In a world full of Barbie dolls and superhero standees, are traditional puppets still alive? Well, yes. The Dhaatu International Puppet Festival 2017 showcased a range of puppets, not only from India but from all over the world. The puppets attracted children and took adults back to their childhood.The puppet shows from Indonesia, Czech Republic and Sri Lanka were unique in their own ways. Indonesian professor, Andrik Purwasito, presented a shadow puppet play Arjuna Wiwaha , which was an ancient story from Indonesia with links to the Indian epic Mahabharata . Though Arjuna is a character from the Mahabharata , the story was completely different from that of the mythology. Children as well adults were amazed to see a different telling of a story from this Indian mythology. Author, director, singer-actor and puppeteer all rolled into one -- Pavel Vangeli took the audience through one of the most engaging shows -- The Swinging Marionettes from the Czech Republic . A string puppet show, this performance had the audience dance, sing and clap along with the puppets. In five situational sketches, Pavel and his marionettes entertained the audience through characters of an angel, the devil, a clown, lovers in a jungle, the two English gentlemen, and the skeleton family. Pavel not only controlled his marionettes on strings, but also sang live jazz songs. His marionettes sang, danced, jumped, flew, spoke and one even played the guitar! The performance stirred enough curiosity among the audience to prompt a question and answer session after the show, where Pavel explained how he made up some stories, while others were based on folk tales. When a kid asked if he had “made” all the puppets, pat came Pavel’s reply: “The puppets made me.”
The marionette show from Sri Lanka showcased various traditional dance forms. While some puppets danced with real fire, some others featured animals, along with their human counterparts. The Sri Lankan puppeteers exhibited great skill in manoeuvring the puppets in elaborate dresses and masks. The puppeteers told the audience that it takes almost two months to make a puppet as embellished as theirs. They also invited the audience on stage to get a feel of their puppets.
