Kolam

Kolam, also known as Muggu, Tarai Alangaram and Rangole, is a form of traditional decorative art that is drawn by using rice flour as per age-old conventions. It is also drawn using white stone powder, chalk or chalk powder, often along with natural or synthetic color powders. It is a part of the South Indian culture and found across all South Indian States. It can be found in some parts of Goa and Maharashtra. Since the South Indian diaspora is worldwide, the practice of kolam is found around the world, including in Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and a few other Asian countries. A kolam or muggu is a geometrical line drawing composed of straight lines, curves and loops, drawn around a grid pattern of dots. It is widely practised by female family members in front of their house entrance, although men and boys also practice this tradition. The similar regional versions of kolam with their own distinctive forms are known by different names in India: raangolee in Maharashtra, aripan in Mithila, alpona in West Bengal and hase and rangole in Kannada in Karnataka. More complex kolams are drawn and colors are often added during festival days, holiday occasions and special events.. Although kolam is sometimes referred to as a type of rangoli, the two terms refer to related but distinct traditions of Indian floor art: kolam typically denotes the daily geometric and symmetrical rice-flour line drawings practiced across South India, and is usually monochrome or lightly colored, whereas rangoli is a broader pan-Indian term for colourful floor and entrance patterns created on special occasions and festivals, with more emphasis on vibrant coloured powders and motifs.

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