Shikha Jha at 15:01, 23 December 2025

2025-12-23T15:01:31Z

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{{short description|Form of shadow puppetry practiced in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2019}}
'''Tholpavakoothu''' ([[Malayalam]]:തോൽപ്പാവക്കൂത്ത്, [[Tamil language|Tamil]]:தோல்பாவைக்கூத்து) is a form of [[shadow puppetry]] that is practiced in [[Kerala]] and [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]. It is performed using leather puppets and is performed in temples or in villages in specially built theatres. This form of art is especially popular in the [[Madurai district|Madurai]] and nearby districts of Madurai in [[Tamil Nadu]] and also in [[Palakkad district|Palakkad]],
[[Thrissur district|Thrissur]] and [[Malappuram district]]s of Kerala.<ref name="keralatourism">{{cite web|title=Tholpavakoothu|url=http://www.keralatourism.org/kerala-article/216/tholpavakoothu-shadow-puppetry.php|accessdate=4 December 2012}}</ref>
[[File:Tholpavakoothu_Image.jpg|thumb|210px|A scene from Tholpavakoothu]]
[[File:Image_of_Tholpavakoothu.jpg|thumb|210px|A scene from Tholpavakoothu]]
[[File:Puppet of Seeths.jpg|thumb|210px|Puppet of Seeta, under the Asoka tree]]
[[File:Tholpavakooth at Kollam.ogv|thumb|Performance by Ramachandra pulavar and team at Govt. S.N.D.P.U.P. School, Pattathanam, Kollam.]]

[[File:RamachandraPulavarPrd.jpg|thumb|Ramachandra Pulavar preparing the puppets before the show, Mumbai, 2017]]
[[File:Tholpavakoothu Broc.jpg|thumb|Tholpava koothu shadow puppet artists]]
[[File:Puppetry Stage.jpg|thumb|210px|Koothumadam, prepared for a stage show]]
[[File:EzhuparaInstrument1.jpg|thumb|Ezhupara, a percussion instrument used in Tholpavakoothu]]

== History ==
[[File:തോല്പാവക്കൂത്തിലെ-രാമ-രാവണ-യുദ്ധം.jpg|thumb|210px|A battle scene from the ''[[Ramayana]]'']]

Tholpavaikoothu is a [[compound word]] of three [[Tamil language|Tamil]]/Malayalam terms: தோல் (''tōl'') meaning leather, பாவை (''pāvai'') meaning doll and கூத்து (''kūttu'') meaning the play or drama. It is one of the two traditional Pavai Koothu that happened in southern India. The other one is "marappavaikoothu" also called ''[[Bommalattam (puppet show)|bommalattam]]''. The only variation is Bommalattam uses wooden dolls, while tholpavaikoothu uses Leather dolls. The earliest known mention of Pavaikoothu (both bommalattam and tholpavaikoothu) is in Thirukkural an ancient Tamil text of 300CE. The 1020th Kural mentions this. The performance language uses [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Sanskrit]] and [[Malayalam]] words. Like [[Mudiyettu]] and [[Patayani]], Tholpavakoothu is also an art form that is dedicated to Bhadrakali in Kerala. According to legend, Tholpavakoothu was performed at the request of Bhadrakali who could not witness [[Ravana|Ravana's]] killing as she was fighting the demon [[Darika]]. Thus when it is performed in temples, an idol of the Goddess is usually placed on a pedestal in front of the arena where it is staged.<ref name="puppetry">{{cite news|title=Reviving the ancient art of puppetry|url=http://puppetry.org.in/reviving.html|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=The Hindu|date=14 November 2009}}</ref><ref name="hindu">{{cite news|title=Enchanting Tholpavakoothu|url=http://www.hindu.com/fr/2008/09/05/stories/2008090550660500.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130125044810/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2008/09/05/stories/2008090550660500.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=25 January 2013|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=5 September 2008}}</ref>

== Performances ==
A ''koothumadam'' is a separate 42-foot-long stage on which Tholpavakoothu is performed. The stage has a screen, a piece of white cloth, behind which the puppets are held. The lighting is provided by 21 lamps lit in [[coconut]] halves or earthen lamps placed behind the puppets, causing their shadows to fall on the screen. The lamps are a placed equidistantly on a specially constructed wooden beam called a ''vilakku madam''. The performance is accompanied by the recitation of [[slokas]] and the performers are required to learn over 3000 of these before they perform. The recitation is accompanied by instruments such as ''[[chenda]]'', ''[[maddalam]]'', ''ezhupara'', ''[[ilathalam]]'', [[conch]] and ''cherukuzhal''.<ref name="thehindu">{{cite news|title=Fading away into the shadows|url=http://www.thehindu.com/arts/theatre/article3527929.ece|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=The Hindu|date=14 June 2012}}</ref><ref name="thehindu_a">{{cite news|title=Colourful tales from shadow puppets|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-kerala/article1539041.ece|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=The Hindu|date=15 March 2011}}</ref><ref name="mykerala">{{cite web|title=Tolpava Koothu - The Shadow Puppet Theatre of Kerala|url=http://www.mykerala.net/puppetry/index.html|accessdate=4 December 2012}}</ref>

