About half a century ago, a humble group of homemakers, children and youth gathered in the backyard of a Chokkikulam Bungalow to draw kolams of various designs and patterns. With Kolam master Thambirasu at the helm, Lalitha Sankar, a Madurai-based art connoisseur kickstarted the kolam group. Keeping alive the spirit and artistic love of Laitha Sankar, the group has been drawing intricate kolams in over 130 temples for the past four decades, even after the loving matriarch’s departure. “As a torch bearer in keeping up tradition, art and culture, she took efforts to give life to several artisans and craftsmen,” recalls her son Arvind Kumar Sankar, who has started a trust LAMPS (Lalitha Arts and Music Promotion Social Trust), to take forward the rich legacy.
After a year of its launch, LAMPS has released a first of its kind CD that has the complete mantravali, namavali, sthothram and vyakyanam of the Lalitha Trishati . In continuation of its vision of taking ancient arts to the younger generation, the trust has launched a book ‘ Pulli Kolam and the creative mind’ . “My mother had a special liking for pulli kolam and she spearheaded the activity of drawing kolams in temples,” says Arvind. “Pulli Kolam is an ancient art of the Tamils, which involves science, maths and art. I have conceptualised and compiled the book as an ode to my mother and other seniors in the kolam group.”
The book "Pullikolam" being released. Photo: R. Ashok
Lalitha Sankar’s group of women has been drawing a colossal kolam of 1,00,000 dots at the Meenakshi Temple, every Navaratri and Karthigai. “During those days, there weren’t any security restrictions and we would stay up the entire night in the temple and draw kolams. We would start after seeing the palliyarai pooja and finish by Tirupalliyezhuchi of Goddess Meenakshi,” recalls Leela Venkatraman, a close friend of Lalitha Sankar. “To draw pulli kolam is as good as meditation. It needs intensive concentration.”
As part of the book launch, LAMPS also organised a cultural presentation of vocal concert, bharatnatyam and discourse on the theme ‘Matru Devo Bhava’. Vocalist Lakshmi Ranagarajan presented a kutcheri of songs on mother’s love, including Muthusawamy Dikshitar’s Shri Matrubhuteshwara, Thyagaraja Swamigal’s Ma Janaki, Pattinathar’s song on his mother, Adi Shankara’s sloka on the greatness of motherly love and verses from the Thiruvilayadal Puranam. Kausalya Rajkumar presented the exposition to the concert and Meenakshi Chithranjan performed a Bharatnatyam sequence on ‘Janani Jagadkarini’. “The event is to honour a mother through the celebration of several unsung mothers,” says Arvind, who has also curated the annual ‘Madhura Geetam’ event in honour of the carantic music doyen M.S. Subbulakshmi.
