Thanjavur Doll

06 Jan 2024 3 mins Download PDF

Makers of the famed bobble-head and roly-poly dolls are facing stiff competition from electronic toys and e-commerce platforms, besides a severe labour crunch and shortage of clay.

Introduced by - The craft was brought to Thanjavur by Maratha ruler Raja Serfoji in the early 19th Century.

• Types - Thanjavur dolls are primarily of two kinds, one is the bobble-head version, and the other is the tilting doll (roly-poly) version.
• The dancing girl, one variation of a bobble-head doll, once tapped on the head, bobs its head in response, which is due to the metal string that links the head of the doll to its stable base.

Made of - The doll is made of terracotta, papier-mache (a mixture of paper, glue, flour and water), plaster of Paris and other materials.

• A mixture of vandal mann (fine silt deposited by rushing streams of water), kali mann (clayey riverbed mud), and manal (loose aggregate) is required to make the dolls’ pedestals.

Thanjavur doll earned GI tag in 2009.

• Fungicide - Copper sulphate powder is added as a fungicide.
• Making - All the dolls have a lightweight body made of tapioca flour, papier-mache and plaster of Paris cooked and kneaded to the consistency of ‘roti’ dough.
• Each toy is made in halves, by pressing the rolled-out ‘doll dough’ into cement moulds, with liberal dusting of chalk powder.
• Dancing doll - The dancer dolls have a heavier pedestal-shaped feet section made of clay.
• 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.

The dancing dolls are one of four papier-mâché handicrafts certified by the Tamil Nadu State government. The others are the two-piece moulded idols, multi-jointed figurines, and wall-hanging panels.

• Roly-poly - The roly-poly toys, on the other hand, use a bowl-shaped clay base (shaped with moulds) that ensures that the doll remains upright.
• Paint - Once assembled, the dolls are sandpapered and hand-painted, with watercolours for the dancing doll and oil paints for the others.