“Man is a puppet in the hands of God. Once the string is cut, his life ends.” The puppetry metaphors come fast and easy to T. S. Murugan, the third generation exponent of Bommalattam, a folk art whose existence in the State itself seems to be hanging on a string.
The Sri Murugan Sangeetha Bommalatta Sabha is the last surviving puppet theatre troupe of its kind in Kumbakonam, a far cry from the days when at least four companies were kept busy by patrons in the small temple town, and several more entertained audiences all over Tamil Nadu.
Murugan, who visited Tiruchi with his 7-member troupe recently for a series of shows at the Rasika Ranjana Sabha, dropped out of school to join his father, ‘Kalaimamani’ awardee T. N. Sankaranathan, a legend in the field, especially for his talent in adapting Carnatic music to the puppetry idiom. Sankaranathan, 89, who no longer tours with the troupe, learned the art from his foster father Mani Iyer, and was trained formally in music by ‘Violin’ Rajamanickam Pillai.
Tough competition
The rich heritage notwithstanding, Murugan says it is getting harder for his troupe to compete for the attention of audiences more used to electronic entertainment. “In the olden days, we used to do plays based on Harishchandra . Then it moved on to Valli Thirumanam and plays of Sankaradas Swamigal. Now, my father and I have prepared some 10-15 stories more suited to our times. [Epic characters] Arunagiri Nathar, Sabarimalai Ayyapan, Siruthondan Nayanmar and Bhakta Prahalada are all featured, but sometimes we have to listen to the audience too. In a village, for example, when they ask for cinema songs, you have to oblige, whether you approve of it or not,” he says.
So, along with puppets (mostly 3-feet high and weighing around 10-15 kilos) togged out in traditional costumes, the troupe has also got characters in more updated wardrobes.
Vanishing patronage has truncated several other traditions as well.
“Performances are no longer three to four hours’ long. We are down to a little under two hours these days. We’ve had to trim the orchestra too – I take care of the dialogue and keyboard (that has replaced the harmonium) while we have one person to play the mridangam,” says Murugan. “As you condense for the sake of the budget, you also end up overloading one artiste with the work of many,” he rues.
Works of art
Bommalattam puppets are among the largest and most ornate dolls of their kind in India, and it wouldn’t be wrong to call them works of art in their own right. “A Bommalattam artiste has to know not just about dramatics, music and puppetry, but also be a good carpenter,” says Murugan, whose younger brother Ravi is in charge of producing the dolls used in the theatre. Another brother Gopi assists him with the show production, while son Karthikeyan is learning the ropes as he balances his college studies with the family occupation.
The head, body and limbs of the puppet are made separately out of the lightweight ‘kalyana murungai’ (Indian coral tree) wood, and then reinforced with moulding paste and paint before they are connected with the help of wires. The embellishments add to the weight of the dolls. The strings for manipulation are tied to an iron ring which the puppeteer wears like a crown on his head.
Some of the more ‘modern’ puppets are manipulated with the help of two sets of strings, one for each hand of the puppeteer.
As Gopi unpacks a male puppet from a canvas kit bag, and demonstrates a simple namaskaram, eyes light up in the circle of onlookers.
“Your shoulders start paining within 10 minutes in a show, because of the weight of the puppets,” says Gopi. “We keep changing the artistes behind the curtain, to give them enough time and energy to keep the show going without a break.”
Still in the field
It may look rudimentary, but Bommalattam has managed to incorporate elements of variety hall entertainment and slapstick comedy to keep audiences engaged.
Sri Murugan Sangeetha Bommalatta Sabha has been performing for the erstwhile Ramnathapuram royal family for 70 years without a break, and it is a regular invitee to the Sri Subramanya Swami Devasthanam in Kumara Vayalur village for the past 38 years.
Its puppets have starred in films like Indian, Avarampoo, Sigappu Malargal and Manthira Punnagai .
The troupe is now working on a new play on Ramanujam, for which 60 puppets will be required. “We will be making 10 new puppets, and will add the 50 we already have to the ‘cast’,” says Murugan.
A new puppet takes up to two months to make, and the most basic doll costs around Rs. 30,000. Repairing broken dolls can be costly too, at Rs. 10,000 a pop.
Often overlooked in official folk art forums, Murugan likens Bommalattam to “a lamp within a pot whose light cannot be seen.” Proof of its antiquity may be found in its mention in the Thirukkural , as also in anecdotal legend of how Thiyagaraja Swamigal gave up writing songs in Ananda Bhairavi raga after it was sung exquisitely by Bommallatam exponent Atmaraman.
“Both man and doll are prone to damage and have a limited life span. Till then, we must do the best we can as human beings,” concludes Murugan.
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
A flair for the arts
T. N. Sankaranathan was born in Kumbakonam, in 1926. Despite being visually impaired from birth, the young Sankaranathan had a flair for the arts.
Sankarathan was interested in drama, and had acted in several religious and historical plays as part of Vani Vilasa Sabha (Kumbakonam) and Boys Company while being trained in Carnatic music by Violin Rajamanickam Pillai. While singing songs for Bommalattam for his foster father Mani Iyer in the early 1930s, he started acting in plays on social activism, directed by lawyer, activist and arts lover E. Krishna Iyer, and toured widely outside Tamil Nadu.
Born as Sankaran, he was given the title of ‘Nathan’ for the musicality of his voice and his talent in using a folk art like Bommallattam to explain social and religious ideas with the help of music, at the Agama Silpa Sadas in 1968, by Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham.
The Bomalattam exponent received an ocular implant at the age of 40, and since then has had vision in one eye. Sankaranathan has stopped touring with his troupe due to his advanced age.
