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Dolled up for the show
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Thematic kolus have been in vogue for a long time now. This is what some kolu addicts have to say...
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IT IS one of Chennai's more successful endeavours. It might have started small; like adding a few decorated dowry dolls to the puja. But it caught on, morphed into magnificent displays, often threading into themes. Navarathri in the city now means `KOLU' in capital letters. You see them even in banks and petrol bunks, the enthusiasm spurred by the possibility of prizes.
If you think `theme' is a recent invention, read this. It's been there forever. Remembers Saroja Balasubramanian, "My mother-in-law (film maker S.S. Vasan's wife) used to fill up our huge halls with fantastic sets. In 1952, when "Avvaiyar" was released, Gemini artistes re-created the story in our living room. We still have a model of the drum scene in "Chandraleka". Our rangoli was a talking point."
She was not alone. The AVM family and Darmesa Mudaliar had their own displays. So had the Vaidhi Subramanyam family at Navasuja. "We live in the annexe now," says Seetha Vaidyanathan, and kolu isn't the same. She had helped her mother-in-law conduct the coronation in 1953 in her spacious hall. She herself has interpreted the nine planets, Krishna's antics and the four matas. She has tried a `modern' line with a mechano-set. After 35 creative years, she is tired. Still you might catch a glimpse of Mangadu Kamatchi in her place this time. "I can't let my dolls sleep. I feel sorry for them," is her excuse. Seventy-year-old Saroja Vaidyanathan's one-foot wooden `Gowri' dolls are ready to go on stage. The stage, this year, is the mini-version of Ramakrishna Math's Universal Temple. Sarada Devi and the Paramahamsa will sit in its shadow flanked by Swami Vivekananda. A benevolent Kali will watch over them. Saroja's dolls have had their annual make-over since 1965. These eco-friendly figures cost just Rs. 50 a piece in Bangalore all those years ago. Wowed by the scenes, artists created at Calcutta's puja pandals, Saroja began to remodel her Kolu. Artisans there produced majestic episodes out of cheap materials, she noticed, because all of it would end up in water. She started a systematic collection of jewellery, weapons and artificial hair. Over the years, her dolls have retold wonderful tales from our rich mythology.
In 1994, she switched tracks. She celebrated her son's wedding with Seetha Kalyanam and grand-daughter's birth with a doll valaikappu. She joined a local kolu competition and heard a judge say she should dabble in current affairs. Her artistic recycling keeps the annual cost down to less than Rs. 500.
Frequent award winner Viswambal Veluswamy is a kolu addict. Twenty years ago she turned to current events. The Vietnam war was fought on her living room floor as part of the world scene. Television, newspapers and sometimes just a look outside her window stimulate ideas. Famous world monuments, the Olympics, the Lion King, the Gujarat earthquake, Veerappan abducting Rajkumar, the MRTS and the Jurassic Park, have all found their way to her upstairs area. Viswambal thinks, breathes and plans kolu all year round. So does her family of husband, mother and two sons. Help comes in the form of research, models from abroad and handwork till late at night. Information about the event is put up on the walls around and a multi-media presentation greets the visitors. Her best effort? The Kashmir Valley she created on the 50th Independence Day under the heading "When will we solve it?"
The award for enthusiasm goes to Susila Subramaniam (76). "Think big, do big," she tells her family at a pre-kolu meeting. Once the concept is analysed and accepted no effort is spared to get the right materials, artists, decorations and gifts. Kolu sales and Khadi Bhavans are raided. Where once Lord Krishna was born and Muruga blessed from his six `houses', Kancheepuram shone in all its magnificence. And two years ago, when water shortage hit the city, Susila had Bhagiratha bringing it down with his penance. There's nothing her Gowri dolls cannot enact; her hexagonal platforms will not depict. Susila's kolus are accompanied by matching gifts, music concerts and kanya pujas. Kalpagam Srinivasa Murthy has hoisted a spectacular show of four stories based on Pathram, Palam, Pushpam and Thoyam. To make sure her research reaches her invitees, she puts down the concept in her invitation card. Her attachment to kolu springs from her Navarathri wedding. And the dowry? Money to buy kolu dolls. From the few `Gowri' dolls bequeathed by her artistic mother-in-law, her priceless collection of figures has grown `with the family'.
"I have tried most of them," she says. "Celestial weddings, stories from the Ramayana, Tamil literature, the four aspects of life, women Bakhts..." Decoration or arrangement, she has no help.
"I spend hours to get their jewellery, posture and expression right." A beneficiary of her `Information, Education, Entertainment' themes was Galena Zakarov, a constant visitor from the Soviet Cultural Centre across. Others include elders from Vishranthi and students of the American School. Her displays generate essay competitions and quizzes.
Passion for literature pushed Lakshmi Jayaraman to stage the seven Shakespearean ages of man. She broke tradition twice by getting her kolu ready a week before that year for a magazine. Her three-feet dolls have drawn parallels between Kalidasa and Pammal Sambanda Mudaliar, explained nava sakti, nava rasa and nava graha through literature. Last year, her take on friendship had Sudama-Krishna, Kalidasa-Bojaraja and Wordsworth-Nature as examples! It may be a variety show but a lot is common behind the scenes. Bharat Mata and national integration are perennial subjects. Research and preparation run for months. Shopping all year. Every activity is a theme search. Many of the kolus owe their beauty and authenticity to a joint family collection.
Should kolus be contest-driven? "Competition is ok," says Sharadda, Susila Subramaniam's granddaughter. "We are keeping a great tradition alive." What happens when you don't get a prize? "That is ok. Better luck next time." That of course is the essence of this exhibition.
GEETA PADMANABHAN
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