Ni Nyoman Tjandri works her ways as puppet master

Ni Nyoman Tjandri works her ways as puppet master

Tri Vivi Suryani, Contributor, Gianyar

Ni Nyoman Tjandri was once an accomplished classical Balinese
dancer before she landed on the puppetry stage as one of the few
female puppet masters in Indonesia.

Tjandri never dreamed of becoming a dalang, or puppet master.
By the time she was seven years old, Tjandri had already mastered
numerous Balinese dances, including the two most difficult ones
-- the baris and legong Keraton (palace) dances.

Born to an artist father from Banjar Mukti in Singapadu,
Gianyar, Tjandri was familiar with and fond of all forms of the
Balinese performing arts, especially the arja, a Balinese
traditional drama that incorporates music and dance.

Her late father, I Made Kredek, was an arja player and a mask
master. He was also renowned for his mastery of the ancient
Javanese language of Kawi. Kredek was also an employee of state-
owned Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI). Little Tjandri was very
happy when her father took her to the studio to watch various
arts performances there.

The talented Tjandri gradually developed superb dance and
vocal techniques through profound interaction with her father and
fellow artistes.

Her active childhood and teenage years as a skilled dancer and
arja player were suddenly halted when her beloved father died in
l979.

"I was deeply saddened because he was not only a father but
also a teacher to me," Tjandri remembered. However, she further
realized she had to continue her father's artistic endeavors.

Tjandri later decided to learn the Kawi language to continue
her father's efforts to master Balinese literature. She went to
the well-known dalang I Nyoman Ganjreng. Instead of giving Kawi
lessons, Nyoman Ganjreng gave the girl four puppet figures,
including a giant figure and Arjuna, one of the Pandawa brothers
from the famous Mahabharata epic.

"I was very surprised when I received these leather puppets,"
Tjandri remembered. The puppet master, she said, told her she
had to master the Kawi language through wayang stories, mostly
derived from Ancient Indian and East Javanese epics and legends.

It was in l979 when Tjandri decided to learn the art of the
dalang seriously and intensively. In quite a short time Tjandri
had already mastered how to perform wayang parwa, which takes its
stories from the Mahabharata and wayang arja from the Panji
legend.

Wayang refers to a puppet, which is usually made of leather or
wood. All wayang performances present a story, which is told by a
dalang. Therefore, a dalang must master at least 100 stories from
the above sources (the Mahabharata and Panji). Moreover, he or
she must be able to enliven each of the characters portrayed with
distinctive vocal sounds.

"My husband was in the Army so he strongly applied military-
style discipline during my training days as a puppet master,"
said Tjandri.

Tjandri remembered how her husband, I Ketut Kecor, forced her
to get up very early in the morning and perform vocal exercises.

Within only three months, Tjandri made an important decision
in her life. She performed her maiden puppet show presenting the
story, Matinya Pandu, the Death of Pandu, an episode of the
Mahabharata in Merajan Agung, Singapadu, Gianyar. She dedicated
the show to her late father.

The audience warmly applauded her mastery with the puppets.

"I could not imagine how happy my father would have been if he
were still alive," Tjandri said.

Faithfully, she pursued her artistic expression through
puppetry.

Despite her relative success, Tjandri also found many
obstacles as a female dalang.

"One of the most difficult things for a female dalang was to
sit cross-legged for hours while clutching a wooden hammer in the
toes of my right foot with which I regularly strike a puppet box
to stress a plot of the story," Tjandri explained.

Being a dalang, one must have plenty of physical stamina and a
thorough knowledge of both the Ancient Kawi language and high and
low Balinese language, as well as its literature.

Other practical problems face a female dalang. "A Wayang
performance is considered sacred and therefore a dalang should be
physically and spiritually clean," she said. She added that when
she was menstruating, she could not perform any wayang shows.

Tjandri is now enjoying the fruit of her hard work. She is
frequently invited to perform, both on local and overseas stages.
In l983, she mesmerized the American public when she was in a
wayang performance in New York City. She also performed before
the King of Thailand in Bangkok in l996.
"I am so concerned that there is very little interest among young
women to pursue a career as a dalang," she said.

Her three daughters have chosen to become dancers. The
youngest, Ni Nyoman Somowati, is now teaching Balinese dance in
Germany.

"At least my daughters have shown a strong willingness to
preserve Balinese culture," Tjandri said.

Tjandri is also happy to pass on her dance skills to numerous
foreign students. "In my position, I feel so enthusiastic showing
our rich culture to my foreign students," she explained. Many of
them came from countries as far afield as Italy, Germany, the
United States and Japan.

Next April, Tjandri will be in a wayang performance in Paris.