பூ கோலம் · drawn on a 5 × 5 pulli grid
Poo Kolam · Flower kolam
Dot grid
5 × 5 pulli
Difficulty
Intermediate
Draw time
About 6 minutes
Best for
Festivals and the Margazhi season
Eight petals radiate from the centre like a full bloom inside a single ring. Poo kolam is the classic festival flourish: draw it in white for the outline, then fill alternate petals with kaavi red or turmeric yellow. During Margazhi, larger versions of this pattern cover entire street corners in Mylapore.
How to draw it
- 1
Place a 5 × 5 grid of dots.
- 2
Draw one large circle enclosing the grid.
- 3
Loop a petal at the top, then repeat at each eighth turn until eight petals radiate evenly.
- 4
Keep petal tips just touching the ring.
- 5
Finish with the centre bindu, and fill petals with colour if you like.
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.