Puppetry and story-telling- Tracing the evolution of a fine art in India

Puppetry and story-telling

Which kid doesn’t love creating a puppet with paper? Readily available online hobby classes featuring puppet making for kids are immensely popular amongst little ones and their guardians alike. And why not? The opportunity to skillfully make your own puppet is a prelude towards discovering a wonderful new world of putting it to good use, i.e. for storytelling, communicating, and more visual forms of expression! DIY puppet making and story-telling are the core aspects of various fun activities for kids that you can help them pursue this season.

Whenever we talk of making a puppet or children putting up puppetry shows, there’s always that delightful association and link back to childhood nostalgia. Why not help your children experience the same wonders and marvels that this simple yet rich art form brings to their lives? The origin of puppetry as an ancient art is a fascinating tale by itself. Puppetry is one of the earliest ancient Indian forms of storytelling and communication. Mythology has some legends which highlight the sheer importance of this fine art. One speaks of how Brahma, the Creator, gave life to the first nat puppeteer, Adi, and built the first puppet for entertaining Saraswati. Unsatisfied with the work, he banished the puppeteer to planet Earth, starting a long line of nat bhatt puppeteers.

Another legend speaks of how an artisan-made two wooden dolls that captivated Goddess Parvati, consort of Lord Shiva. They entered the dolls and started dancing exquisitely. They ultimately left the dolls and the artisan felt sad at them turning lifeless again. With the blessing of the Gods, the artisan then came up with a system of using strings to move these dolls, and puppetry was thus born. In fact, you will be pleasantly surprised to know that puppetry has found mention in the Mahabharata, Patanjali’s texts, Panini’s grammar, and Tamil treatises dating to the 2^nd century BCE. Noted German scholar Richard Pischel has also stated that India is the source for the puppet traditions of the West. Puppetry and story-telling connection

What is puppetry’s connection to storytelling? It is basically narrative theatrical art and shows often encompass narrations, gestures, live music, and more. Puppetry is used to date for conveying diverse religious, social, moral, and philosophical concepts while also depicting tales from the epics or our rich mythological past and even for building greater awareness amongst the masses. Various types of puppets have thrived in India over the years, including string puppets, glove puppets, rod puppets, and shadow puppets among others.

Biggest Benefits of Puppetry for Kids

• Stimulates creativity, imagination, and communication.
• Encourages participation in story-telling and performance.
• Builds confidence and emotional development; many children often use puppets to communicate emotions/feelings that they would not have mentioned otherwise.
• Builds motor skills since puppets have to be moved and engaged in various ways.
• Teaches etiquette since parents may use puppets for communicating valuable philosophies/messages to kids. Communication can be made more fun without going into the usual mode which is often strict and preachy.
• Enhances reading and speaking skills while building group/social skills through participation.

One of the fun kid’s activities at home is puppet making offered by Yellow Class in the form of an engaging course for little ones. Treat your little one to online puppet-making classes and watch him/her enter a whole new world with literally unlimited possibilities and benefits!

Hope you loved reading this post about Puppetry and story-telling. Do check out here for more on parenting

If you are a brand and would like to see your products reviewed, please send an email at lifethrumyeyes11@gmail.com or you can also connect with me by clicking on any of these on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram.