Beautiful ladies and their even more beautiful works of art

Artists at work during the Kolam competition event at the Mylapore Festival. Every day women from almost every South Indian household clean and decorate their doorsteps with intricate Kolams. Kolams are drawn out of coarse rice flour and involve geometrical and mathematical line drawings that can tizzy up the likes of Euclid or Pythagoras. Decoration is not the main purpose of a Kolam. It also serves is a way of inviting birds and other small creatures for a meal (rice flour). Thus welcoming other beings into one's home and everyday life - a daily tribute to harmonious co-existence.

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