The ritual of drawing in the
floor in the mornings or during festivals and marriages is a pan Indian
culture. These floor paintings are known by different names across India, alpona in
Bengal and Assam, aripana in Bihar, pakhamba in
Manipur, jinnuti in Orissa, mandana in
Rajasthan, rangoli in Maharashtra, sathia in
Gujarat, chowkpurana or sona rakhna in Uttar
Pradesh, likhnu in Himachal Pradesh, apna in
Almora and Nainital region, kolam in Tamil Nadu, and
muggulu in Andhra Pradesh. Each region has its own uniqueness and
pattern in the floor paintings.
My interest as such is in the pattern of padi kolam or kanya kolam, which I have been familiar with from my childhood days and have grown seeing the women of the family adoring the floor with their creativity in the early morning hours, even before they had something to drink or eat.
Kolam in tamizh has many meanings. It means beauty, gracefulness, a form or shape, adornment or decoration. Kolam are the ornamental figures drawn on floor, wall or sacrificial pots with rice flour, white stone powder etc. Padi kolam is a variety of kolam, which is in practice mostly by the Tamilnadu brahmin community. It is an artistic tradition of the brahmins. It is also known as kanya kolam and is elaborately done during festivals and marriage functions. On occasional days rice flour paste is used with kavi, red sand paste to do the kolam.
As a child one of my fondest memories of this tradition is where the ladies of the whole street draw grand kolams in the street when the god comes in procession, for welcoming the lord. And also, during the season of margazhi, where there will be a unsaid competition between the kolams of each and every house. I speak of a season where there were minimal apartments and more of individual types of house which have a good open patio. Even today place like west mambalam and mylapore in Chennai carry on this tradition to some extent and you can see the women of the houses drawing kolam in the early morning hours.
What are these floor paintings? Are these mere decorations and beautification? Do they have underlying meanings which have been forgotten with time? Are they welcoming signs; expressions of gratitude or description of desires? These question makes me ponder on the inner meaning of a very ancient artistic tradition.
All the padi kolams that are presented here are drawn by me for various occasions. I wish to continue giving both visual and literary treat. I wish everyone who are interested to come forth with valuable points for discussion.
My interest as such is in the pattern of padi kolam or kanya kolam, which I have been familiar with from my childhood days and have grown seeing the women of the family adoring the floor with their creativity in the early morning hours, even before they had something to drink or eat.
Kolam in tamizh has many meanings. It means beauty, gracefulness, a form or shape, adornment or decoration. Kolam are the ornamental figures drawn on floor, wall or sacrificial pots with rice flour, white stone powder etc. Padi kolam is a variety of kolam, which is in practice mostly by the Tamilnadu brahmin community. It is an artistic tradition of the brahmins. It is also known as kanya kolam and is elaborately done during festivals and marriage functions. On occasional days rice flour paste is used with kavi, red sand paste to do the kolam.
As a child one of my fondest memories of this tradition is where the ladies of the whole street draw grand kolams in the street when the god comes in procession, for welcoming the lord. And also, during the season of margazhi, where there will be a unsaid competition between the kolams of each and every house. I speak of a season where there were minimal apartments and more of individual types of house which have a good open patio. Even today place like west mambalam and mylapore in Chennai carry on this tradition to some extent and you can see the women of the houses drawing kolam in the early morning hours.
What are these floor paintings? Are these mere decorations and beautification? Do they have underlying meanings which have been forgotten with time? Are they welcoming signs; expressions of gratitude or description of desires? These question makes me ponder on the inner meaning of a very ancient artistic tradition.
All the padi kolams that are presented here are drawn by me for various occasions. I wish to continue giving both visual and literary treat. I wish everyone who are interested to come forth with valuable points for discussion.
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