Padi kolam/Shaivite kolam Kerala Kolam, " Contest in Thiruvananthapuram, the abode of Lord Anantha" Every year at the Padmanabhaswami temple in Trivandrum in Kerala, a Tamil association organises a kolam contest to celebrate an ancestral art and preserve the padi kolam tradition.
Inspiring kolam artists Inspiring women "Maheswari" Maheswari considers her kolam drawing as a seva or a disinterested service. The technic used here is called "maavu kolam". It is done by soaking rice and grinding it smooth. Then, the kolam is drawn with the help of a piece of cloth dipped in the liquid and carefully driven by the middle finger.
Inspiring kolam artists Inspiring women "Subhadra Natarajan" A lotus with eight petals in a circle welcomes two feet dedicated to Râma. Each petal bears a word from the mantra “Jaya, Jaya Râma, Sri Râma, Jaya Râma”. According to her, this kolam is equivalent to the invocation of the divine name.
Padi kolam/Shaivite kolam Padi kolam or kolam with lines A padi kolam, also called kalyana or kanya kolam is a kolam drawn using parallel lines which cross over at right angles or diagonally. They may start from a dot or a square and form basic structures such a square, a circle, a cross with diagonals, a swastika or two superimposed triangles.
