Pictures and words: celebrating plurality through collaborative storytelling with traditional artists of rajasthan, india

Abstract

In Rajasthan, the western region of India, we find a folk tradition of storytelling that is unique for its verbal and visual quality that celebrates plurality. The Kaavad is a painted wooden shrine, used by the itinerant storyteller to recite stories and genealogies for his hereditary patrons. The multi-paneled box is covered with images that are identified by the storyteller as he unfolds the box. He uses the same image to recite multiple narratives and to identify patrons from various villages. Contrary to other practices where the image particularizes the word, here the word or voice particularizes the image. This makes the Kaavad highly inclusive because it allows an image to hold many stories and several persons to be a part of a narrative or shrine. Inspired and informed by our doctoral research around the Kaavad phenomenon, several media artefacts were created exploring the implicit relationship between words and images. We collaborated with the Kaavad makers and the storytellers to make animated films and illustrated books. In the illustrated book ‘Home’, we explored the idea of using images as ‘prompts’ for children to construct their own multiple narratives and to express their worldview around the themes of home and identity. The animated film Baat Wahi Hai (It’s the same story) made with traditional artists and storytellers suggests that there are mulitple ways in which ideas may be shared. In this paper we present our experiments with collaborative storytelling with traditional artists to create an awareness of cultural diversity and to celebrate plurality through words and images.