A full Tholpavakoothu performance, staging all the episodes of the Kamba Ramayana, takes 21 days to complete with nine-hour performances every day, and requires 180 to 200 puppets. A full performance needs up to 40 artistes. The lead [[puppeteer]] is called a ''pulavar''. Traditionally, performances begin at night and go on till dawn. The show begins with a ''kelikottu'' and an invocation called ''kalarichinthu''.<ref name="hindu" /> Performances are done from January through May and during [[pooram]]s. A Tholpavakoothu performance can last 7, 14, 21, 41 or 71 days depending on the tradition at the temple where it is performed. It continues to be performed in over a hundred temples across Kerala.<ref>{{cite news|title=Shadow of the original|url=http://www.hindu.com/fr/2008/10/03/stories/2008100351230500.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007002740/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2008/10/03/stories/2008100351230500.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=7 October 2008|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=3 October 2008}}</ref>

== Puppets ==
[[File:തോല്‌പ്പാവ തിരശ്ശീലയ്ക്കു പിന്നിൽ നിന്ന്.jpg|thumb|210px|Tholpavakoothu puppet as seen from behind the screen]]

The puppets used in Tholpavakoothu used to be made out of [[deerskin]] but are now typically made from [[Goatskin (material)|goatskin]]. The puppets are painted in [[vegetable dye]]s, as these dyes last long. Some puppets can be as tall as four feet. The puppets are controlled using two sticks; the puppeteer holds the puppet in one hand while its limbs are manipulated using a thinner stick held in the puppeteer's other hand.<ref name="keralatourism" /><ref name="mykerala" />

== Puppeteers ==
[[File:തോൽപ്പാവക്കൂത്ത്-അവതരണം.jpg|thumb|210px|A Tholpavakoothu performance]]

The lead puppeteer is usually a ''pulavar'' which is an honorific given to a puppeteer who is also a scholar. Pulavars undergo intensive training in puppetry and have a deep knowledge of Malayalam, Tamil and Sanskrit. Puppeteers have to study the Kamba Ramayana and be well read in the [[vedas]] and [[puranas]], [[Ayurveda]], and be trained in classical music. However, some puppeteers forgo [[Indian classical music|classical music]] as it entails several years of study to master. It can take anywhere from 6 to 10 years of rigorous training for a puppeteer to fully master this art and be able to perform it.<ref name="puppetry" /><ref name="thehindu" /> [[K. K. Ramachandra Pulavar]] was the leading puppeteer in Kerala. He was born into a traditional family with a rich historical background; he had studied Tholpavakoothu by his great guru/father from the age of six.

== Threats and new trends ==
Tholpavakoothu, like many traditional art forms, has been facing the threat of extinction due to the arrival of alternate platforms of entertainment such as television and cinema and due to changing cultural values. The younger generation have increasingly failed to take up this art form as it is highly demanding and does not pay much. The audience for these shows have dwindled even in rural Kerala. To cope up with these social changes, the duration of many performances have been drastically reduced. Thematically, puppeteers have begun to introduce contemporary and secular themes to appeal to the youth. Themes such as [[ragging]], communal amity and stories from [[India's freedom struggle]] have been featured in recent years. Performances are no longer confined only to temples but are also held in secular venues such as colleges and at the [[International Film Festival of Kerala]].<ref name="thehindu_a" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Puppet show|url=http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/08/stories/2010060855170300.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100614104224/http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/08/stories/2010060855170300.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 June 2010|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=2010-06-08|accessdate=4 December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Shadow of death over Tholpavakoothu|url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2003/06/23/stories/2003062301980200.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050510152050/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mp/2003/06/23/stories/2003062301980200.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 May 2005|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=23 June 2003}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Shadow leather puppet play facing near death|url=http://www.thehindu.com/arts/theatre/article427885.ece|accessdate=4 December 2012|newspaper=The Hindu|date=12 May 2010}}</ref>

==See also==

* [[Chadar Badar]], puppet art of Santhal people of India
* [[Gopalila]], puppet art of Odisha state of India
* [[Kathputli (puppetry)]], puppet art of Rajasthan state of India
* [[Nokkuvidya pavakali]], puppet art of Kerala state of India
* [[Rabana Chhaya]], shadow puppet art of Odisha state of India
* [[Sakhi kandhei]], string puppet art of Odisha state of India
* [[Shadow play]], shadow puppet art which originated in first millennium BCE in India
* [[Tholu bommalata]], shadow puppet art of Andhra Pradesh state of India
* [[Togalu gombeyaata]], shadow puppet art of Karnataka state of India
* [[Wayang]], puppet art of Indonesia inspired by Indian puppetry

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Tholpavakoothu}}
* [http://tholpavakoothu.in tholpavakoothu.in] (Tholpavakoothu - A unique shadow puppet play)
* [http://puppetry.org.in puppetry.org.in] (Tolpava Koothu - Homepage in memory of late Guru Krishnan Kutty Pulavar)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140720081510/http://tholpavakoothu.org tholpavakoothu.org] (Tholpava Koothu - The Shadow Puppet Play of Kerala, India (archived))

{{Culture of Kerala}}

[[Category:Puppetry in India]]
[[Category:Kerala folklore]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Shadow play]]

Tholpavakoothu - Revision history

Shikha Jha at 15:01, 23 December 2025