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Shadow puppet enthusiasts hope robotics can save ancient art
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Ancient tradition: Popular in Indonesia and Malaysia, wayang shadow puppets tell a story, usually taken from Mahabharata or Ramayana. (JP/Tyler Blodgett)
M
alaysian college lecturer Ahnaf Hakimi Ahmad hopes to save the ancient tradition of shadow puppetry using 3D-printed figures controlled by robotics instead of people.
Wayang kulit, a theatrical art form once popular across Southeast Asia, particularly in Indonesia and Malaysia, is traditionally performed with figurines crafted from buffalo skin, whose shadows are cast onto a screen.
Ahnaf, 33, hopes his invention, which is funded by a 20,000 Malaysian ringgit (US$4,244) grant, can allow people to enjoy the rapidly fading artform "whenever and wherever".
"Most of the teens and youths today lean more toward social media and television programs. So, with this animatronic shadow puppet show, it will be a new phenomenon for these youths," he said at a performance at a mall in Penang island.
Wayang usually depicts epic Hindu tales such as the Ramayana in hours-long theatrical and musical performances, but some in Muslim-majority Malaysia consider them un-Islamic. There are only about eight active wayang troupes in the country today.
To counter the criticism, Ahnaf and wayang master Mohd Jufry Yusoff, who has advised on the animatronics performance, also tell stories of modern everyday life with their robotic puppets.
