Folk Performing Arts of South India is a
tradition that has been severely challenged by television,
cinema, westernization, and changing lifestyles. Folk performances
that were extremely popular and regular in village festivals
of South India are now facing oblivion. Folk performers
are turning to other occupations for their livelihood.
DakshinaChitra
hosts regular folk performances and involves the performers
in interactive programs and workshops. We help them to come
in contact with a larger market.
We also encourage students and children to
learn folk dances and folk performances during Summer
Camps and Children’s Festivals.
From 1991 onwards the Madras Craft Foundation
with Ms. V R Devika spearheaded efforts to encourage the
growth and preservation of Devarattam. Devarattam was documented
and video graphed in its native setting. Kannan Kumar –
a senior Devarattam dancer and excellent teacher who was
working as a watchman for his livelihood was encouraged
to pursue his dance full time. This intervention and encouragement
motivated and instilled pride in the continuance of the
dance form. A school for the village children was set up
and they now systematically learn the dance. These children
were taken to the World Childrens’ Festival in the
Netherlands by V R Devika in 2002.
Kannan Kumar receives a monthly honorarium
from Madras Craft Foundation to encourage him to continue
his teaching of Devarattam. Kannan Kumar has currently conducted
workshops in schools in Chennai and surrounding areas for
more than 12,000 children. He is also in charge of training
DakshinaChitra’s own folk
performing art groups of children.
DakshinaChitra
also presents a shadow puppeteer, Selvaraj, who performs
every Saturday and Sunday and during all festivals. Highly
talented, Selvaraj is a one man show in the Tamil tradition
of shadow puppetry. He plays the tabla, maintains rhythm
and drama through an anklet of bells, sings the narration
of the story and manipulates the puppets. Selvaraj is also
one of our resource people in workshops on puppetry.
DakshinaChitra
has also trained its own troupes of village children in
Devarattam. The boys troupe now performs for TV Programs
and at institutions. The younger girls’ troupe is
still in training every Saturday and Sunday.
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