Puppetry is a popular traditional art form in Indian that is being practiced since ancient times. Since early days, handmade puppets were used as used as an important means of communicating and educating the Indians. Many social groups in India continue employing puppetry to educate children, disabled and rural folks on a variety of subjects.
Study proves that the art of puppetry can be used to help in the development of speech, reading, hearing and motor-control in spastic children. It can also enhance artistic and creative abilities in kids like drawing, painting, needlework, carpentry, composing music, writing songs and stories. As such, many voluntary and educational organizations in India have been using the puppetry art towards these tasks.One will find many types of puppetry art forms being practiced in India. Take for instance the glove puppet. It’s small comprising a head, arms and a long skirt attached to a glove as the costume and worn by the puppeteer on his hand. The head and arms movements are controlled by the puppeteer by his fingers. This puppet form is more popular in Kerala and Orissa.
Then there’s the rod puppet. The puppets are made to act by the support of attached rods held by the puppeteer. They come in various shapes in sizes. While the rods to control actions are attached to hands, the main rod of the puppet is concealed in its costume. This type of puppet show is popular in Orissa and West Bengal. Similarly there is the shadow puppet. For this, flat two-dimensional puppets made of out animal skin are operated from behind a tightly stretched white cloth screen. Light is directed on the screen from behind in a way that the shadow of the puppet falls on it. The puppets cutouts have cane sticks attached vertically to them for handling and manipulation and are popular in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Orissa and Tamil Nadu.
