Agartala, Mar 22 : Puppets on strings, rods and hands enthralled hundreds of enthusiastic spectators at an event organised on the occasion of World Puppetry Day here on Saturday.

World Puppetry Day is celebrated with an objective to preserve and popularise the art of puppetry.

Several professional puppeteers and some new artistes in the field participated in the event.

The show enchanted the children and adults with interesting stories, endearing characters, colourful sets, lively music, songs and choreography.

Besides providing entertainment, the show also projected various socio-economic aspects encountered by the society.

"This is the first time I have seen a puppet show. Till now I have just seen the cartoon shows on the TV. But this is livelier than the cartoon shows. It was very interesting and I enjoyed it thoroughly," opined Sucheta Das, an audience.

Puppet shows are not just audio-visual medium, but multi-sensory and this form of performing art caters to the need of almost lively mode of entertainment.

"Technologically we have upgraded like sound, music and songs. And people liked it. Whatever the medium, be it a film, a drama, theatre or dance, if it is not up to date, people will not like your production," said Prabitangshu Das, organiser of World Puppetry Day programme.

Puppetry has been one of the most ancient forms of entertainment in India. It has been an effective visual art to convey varied messages to the society.

Puppetry amalgamates drama, music and painting into an imaginative medium to put across social ideas and religious or mythological stories to India's rural folks, who by and large, are illiterate or semi-literate.

Its character lies in its grotesque imitations of reality that draws the attention of the viewers with remarkable results. (ANI)