இரு வட்டம் · drawn on a 5 × 5 pulli grid
Iru Vattam · Double ring
Dot grid
5 × 5 pulli
Difficulty
Intermediate
Draw time
About 6 minutes
Best for
Festival mornings
Three concentric rings tighten toward the centre while four diagonal petals break the symmetry just enough to keep the eye moving. Iru Vattam takes a steadier hand than its single-ring cousin, and rewards it: on a festival morning the tight ring spacing filled with colour powder looks spectacular.
How to draw it
- 1
Place a 5 × 5 grid of dots.
- 2
Draw the outermost circle enclosing the grid.
- 3
Draw a second circle a hand-width inside the first.
- 4
Draw the third circle through the middle ring of dots.
- 5
Loop a petal on each diagonal, then finish with the centre bindu.
Tradition note: kolams are drawn at dawn on a washed threshold and swept away by evening. Rice flour is the traditional medium, so the drawing doubles as food for ants and small birds.