This article looks at Rajan & Bibi, a hand-puppet series by Canada-based Punjabi artist Babbu (Babbulicious) that captures the tender bond between a grandson and his grandmother in Punjabi households. It discusses how Babbu uses humour, nostalgia, and everyday domestic scenes to celebrate intergenerational love, centering on Punjabi identity and the warmth of home within the South Asian diaspora.
The relationship between grandparents and grandchildren in South Asian homes carries a tenderness distinct from our dynamics with our parents. Grandparents often play the role of nurturers — less caught up in rules, less embroiled in conflict, and more immersed in day-to-day warmth, storytelling, and ritual. In Punjabi households especially, a dadi or bibi (grandmother) becomes an emotional refuge: the one who listens without judgment; who offers small comforts; who softens the sharp edges of discipline. They embody the continuity of language, recipes, idioms, and traditions and they stand as gentle protectors, shielding children from the criticisms of their parents. For many who grew up close to their grandparents, those memories remain the purest kind of affection, one that's woven into the fabric of a home.
It’s this familiar tenderness that comes alive in 'Rajan & Bibi', a series of hand-puppet skits created by the Canada-based Punjabi artist Babbu. Through simple, endearing puppetry, Babbu brings to life the relationship between a young boy named Rajan and his grandmother, Bibi. These are short, sweet, often humorous vignettes set around ordinary household scenesbut rooted deeply in Punjabi culture, family rhythms, and the inter-generational bonds. With hand-puppets, the creator animates moments such as the grandson’s antics, the grandmother’s gentle reproach or indulgence, kitchen glimpses, seasonal transitions, familial quips all in a light-hearted register that mixes nostalgia, humour and affection.
Born and raised in Punjab and now based in Toronto, Babbu, also known by his artist moniker Babbulicious, is a multidisciplinary creator, singer, and designer whose work often bridges humour, nostalgia, and cultural storytelling. Known for Punjabi-inflected pop songs like 'Gaddi Red Challenger' and 'Khand Mishri', he has built a distinctive voice within the South Asian diaspora, blending music, visual art, and digital media to celebrate everyday Punjabi life. Rajan & Bibi feels like a natural extension of that world: a continuation of his impulse to celebrate home, heritage, and the affectionate chaos of family life through accessible, handmade storytelling.
As an ongoing series, Rajan & Bibi take us into the disarming world of domestic belonging, cross-generation memory, and cultural rootedness—using puppetry, voice acting, and humour to evoke the feelings that many of us carry forward from our own childhoods.
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