Gujarat’s Master Puppeteer Padma Shri Mahipat Kavi Passes Away At 96
Mahipat earned renown as a world-class puppeteer and was a recipient of the Padma Shri award in 2023.
Published : April 25, 2026 at 5:51 PM IST
Ahmedabad: Mahipat Kavi, a prominent puppeteer, writer, and international artist from Gujarat, passed away on Saturday. He was 96.
Kavi and his wife dedicated their entire lives to the art of puppetry and its unique traditions, a craft known as ‘Kathputli Kala'. For 51 consecutive years, Mahipat and his late wife, Leela, made significant contributions toward bringing global recognition to Indian puppetry through their organisation, the ‘Puppet Drama Institute’ (Puppet Natak Sanstha).
In 2023, Mahipat was honoured with the Padma Shri award for his outstanding contributions to the field of arts. He developed puppetry not merely as a medium of entertainment but also utilised it as a tool for education.
It was at the ‘Darpana Academy’ that Mahipat first began staging puppet plays based on Indian literature. Within Gujarat, he and his late wife produced over 150 puppet plays. The primary objective of these plays was to impart various educational lessons to children in a simple and accessible manner.
In addition to producing puppet plays, Mahipat was also an accomplished musician. He played a pivotal role in elevating Indian puppetry to a global stage and served as the producer for various puppet-based presentations featured in ISRO’s 'SITE' (Satellite Instructional Television Experiment) programmes.
Through a series of these programmes, such as the ‘Hoon Ane Mari Bhuri’ (Me and My Bhuri) series, featuring a buffalo puppet, and the ‘Gamdu Jage Che’ (The Village Awakens) series, utilising various types of glove puppets, the voices and thoughts of villagers were presented.
Mahipat witnessed many ups and downs throughout his life, and struggle remained his constant companion. As an artist, a man of immense character, Mahipat spent his entire life amidst struggle, yet he never abandoned the art of puppetry.
The tradition of puppetry in Gujarat was originally pioneered by Jain monks. Inspired by this very tradition, Mahipat introduced a remarkable fusion of rod puppets, glove puppets, shadow puppets, and foreign artistic styles into the puppetry landscape of Gujarat.
Utilising puppets imbued with profound human values, he dedicated himself to the propagation and development of Indian culture, specifically focusing on the expansion of educational awareness.
Mahipat performed his first show at a school; his residence, located in Naranpura, Ahmedabad, served as a veritable school for international artists. The home of the puppeteer is situated in ‘Patrakar Colony'.
For many years, his residence remained a training ground for visiting artists and students from outside the region. Numerous puppeteers, both renowned and unsung, learned the art of Indian puppetry at the home of Mahipat and Leela.
Mahipat’s inaugural puppet show was held six decades ago at a school, where the students collectively raised a sum of Rs 140. During his lifetime, Mahipat travelled to several countries, including Europe and New Zealand, and showcased the art of Indian puppetry. Mahipat’s puppet shows also featured themes based on stories from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
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