our locals,” he adds.
Murugaboopathy got this idea to stage a comprehensive theatre performance on clowns from the interactions he had with children as a storyteller. “I have been communicating with them for the past 15 years. Over the period, I came to an understanding that children hate to listen to clichéd moral stories. But they are attracted more towards clowns. They think clowns tell them fresh stories and are out of the ordinary,” he says.
Jesters in the traditional theatre are the tools to break the fourth wall. They link the performer and the audience. With their presence of mind they ensure entertaining performance. But they are seen only as characters for comic relief. Their shrewd comments on mundane life are not taken seriously.
“In most plays, I find the clowns stand alone without any friends. They act like shock absorbers. Then I realised there is much more to the character than meets the eye,” he observes.
To fix the looks of the clown Murugaboopathy sought the help of professional painters to evolve the face of Dravidian clown. “When I think of a clown’s face, only Western masks flash in my mind. I turned the pages of history to trace the real countenance of our traditional comedians. I found demons do have some comic traits in their visage,” he notes.
The camp brought more than 15 professional artists from across the State who came up with more than 25 shapes in different hues and designs. “It was a challenging task for us. We are used to drawing on canvas, which are primarily two-dimensional, but this time we were given human face to work with. As we went through with our three-dimensional work we started interacting with our images. The session was packed with emotions,” says Rohini Mani, a painter.
Writer and painter, M.G. Raffic Ahamed, says that the camp did not end with only face painting but also tried to trace out the costumes and properties of clowns. “Gunnysacks turned into bright coloured costumes. Winnows, bamboo baskets and brooms were innovatively designed to make properties. It was a rewarding experience both for the artists and also the performers,” he says.
Once the preliminary work and rehearsals get over, the play will be staged in December at the same site.
