An Odyssey Through Kathputli Colony

Our Association, Its Transition and The Impending Demolition...

February 2012: We first visited Kathputli Colony. Anxious faces. Apprehensive artists. They were curious. Eager to know what we had come for. They were a bunch of young souls aspiring to make a mark for themselves. They had the determination and zeal to carry on the beauty of the puppets that are a legacy of their forefathers.

Multiple visits to Shadipur. Training sessions. And then came our first breakthrough.

June 2012: Our first show at Kalawati hospital.

We began Project Kayakalp with four artists from Kathputli Colony and came a long way. In

December 2012 we included 10 more artists under its ambit.

February 2014: We have conducted over 50 shows. The artists who had been driven to the margins and have now learnt the art of muppetry. They perform bilingual shows too. The performers whose potential till now found audience only in birthday parties, are now staging their own theatre performances.

These two years of working in the Kathputli colony have been inspirational. It has been a journey full of accomplishments, failures, understanding each other, but most importantly it has been a journey of self-discovery for the artists. They realized their capabilities. They are aware of the opportunities waiting ahead.

Kathputli colony redefines hope, ambition and passion. Every young boy here aspires to be the next Salman. Days reverberate with song and music, and houses are crammed with puppets and props. These may not be the fanciest of houses. But they won't ever let you leave without offering tea.

Kathputli colony with its open drains and narrow alleys, looks like any other slum, but it is an abode of artists. It has since generations nurtured talent, preserved our rich cultural heritage.

The world recognizes the immense potential these artists have. But sadly, Kathputli colony will be demolished soon. It will bring down with itself the dreams, the aspirations and the hope to survive.

They may have mastered the art of puppetry but they have been reduced to being puppets in the hands of the government. Forced to evacuate. Kathputli colony will cease to persist and it will bring with itself the decline of an era. Performing artists in Delhi shall indeed be history.

We urge you to support the spirit of Kathputli Colony. 

Shreysi Mehendiratta and Swarnima Gupta-