The district of Warangal, Andhra Pradesh, is strikingfor two different artistic viewpoints. This placeused to be the kingdom of famous Kakatya Dynasty, thegrandeur and power of which is reflected in the relicsof its magnificent fort, in the ruins of its majesticpalace, in the temples built during that period. Allbuilt in black stones with intricate designs. The palace, or rather its ruins, is particularly notablefor its strange, shattered flamboyance. Miles of area protected by ASI is scattered withunbelievable pieces stone carving. There is oneenormous palace hall with a huge throne facing an evenbigger dancing stage. All carved with amazing finesse.The same hall also accommodates a giant statue ofNandi, opposing a shivling. All the remains of walls,broken pillars, pieces of carved stones lying on thefloor all reflecting the past grandiose. Thestructure looks even stranger as it stands without aceiling. The two temples built during that period is, however,still functional. The surya-visnu-maheswar temple isnow basically a shiva temple with devotees dailyoffering their prayers. The other two idols aremissing; an angry looking lady sells prasadam in whatlooked like visnu temple. The other temple, thebhadrakali temple, was a pain to watch, not because itwas destroyed (it wasn’t), but because it isrenovated, and brightly coloured in white, pink andbright green removing all traces of antiquities. Theruins of palace looked much more awe-inspiring,proving that sometimes intention to preserve can domore damage than invaders. Far from the magnificence of the kakatya kingdom, inthe same district of Warangal, there existed an art ofnarrating stories with the help of dolls and scrollpaintings. Nobody determined the exact antiquity ofthis practice because it escaped the hullabaloos ofpower and grew in the quite of a village called ofCherial. They painted khadis in bright colours withlegends from puranas as well as local tales, from bothhindu and mulim legends. The ‘nakasi’ in older dayscould run into several feets depicting long episodes.Similar tradition is also available among the patuasof Bengal. It is also possible that the idea travelledfrom one place to another. The balladers of differentcommunities, like the Dakkilis, Madigas, Mallas,Padmashalis used them to narrate stories. TheMandahechulus, a sect of wandering performers useddolls for the same purpose. And like the nakasis,these dolls also reflect the simple excellence ofCherial artists. These light dolls were made on astructure of light ‘Poniki’ wood (the masks aresometimes made on coconut shells), plastered withtamarind and sawdust paste. These are then bandagedwith strips of cloths and smothered with lime and calkpowder paste. Lastly the dolls are coloured andvarnished.Apparently, in an age where even entertainment isstandardised and homogenised, such rustic form ofcraft gradually died down. But it revived, thanks tothe effort of a man named Ventakaramaiah. He continuedto keep this beautiful tradition of nakasis an Cherialdolls alive. Till now he and his family has no othermeans of livelihood than creating these art pieces.His educated grandsons now bear the responsibilitiesof marketing along with making them. To day Cherialdoll, masks and scroll paintings are becoming more andmore popular getting prestigious assignments andorders.There is a story regarding the fall of Kakatya dynastyand rise of Vijanagar Kingdom. It goes like this…after the fall of Warangal fort in the hands ofAllauddin Khilji, the associates of the slain kingPratapaditya ran into a forest for refuge. There theysaw a tiger chasing a rabbit. After reaching a certainplace the rabbit turned back and attacked the tiger.Confused and shocked, the tiger fled the place. Theassociates of the king, among whom were Harihara,decided to build the new kingdom there.Cherial craft like that small rabbit resisted theravages of time, while the palace lies in ruins.
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