Fiction Touch
Today I’m want to share a story from one of many people I adore, Ria from Papermoon Puppet Theater. It was posted on the 16th of August when the Taliban held Afghanistan and a day before Indonesia’s Independence Day. This was shared on @riapapermoon Instagram feeds, in a carousel format, using the Indonesian language. I translate and share it here (with Ria’s permission), simply because I think this story has touched my heart and needs to be spread.
First slide (cover post)
A video and music by Yennu Ariendra.
Second slide.
”I feel quite suffocated after reading news in Afghanistan.
Huff…
Alright, I want to tell a story…
Back in 2016, @pesta_boneka had invited a puppeteer from Afghanistan, who was happened met @_papeyo_ a year before, at a smoking room on campus in Germany.
We’re helping him find a sponsor for him to be able to come to Indonesia, but unfortunately, his visa was rejected by Indonesian Embassy in Germany.
So we planning to keep him able to join us via skype. Yes. Virtual. Before pandemic.
One afternoon, we listened to the long story about him, being an artist who needs to fly, out from Afghanistan after a Taliban bomb the theatre show which he and his community made. He and all of the communities have to save themselves. Their family is being terrorized, just because they made a theatre show.
While basically, Afghanistan is a nation with colourful cultures, rich in its arts, and filled with open-minded people.
And that conservative beliefs destroy everything.”
Third slide.
“He also told us, long before that bombing, every time they made a puppet theatre for kids, they will be surrounded by the Taliban army, with guns.
Before the show, every script will be checked, all of the stuff, like set, property, will also be checked by the army.
Imagine, children surrounded by the army with guns while watching a puppet show.
Then while the show goes on, the children are laughing happily, forget about the army with guns who surround them. The puppet’s scenes are so liberating, funny, and joyful. ‘ We just do what we are able to do to make them happy,’ said my friend there.
And unexpectedly, all the army are also smiling, enjoying the show. They lower their guns. But when the camera lens pointed at them, their faces changed dramatically.
At the end of the show, an army pat on my friend’s shoulder.
‘Brother, I don’t know, why I should stop you from doing this. But I never felt so much joy before. Thank you”
Fourth slide.
“Afghanistan conflict is suddenly felt so close to my life, as I heard it from my friend who experienced it.
He hasn’t slept for nights. He just replied to my short message. ‘Nothing that we could do, Ria. None of us could’
Literal desperation felt on his sentence. He is thinking about his family and friends who are stuck in his birthplace which is no longer the same.
Tomorrow is Indonesia’s Independence Day.
Ah, I know, there are still problems in my own country that needed to be taken care of.
But those Taliban army’s statements quite annoyed me.
The fact that there was some Taliban army, in that afternoon, smile while watching a puppet theatre, a thing they never experienced since they were young.
The fact that small happiness they felt and made them put down their guns.
The fact that for minutes, he thought, why does a thing that brings joy and made the children laugh have to stop?”
Last slide.
“At this point, I do realize, that freedom is not a free thing. It has to be fought.
I hope, our children have experienced the happiness that the Taliban army felt. So, when they grow to be an adult, it’s not too late for them to understand the feeling of liberation, laughing freely and be able to feel happy with other creatures on earth.
God, I hope those laughs can be put back to their face.”
Ria Tri Sulistyani. The founder of Papermoon Puppet Theater, the one who post this story.
I know Papermoon Puppets since 2015, but I have never watched them. It was because I'm not living in the same city as them and its ticket is always sold out when they have a tour in my city. They attract me because they look really stunning, like each of the puppets have their own soul.
Then in 2017, there was a project with Tulus song, “Manusia Kuat” (Strong Human). There was a little exhibition that gathers people that share their power, one of them is Papermoon Puppet.
It was my first time to acknowledge that Papermoon Puppets was a project started back in 2006 when a huge earthquake hit Yogyakarta. Ria tried to help them by entertaining the children while their parents are busy. After seeing the children happy in their eyes, Ria decided to continue her works. Years later, they growing magnificently.
Personal point of view
You can skip this part because this is just about my personal point of view.
When I read this post in the middle of the night, I crying uncontrollably. I found this story meant a lot to me personally, because it proofs that story, any medium you choose to tell can touch people in a certain way. Some people may forget how they feel when they got inspired, or simply take that feeling for granted. I tend to forget how to feel inspired and motivated by my own passion. That is why I feel so grateful the first time I know Papermoon Puppet’s story, their motivation to do what they do now.
And now, after I heard another story about a soldier who trained in a certain point of view can also be inspired by this, reminding me of what I love and why I keep trying to choose my own path.
