Putulnama: A biopic on India’s vanishing rod puppeteers competes at 30th KIFF
Times of India | 6 December 2024
123 Kolkata: A biopic on the last surviving artistes who practise ‘daanger putul' (rod puppet) is competing at the Asian Select (NETPAC Award) of the 30th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF). In India, this distinctive form of puppetry is practised exclusively in South 24 Parganas, Midnapore and Howrah districts of West Bengal. In this digital era, this art form no longer captivates the rural audience. In ‘Putulnama' ('Dolls Don't Die'), National Award-winning director and writer Ranajit Ray utilises the tale of this puppeteer as a metaphor for all marginalised practitioners of vanishing art forms across the globe.
Ray discovered this artistic expression approximately six years ago whilst documenting puppetry in West Bengal for the Film Division. "I discovered it at a village fair through Madhab Chakraborty. This rod puppet theatre, often dubbed the poor man's jatra, features human-sized puppets, allowing visibility to large audiences," Ray said.
Chakraborty consented to filming provided the director understood his life as much as his craft. "People often take photographs and videos. But those are of no use. Ranajit-da has a deep attachment for me. That's why he could make a film like this," Chakraborty said.
The film, which has a blend of humour and poignant observations about the fate of niche artistes, has some captivating visuals of Chakraborty in his twilight years. "My film paints a poetic tableau of his journey—a delicate dance between the harsh rhythms of reality and the sublime melodies of an artist's dreams," the director said.
Chakraborty is now anticipating the Nandan 2 premiere of his film. "Earlier we would have 300 shows a year, now the number has dipped to 40-50. Usually, the shows happen at village fairs. The next show is in April. We get Rs 12,000 for a show with 12 people. The old artists are all dead. There are no replacements available," Chakraborty said.
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