Art rooted in ritual

With the onset of the Margazhi season, here is how Chennai's kolam artists are keeping up with the traditional art form that we find on our doorsteps

- SONU M KOTHARI

EVEN before the crack of dawn, Chennaiites wake up to the musical notes of birds, the winter wind so chilly that it demands a woolen armour to brave the streets that stir to life as the day progresses.

Men, women, and children gather to sweep their respective thresholds and sprinkle water as a ritual and then create pattern of curves, grids, dots, lines, and loops.

This art form - kolam - holds a special significance during the Tamil month of Margazhi, which falls in December. Traditionally, kolam is believed to symbolise prosperity, good luck, and welcome goddess Lakshmi into homes. It is also said that kolam wards off evil energies and spirits.

Kolams are practised differently in different parts of the country: Pookalam in Kerala, Muggulu in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Alpana in West Bengal, Rangoli in Karnataka, and Sathiya in Gujarat.

Mention of this practice in Tamil lit can be traced back to Sangam literature, dating from the third century BCE to third century CE. "In this literature, the description of drawing kolams exactly matches the visuals seen on the streets of Chennai today. This shows how age-old the practice of kolam is," shares historian Meenakshi Devaraj.