The art of Kolam is viewed as a ritualistic art form followed by the Tamil Hindu Women in Tamil Nadu. Women awaken before dawn and create these intricately complex designs outside their houses. The different patterns of Kolam which are drawn by women require them to pinch their finger tips in rice flour with the flour held between the index finger and thumb. Fingers swiftly move to accommodate different lines and curves in creating a desired pattern. The art of Kolam also requires a level of geometrical finesse and involves an ingrained mathematical aptitude related to estimation, symmetry and periodic precision. Women adept in making Kolam are also equipped with exceptional dexterity and speed.
One of the main importance of this art form is its ecological significance. The art of Kolam is linked to the concept of ‘embedded ecologies’ which according to the Hindu philosophy is translated by the phrase ‘living in one with nature’. This ideology focuses on how subtle and complex relationships between culture and nature either allow to expand or diminish the potential of each of the entities. The Hindu culture promotes this philosophy through the very art of Kolam. As Kolam is made out of rice flour, it is the flour that promotes the sustenance of the smaller creations of nature like insects, birds and rodents.
Another aspect of Kolam is its socio-cultural value. As this art form is considered to be a ritualistic practice followed by Tamil women, it also encouraged social interactions among women. As patriarchy was at its peak, women’s primary role was to care for the household and support the members of the family. However, the art of Kolam has allowed for women to also form relationships and share their experiences or problems faced at home with other women while making the Kolam. These social interactions were of importance significance to women as it helped them cope with various ‘emotional and mental stresses faced at the household level’. The cultural connect of this art form has focused on promoting the Hindu culture through the creations of Kolam. As Kolam acts as a symbol of auspiciousness and divinity, it is believed to welcome the ‘gods’ into one’s household. Therefore, the act of creating Kolam is also linked to the cultural and religious connotations it embodies.
The promotion of creativity is another important aspect of Kolam. The complexity of the design is not just engrained in the field of mathematics and geometry but also tends to cater to one’s creativity. Women tend to work over the years in improving their Kolam designs and patterns. The aesthetic appeal of the Kolam represents the artist’s creativity which was something promoted through the practice of this art form. It instilled a sense of competitiveness and skilfulness among the women who actively practiced making Kolam. It takes years of practice and training to master the complex Kolams. Therefore, a mastery in such art translates to a great level of dedication and effort put into developing the proficiency in performing the art of making Kolam.
So why is this art fading away? One of the threats is the commodification of Kolam as an art form. The reason why it has been commodified is that people have began to view Kolam as an art that can be bought like any other commodity. The creative acknowledgement of this art form has gradually decreased over generations. Kolam is generally practiced by the woman of the family who would manually use her hands and creatively design Kolams that would vary on a daily basis. This meant that the woman who ritually performed this art needed to be geometrically adept and was crafted to being able to creatively execute the design that she has imagined. As this art form has been commodified through ‘sticker Kolam’, Kolam stencils or other applicators that would allow you to make Kolam, the necessity to learn the art form has substantially reduced because is it ‘mass produced’. Therefore, the historical value and the acknowledgement of Kolam as an art form that essentially has to be taught from generation to generation has been diminished through its commodification.
Another major threat that this art form is facing is the shift in architecture creating a problem of space. Initially, families lived in individual houses, and there was lot of distance between the houses. This meant that there was a lot of space outside the house to accommodate different sizes of Kolam without affecting the neighbour's space. However, now due to the predicament of increasing population density in areas, urban architecture aims at maximising utility of space, such as construction of apartments. People living in apartments, do not have enough space outside their houses. Individuals who wish to make Kolam also have to keep their neighbours in mind which also poses an added dilemma. Due to this problem, many shift to using sticker Kolam that are available in different sizes, so as to accommodate the space that they have with much more ease.
The art of Kolam is primarily performed by Tamil women making it a gendered practice. Originally, a woman’s role was to take care of the household and care for the family, therefore, the act of making a Kolam outside the house was considered a minimal task that she had to do for the home. However, over the years, due to liberalisation, women have gained more mobility. Women are becoming more independent by adopting different livelihoods and pursing a variety of jobs. Being able to financially contribute to the household meant that women could support themselves and their families. This shift is also accompanied by a rather frantic change in life style. Hence, the nitty gritty of making a Kolam doesn’t seem to be that significant when other important tasks are in the limelight. Unless the female members of the family actively teach this art form to other members of the family or the progeny, this art form does not progress to the next generation and dies within the family. My mother who was taught to put Kolam by my grand mother did not teach this art to me. As a result, I was never engrained with the importance of Kolam being an essential component of my culture.
Another threat to the practice of this art is the loss of the ecological significance of Kolam. Rice flour which is used to make Kolam has now been substituted primarily with chalk powder and other synthetic chemicals. As a result, the act of putting Kolam with such substitutes loses its ecological contribution in supporting small organisms. The organic beauty of this art is lost due to this change. According to me, reducing the significance of rice flour to mere chalk powder also exemplifies the unawareness of the purpose behind this very art.
The art of Kolam can be revived, but the effort has to be taken by people who know the art. The knowledge of Kolam and its intricacies is only conveyed orally among generations. Therefore, one of the most simple way to revive this art is to ensure that members who know the art of Kolam should teach it to other members of their family without any gender bias. Just teaching Kolam will not be of any use unless values aren’t associated to this art form. Think about it. If my mother would have asked me to make Kolam everyday without telling me the purpose behind it, I would have gradually lost interest in investing my time and effort into making Kolams. Why? It is because it is of no significant value to me, but only to my mother. Focusing on the historical significance, its ecological importance and its socio-cultural value can allow for others to understand the art of Kolam in much more profundity. Also, anything which is truly alive it is constantly changing. If something has to retain its importance over generations, it has to be something that the present generation can also associate with. For example, the kind of culture the present generation has is something which is very strongly inter-linked with the western culture as well. There are different designs of Kolam that were traditionally followed, but that doesn’t mean Kolam should be practiced that way by everybody. Kolam could evolve by the incorporation of other types of art or cross-cultural artistic ideas. This doesn’t mean Kolam is disappearing as an art. The element of Kolam as an art might change but what it represents is preserved.
The Kolam making process is repeated every morning despite the fact that the previous day’s work is lost. It is a process of building and rebuilding. In the process of making a Kolam, one also tend to build themselves. Therefore, it is a form of self-reincarnation. A feeling of accomplishment is instilled when one is able to express themselves through the completion of a Kolam. The cycle of creating a new Kolam design everyday represents an invigorating visual rendition that is rhythmically renewed.
The art of Kolam instills in you a feeling of rhythm in a recursive way.
It is the beauty of this rhythm that echoes through the generations.
References
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