Keeping Thanjavur doll industry out of the doldrums is no child’s play Premium

Thanjavur's famous handcrafted thalaiyatti & uruttu dolls, made with papier-mâché & clay, have been a tourist souvenir for years. Despite a labour crunch, artisans continue to make these dolls with modern aesthetics & ingenious engineering.

Age cannot wither the charm of Thanjavur’s famous thalaiyatti (bobble-head) and uruttu (roly-poly) dolls, though the makers of these handcrafted toys have been facing a tough time for several years. Overtaken by plastic and battery-operated playthings, Thanjavur’s papier-mâché dolls that are secured to a clay base have found their niche as tourist souvenirs.

“I am not skilled in anything else, so I continue to make Thanjavur dolls. But my children may not follow me, and quite a few of the artisans in our area have gone into other trades,” S. Bhoopathy, a fifth-generation doll-maker, told The Hindu. Mr. Bhoopathy practises his craft at home near Punnainallur Mariamman Kovil, on the outskirts of Thanjavur, having joined his father at the age of 18. Their neighbourhood once used to host 40-50 families making dolls. Only around three have survived the passage of time.

“We have a steady demand, but a big labour crunch. During the COVID-19 lockdown, the government had arranged training sessions for youth under our guidance, but despite this, the number of skilled artisans is very low,” says Rajendra Prabhu, a traditional doll-maker from the village.

The art of making these dolls was brought to Thanjavur by Maratha ruler Raja Serfoji in the early 19th Century. The craft earned a Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2009 and reflects a homespun combination of modern aesthetics and ingenious engineering. “In my grandfather’s time, the dolls were made of terracotta and hence they were heavier. From my father’s generation, doll-makers have shifted to papier-mâché, plaster of Paris and other materials for the body. I follow my father’s methods, because I feel the dolls are more durable,” says Mr. Bhoopathy.

All the dolls have a lightweight body made of tapioca flour, papier-mâché and plaster of Paris cooked and kneaded to the consistency of ‘roti’ dough. Copper sulphate powder is added as a fungicide.

Each toy is made in halves, by pressing the rolled-out ‘doll dough’ into cement moulds, with liberal dusting of chalk powder. The dried halves are reinforced with sheets of paper at the back and glued together with a cooked adhesive that uses tapioca flour as the base. The dancer dolls have a heavier pedestal-shaped feet section made of clay. The roly-poly toys, on the other hand, use a bowl-shaped clay base (shaped with moulds) that ensures that the doll remains upright.

Once assembled, the dolls are sandpapered and hand-painted, with water-colours for the dancing doll and oil paints for the others. The dancing doll has four sections (including the arms that are individually glued to the torso), each balancing on the other with the help of inner metal loop hooks that create the light bobbing movement.