Brief Description on Pavakathakali Puppets and it’s performance:

Puppeteers adopt Attakkathas texts of Kathakali and only four or five stories are performed. The stories, derived from the great epic ‘Mahabharata’, are presented in the form of a play. It uses the narration style similar to that found in ‘Kathakali’, the famous dance-theatre art-form. The head and arms of the puppets are made from ‘Kumbilu’ tree wood. Each puppet takes about a month to make. They exhibit detailed carvings.They are up to two feet in height
(between 30 and 60 centimeters high) weighing less than 2 kilograms, painted in various shades and adorned with gilded tin, transparent corals and peacock feathers. The conventions of kathakali character types in respect to costumes, headgear, make-up and color are followed in pavakathakali. A green face indicates a god, king or hero, whereas a red face indicates a villain. The puppeteers keep some puppets ready in their stock, which are essential characters for the performance such as ‘Tadi’, ‘Kari’, ‘Katti’, ‘Pacha’, ‘Minukku’, and more.

The puppeteer sits on an elevated platform manipulating the head is by the index finger and the arms by the thumb and the middle finger. While manipulating, puppeteers enact dramatic expressions which cannot be done by puppets. The performance lasts for an hour or two. The performance is accompanied by music produced using traditional instruments like chenda, cymbals and conch shells. The necessary illumination is provided by a brass oil-lamp called ‘Kuthuvillaku’. The puppeteers enter from the right blowing conch shells, beating a drum and singing songs from the Puranas.