The Puppet Museum at Galle Road, Walagedara, Balapitiya was established in March 2017 as the first museum for puppets in Sri Lanka.
As an art form that is fast disappearing the traditional puppets of Sri Lanka are getting a new lease of life in a museum that is dedicated to their cause.
On a recent visit to Sri Lanka, I was travelling from my hotel Jetwing Saman Villas to Ambalangoda and it was a chance sighting of a board with the signage, ‘Puppet Museum’ that caught my eye. Intrigued, I stopped to visit the place and was lucky to find that the predominant objective of this establishment was to preserve the culture of string puppetry which originated within the area of Balapitiya.
The small museum has an interesting collection of string puppets and puppet art. The museum explains the production process of a string puppet and has a fairly large display of puppets that have a connection with Sri Lanka. You can also experience a live puppet show on a stage here as well as purchase art products like masks and string puppets at the small store attached to the reception.
At the museum I found out that string puppet art is the most prominent art category compared to other puppet arts in Sri Lanka. The traditional string puppet art was started by Ganwari Podisirina during the 1830s. During that period in the areas such as Ambalangoda, Balapitiya, Kandegoda, Paragahathota people would carve puppets as a hobby. Podisirina gathered all of them and made a one group with different abilities. He started a system called ‘Puppet Drama’ where the puppets were used for performances.
Interestingly, the puppet shows are referred to as Rūkada Nātya, locally and provide light entertainment with some moral lessons to village communities. This is only performed by family groups who belong to, or are connected with the lineage known as Gamwari, living around the southern coastal towns of Ambalangoda, Balapitiya and Mirissa. The themes are chosen from folktales, Buddhist stories, ancient literature, historical narratives, and trivia with humorous anecdotes from contemporary life or nadagam, an extinct form of ‘folk opera’.
The face, hands, legs, and other body parts of the puppet are made from wooden clogs of the Kaduru tree (cerbera odollam). The parts are attached in a specific order to make the puppet. After this the puppet is carved, painted, and dressed. Walking through the museum, the various displays have small placards with their stories.
For instance, one of the displays shows the story of ‘Sirisanagabo’s Head Donation’. This story is of the brother of King Sirisangabo, Gotabhaya who conspired to obtain the kingdom. When King Sirisangabo found out, he abdicated the kingdom and voluntarily left to stay in the jungle to live a life of meditation as a hermit. But brother wanted to have Sirisangabo’s head and announced a reward for the same. One day a poor peasant passed by the jungle shared a meal with Sirisangabo without knowing his real identity. When the peasant told him about the current situation of the country, Sirisangabo, revealing his identity, offered him his head.
There are several other puppets on display here that depict several stories mainly from the country’s royal past. One of the contemporary puppets on display here is called ‘Night in a hotel’ that shows a new age couple wearing modern clothes looking at each other. There is a disclaimer as well that states that this is a non traditional puppet that can only be seen at this museum.
Step outside the museum and you can see some of the larger puppets hanging from a large tree in the garden area. I am also given to understand that several projects are organized each year to popularize puppet art in Sri Lanka and abroad with the collaboration of Ministries for Culture, Education and Tourism. The founder and Present Chairman of the Museum, Sarath Abeygunawardena is also towards these goals with the help of well experienced traditional Puppet Artists. Puppet shows, research wing sessions, seminars and lectures are conducted at the museum. As a space that is doing its bit to preserve an art form that would have otherwise disappeared, the puppet museum is certainly making the case for art with a heart.
The Puppet Museum is open from Monday to Sunday 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. Closed on all public holidays. The entrance fee is 1000 Sri Lankan rupees.
