Phoenix MarketCity and Palladium Chennai will conclude their month-long Puppet Festival with a performance by the Kolkata-based Tal Betal group, who will be conducting workshops and presenting their lively narratives through life-size and hand puppets at Phoenix MarketCity on May 18 – 19. Conceptualized and curated by Dr. Annapurna Garimella (art historian and founder of Jackfruit Research & Designs), the festival was envisioned as a part of Phoenix MarketCity and Palladium Chennai on-going program of events that bring together art and culture. The creatively designed program saw an overwhelmingly positive response from cultural enthusiasts across the city, who turned out in large numbers to be a part of the workshops and performances.
The festival kicked off on 27 April, with a weekend-long series of performances and workshops by a well-known puppet theatre group from Kerala who specializing in creating contemporary renditions of the region’s shadow puppet traditions. The following weekend saw performances by the Aaakaar Theatre Group from Rajasthan, with presentations of several of the regions puppetry styles including the much-celebrated kathputli and Dhola Maru.
The curation brought an artistic, contemporary edge to the festival with the Katkatha Trust, New Delhi performing their dramatic piece titled About Ram – a contemporary rendition of the Ramayana in a melange of puppetry styles from across India as well as a moving performance by celebrated Delhi-based artist Seema Kohli, who presented her piece Retracing Paradise: The Word for the World is Home. The piece was an homage to the artist’s lost ancestral land and heritage in the Jhelum district which is in modern-day Pakistan. The festival also invited three-time award-winning puppet artist Dr. Dattathreya Aralikatte for a weekend of workshops and performances inspired by his unique “Mudrika” style of puppetry.
Event Details
Saturday, 18 May 2019
Workshop by Tal Betal Puppetry Theatre
Venue: Phoenix MarketCity Chennai
Time: 12 pm
Performance of A Runaway Doughnut by Tal Betal Puppetry Theatre
Venue: Club Crest, Phoenix MarketCity Chennai
Time: 6 pm
Sunday, 19 May 2019
Workshop by Tal Betal Puppetry Theatre
Venue: Phoenix MarketCity Chennai
Time: 12 pm
Performance of Bhabam the Barber by Tal Betal Puppetry Theatre
Venue: Club Crest, Phoenix MarketCity Chennai
Time: 6 pm
