Contemporary Indian Puppetry I Padma Shri Awardee Dadi Pudumjee at Indian Institute of Art & Design

Dadi Pudumjee is a pioneer in puppeteering and has been professionally involved in this space since 1976. He has many accolades to his name, including the prestigious Padma Shri, which he was awarded in March of 2011 by the President of India. He is also the holder of the Sangeet Natak National Award, Sanskriti Pratisthan Award, Delhi Natya Sangh Award, and Delhi Parsee Anjuman Cultural Award. He has held many prestigious positions in many international organisations. He was the President of UNIMA International from 2008 to April of 2021. He was also Director and Project Head of the UNESCO EU Project on HIV/AIDS and Substance Abuse with SBT Delhi.

The Communication Design department of IIAD invited Dadi Pudumjee to give the students an insight into the advancements of puppetry in India . The session was put together by IIAD and The Ishara Puppet Theatre Trust, which aims at upgrading performance skills, creating opportunities of collaborations and putting puppet groups and puppeteers together both in India and abroad.