Future of puppetry hangs by thin thread

The 200-year-old legendary Nimmalakunta village in Puttaparthy mandal is making all efforts to make its voice heard. It has been promoting the ancient art form for more than seven generations

Nimmalakunta (Anantapur): The tiny village of Nimmalakunta on the road to Puttaparthy once used to attract tourists and foreigners to this sleepy village. Tourists passing by would stop at the cultural village and visit the artistes and also purchase puppets which tell stories unknown to the foreigners.

In the past prior to the introduction of Prashanthi express to Bangalore tourists coming to Puttaparthi by car would stop at the village and interact with the veteran puppetry artistes. They would also purchase several works of the artisans and enrich the artisans extending gifts and appreciating their talents.

Inland tourists would collect their addresses and later invite them for performances. The worst part of their story is the misfortune staring at them after the demise of the Baba. With dwindling tourists after the exit of Baba to the eternal shores, visits to the cultural village also took a beating.

While the state and Central governments were paying their lip services to the dying art, lack of people's patronage is the de-motivating factor for infusing new life into the once popular art of puppetry which ruled the roost.

The 200 year old legendary Nimmalakunta village in Puttaparthy mandal in the district is crying in the wilderness to make its voice heard. This tiny village had been promoting the ancient art forms for more than six to seven generations.

The artists, who regaled the audience with their impressive puppet shows and made a living for almost two centuries are today on the verge of giving up their ancestral art due to fading patronage from the general public.

The one consolation for the village, with more than 50 families of puppet artists is that they get invitations through the ministry of cultural affairs from countries abroad for Indian and Western audiences. The Union Ministry of Cultural Affairs is responsible for their invitation now and then to countries like Germany and USA.

The Union and State governments, through the DRDA and the Information departments, had been engaging the cultural teams in various performances within the State and also in other states like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Delhi and Karnataka where the services of the artists were being utilised by the government departments.

Sivaparvathamma and her team, who had been to Italy in the past, told 'The Hans India'that their foreign audiences enjoyed their performances very much and were especially amused by the mythological characters of Ravana, Ramana and Hanuman. However what is of concern is the fading support to them within the country.

Chalapathi Rao another artist who had been to Germany in the past was elated at the response of the foreign audience to their shows and also by the lifestyles and development in those countries. He stated that he had been to new worlds he had never dreamed of in life and thanked his stars.

Rama Krishna another artiste who had performed in USA a few years ago expressed his gratitude to the government for resurrecting the old art form. Another artist, Kulayappa, says that he had been to Mysore, Tirupathi and other metro-cities and gave performances.

More than 50 artist families are urging the Department of Tourism and other government departments to build an artisan village and help the artistes thrive. They are urging the department of Tourism to adopt their village and build an artisans village besides hiring their services to entertain tourists.