Masters Of Disguise

Behrupiyas leave a lasting impression with their performances, but like most things traditional, their art form, too, is dying
 

- Arvind Jain

Gaon walon !” booms Babloo’s voice, waking up a sleepy and desert-ed village near Jaipur. The doors and windows of its tiny houses creak open, and curious eyes peer out. Babloo, dressed up as Shera Daku from the 1966 Hindi film with the same name, flaunts his gun and mouths a dialogue. Children—their eyes wide with awe—follow him as he keeps walking slowly. Suddenly, he turns back with a roar and the children scatter away with a scream. But soon, they realise it is an act and burst out laughing.

Babloo is a behrupiya—an impressionist who practises a traditional art form that is several centuries old. Similar to street theatre, it is usually performed in villages. In the old days, behrupiyas were the main source of entertainment everywhere—from village squares to royal courts. The kings would employ them as spies, too, because they were adept at changing appearances and looks. Today, Rajasthan is home to the maximum number of behrupiyas in India.

Initially, the costumes and characters were inspired from mythology, but now behrupiyas can be seen in many getups—from police inspector and dacoit to Charlie Chaplin, Gabbar Singh and other popular film characters. Many a time, villagers take a behrupiya for a real policeman or a dacoit, and this expertise earns him reward and recognition. Each behrupiya has his own set of villages that he travels to every year, usually during the harvest and festival seasons.