Kaavad story telling is a 400-year-old folk art of
Rajasthan. Stories from Ramayana, Mahabarata and folk tales are narrated with
the aid of Kaavad Boxes.
Kaavads are wooden boxes with multiple doors. The box is
colored in red and stories are painted on each door of the Kaavad. The story
teller is known as Kaavadiya Bhat. He narrates a story by pointing to the
images on the Kaavad with a peacock feather.
The New Indian Express writes
The stories are in a definite rhythm. They are stories from Ramayan and Mahabharat or folk tales or stories from his patrons’ lives.
While the Kaavadiyas come from the Marwar region, the artists who make the Kaavads are from the Mewar region. Satyanarayan, an artist sitting near Kojaram, is busy painting the Kaavad. He is the Suthar who makes the Kaavad. Kojaram says, “If we stop Baanchana (story telling), some calamity will befall on us and that will be our end.” Kaavad-makers have adapted to new patrons or jajmans.