The Hindu : Karnataka News : Striving to turn his dreams into reality

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Wednesday, Mar 05, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Striving to turn his dreams into reality

Girish S. Pattanashetti

Bhaskar Kamat takes pride in his efforts to keep a 350-year-old tradition alive

ON A TOUR: At a string puppet show presented by Bhaskar Kamat and his troupe in Hubli.

HUBLI: He does not have much resources to depend on. However, that has not stopped him from dreaming on and trying to convert his dreams into reality.

And, now the same zeal has prompted him to embark on a tour of the State with his 14-member troupe. The Infosys Foundation is helping him in this regard.

Meet Bhaskar Kogga Kamat, who belongs to the sixth generation of the family of yakshagana string puppetry artistes.

Hailing from Uppinakudru, a hamlet in Kundapur taluk of Udupi district, Bhaskar Kamat takes pride in his efforts to keep the 350-year-old tradition of string puppetry alive.

However, despite its history, the art is now on the verge of extinction due to lack of support from the Government and also from society.

“There is no point in just complaining as it would not lead us to any solution. If we take the initiative, God will help us in one way or the other; that is how the puppetry tour began,” told Bhaskar Kamat to The Hindu.

Bhaskar Kamat was in Hubli on Monday to present his string puppetry as part of “One programme for one district” under the “Uppinakudru Puppet Tour 2008”. Hubli was the fifth place in his itinerary. Bhaskar Kamat and his troupe will be busy till March 24, giving programmes in every district headquarters without taking any break.

During his tour, Bhaskar Kamat’s troupe would be presenting eight episodes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, to showcase its expertise in string puppetry.

While through the tour Bhaskar Kamat wants to popularise string puppetry, he has another long-term project in his mind, that of setting up a puppet academy. Through the academy, Bhaskar Kamat plans to impart systematic training of puppetry and set up a “gombe mane” (puppet house) where “gombeyata” would be held on a regular scale. More importantly, it ensure a livelihood for the artistes even as others get encouragement to learn the art.

He has with him a blueprint for a puppet house, which is likely to cost around Rs. 1 crore. Bhaskar Kamat knows that it is difficult to convert his dreams into reality but he doesn’t think that it’s impossible.

Having begun giving public performances at the age of 18, Bhaskar Kamat, who is now 40, knows how puppetry could be used for purposes other than entertainment. Bhaskar Kamat, who has toured France, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Pakistan and several places in the country presenting string puppetry, has now designed several puppets, which could be used for education also.

And, now he is using his “puppet tour” to show how puppetry could be used for education in schools and also for creating awareness on global warming and others.

“My plan is not just ensuring the survival of string puppetry as a folk art. It should be made relevant to society also, so that more people start learning it as an art and also explore its other possibilities,” he said.

He hopes that at least now the academies that the Government has set up start considering “yakshaganga gombeyata” as a folk art and take steps to help the artistes.

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