On 2nd December 2023, we invited visitors curious about Indian traditional art to our archive. In a show-and-tell session, we introduced them to some ancient storytelling artforms, from the Sarmaya collection. For this session, we explored Mithila, Pattachitra, Mata-ni-Pachedi and Tholu Bommalaata. Some of the prominent works that we presented belonged to renowned artists like… Read more »
On 14th December 2020, Sarmaya Arts Foundation conducted a Virtual Workshop on the shadow puppetry tradition of Tholu Bommalaata forNeev Academy in Bangalore. The workshop was held via zoom for a small group of drama students from the 9th grade. The students were well versed with theatre concepts and styles from around the world.… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Arjuna on his chariot is from Tholu Bommalaata, a puppet tradition from Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Arjuna is the main character in the Mahabharata alongside Krishna. He is one of the Pandava brothers, who win against the Kauravas. Considered a… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Raja Harishchandra is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, ‘tholu’ means leather, ‘bommalu,’ puppets; and ‘aata’ dance. King Harishchandra is shown carrying a bow and a pack of arrows with a dagger on his waistband. Raja Harishchandra appears in ancient texts such as Markandeya Purana, Mahabharata… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Rama is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, ‘tholu’ means leather, ‘bommalu,’ puppets; and ‘aata’ dance. Valmiki, in his epic Ramayana, describes Rama, as an ideal personality and compares him with numerous gods and sages with many virtues. Rama is committed to Dharma even when exiled… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Lord Brahma is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Brahma is one of the Holy Trinity in the Hindu Pantheon. Here he is depicted with three visible heads and four arms holding the scriptures in one hand. He also wears a yellow… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Matsya Vallabha is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Matsya Vallabha in Valmiki’s Ramayana is the son of Hanuman. When Hanuman was flying across the sea after burning Lanka with his tail, a drop of sweat fell into the water which was… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Ravana is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. In Valmiki’s Ramayana, Ravana is portrayed as an opposition to Rama; the evil against the good. Ravana is a devout worshipper of Shiva. Apart from his physical characteristics, he is said to possess in-depth… Read more »
This shadow puppet of Lord Ganesha is from Tholu Bommalaata, puppet tradition of Andhra Pradesh in India. Here, tholu means leather, bommalu means puppets and aata means dance. Every Tholu Bomalaata performance starts with offering a prayer to Lord Ganesha asking for his blessings. He is an important deity in the Hindu Pantheon and is regarded as the remover of obstacles… Read more »
A disciple of the Wayang theatre of Indonesia, Michael Richardson found the shadow puppetry traditions of South Asia to be beautifully suited to telling American stories
The Sarmaya guide to the shadow puppetry traditions that peaked during the reign of the Vijayanagara empire in southern India
To balance the solemnity of narrating episodes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, Tholu artists like to bring in some laughs with the help of these trusty sidekicks
Artist, historian, storyteller. Meet the man in the shadows, the voice that embodies the spirit of Tholu Bommalaata
A Tholu Bommalaata performer pours their whole person into not telling, but showing you a story. Their hands cut, cure and craft the leather puppets. Their strong voices send the epics soaring into the night air. Every muscle in their body, from the arms working the figures to the toes beating out a rhythm on… Read more »
Sarmaya founder Paul Abraham talks about his love for Tholu Bommalaata and why we must protect this precious art form and the people and history it represents
Tholu Bommalaata is a shadow theatre art form that spread from India to Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the rest of Asia. Its history is linked closely to the shifting sands of royal patronage and human migration
The Sarmaya team travelled to Dharmavaram in Andhra Pradesh to understand what it takes to carry on such an ancient legacy of art. Watch our short film from this journey here
Made in China, made in India, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, or even Turkey, the tradition of shadow puppets has survived for a long time, the second century BC, some say. But as is also custom, scholars have many disagreements on its origins. Folklorist Stuart Blackburn suggests that this tradition, like Buddhism, travelled to the rest of… Read more »
How can Tholu Bommalaata puppets be used to talk about gender equality? These young learners can tell us.
This is a figure used in Tholu Bommalaata performances, Andhra’s shadow-puppetry tradition. The figure here is a hybrid with the head of a dog, complete with a leash around the neck, and the limbs and the lower body of a tiger or a lion. Except for the more recognisable forms, say of gods and goddesses,… Read more »