| Butta
Bommalata
Marionette play is the oldest surviving art form in India. The marionette's
or puppets are made of different materials. Butta Bommalu are made
of bamboo, tamarind seed paste, paper, cattle dung or husk and hay. The
figures are coloured according to the tradition and used for plays.
It is made up to waist only and hollow inside. The dolls
are three to four times bigger than the human figures. A coloured
cloth is tied around the doll at the waist that covers the player who
enter into it. There is a hole in the doll at the navel through which
the artiste can see the outside world. Figures of
Siva and
Parvati ,Vishnu
and Lakshmi,
Garuda and Hanuman, Radha and Krishna are very common in Butta Bommalata.
It is presented at festive gatherings, car festivals, marriage ceremonies,
Navaratri celebrations, Ganesh immersion festivals and recently
in election campaigns. These puppets are large enough to serve as full
masks for men and women who dance to the rhythm of a Dappu or Mridangam.
Band, Dhole, Sonnayi are used as accompaniments in the Butta Bommalata.
The troupe consist of at least ten members four of whom are in the puppets
and dance, four who play instruments, one instructor and the troupe leader.
This is only a dumb dance, accompanied only by the sounds of instruments.
|
