India is known for rangoli or in other words kolam! Though the words rangoli and kolam are used interchangeably, rangoli is usually drawn without dots and kolam is drawn starting with dots. It is my attempt to teach my nine year old some basic kolam. Rangoli and colors go together but kolam can be drawn without colors! It is considered as one of the folk arts of india!
Kolam or rangoli is drawn with rice flour or rangoli powder on the ground. It is then colored with beautiful colored powder. Indian women draw kolam in front of their house everyday early morning. It is like an exercise for them and the early morning weather is good for their health.
I taught my daughter a simple one. Draw 15 dots in a straight line. Besides it, draw 13 dots leaving one at the top and one at the bottom. Repeat till you reach 1.
Start from the center and connect the dots as shown in the pictures.
It takes time and a lot of practice to draw kolam with flour. Kolam is supposed to bring prosperity. On special occasions, the kolam is drawn with brick powder and white powder. Some people draw special types of kolam on Tuesdays and Fridays which are considered as auspicious days in India.
The purpose of drawing kolam with rice flour is to provide food to ants and birds. It is an invitation to goddess Lakshmi who gives prosperity and wealth.
There are many varieties of kolam and we tried “kambi kolam” too in which the entire kolam is drawn with lines and curves. The pattern runs around all the dots and we may not be able to tell where it was started.
The tamil month Markazhi is important month for kolam as women draw a very big kolam in front of their house for the entire month. When I was young, I used to get up 5 a.m in the morning to help my mom color the kolam.
Usually in India, kolam is taught by mother or grand-mother to the girls. I feel happy to pass this art to my daughter.
For more information on Kolam :
1. Wiki
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This is lovely! I had many students from India and they would have loved doing this in class. I will pass on to other teachers. Fun, engaging, and east to follow—-yet students could practice and improve. I think once children learn this they will want to try on their own, too, that is so nice.
Thanks Carolyn for your wonderful comment!
Thank you for explaining in such great detail! I’m looking forward to teaching this to my kids! We enjoy exploring other cultures!