A few days back, vibrant, bright and beautiful dolls which were stowed away in stacked cartons in attics descended down again in many households.
Stunning silks and crisp cotton sarees have made their way out of cupboards, shopping bags have swelled with new clothes and gifts, and the smell of sundal envelopes the households — this scene has unfolded this year in many city homes as kolu has arrived.
For nine days, an array of dolls is showcased to celebrate the divine presence with grandeur. After two years of avoiding public gatherings, homes have jumped into kolu preparations with renewed gusto this year.
Significance of kolu
Kolu arrangement begins by placing the kalasam, followed by a multitude of deities in odd-numbered steps like five, seven, nine and so on. S. Amarnath of the ‘Mylapore Trio’ (S. Amarnath, S. Aparna and S. Surendranath), who have judged kolu competitions for many years and conceptualised kolus in many temples, says, “While there is no rigidity or rules, many of them start by placing the Gods and Goddesses at the top, the different avatarams of God are placed below it and in the following steps, sages, human beings, animals and plants are arranged. It tells a viewer many short, interesting stories.”
The practise of kolu also portrays the way of life and how interdependent we are in one way or the other, Prema Krishnamurthy, a 73-year-old resident of Mylapore who has been keeping kolu for over four decades now, says. “Be it God, sages, farmers, workers, musicians, plants or animals, the kolu depicts and aims to celebrate everything,” she adds.
The changing facets and dynamics of kolu
S. Surendranath of the ‘Mylapore Trio’ says some facets of kolu have changed drastically over years. What used to be a humble display of dolls with a few steps and available furniture decades back, has become more a far-more elaborate set up in many households now and it is heartening to see it. “It has become a time for social gatherings of sorts for families. Also, it has even moved beyond households to corporate offices, banks, shops and some petrol bunks too,” he says.
New and contemporary dolls make their way in
Ramanarayanan of Giri Trading Agency says that in over five decades, though people look out for new dolls each year, there are many who buy the quintessential ones like the Dasavatharam set, Ashtalakshmi set or Durga Lakshmi Saraswathi set. “We witness a wide variety in the kolu themes of late. From freedom fighters themed kolu with Mahatma Gandhi, Saradar Vallabhai Patel and others, I have even seen dolls of Spiderman, Batman and Superman in some residences,” he added.
Santhi Balakrishnan, a 51-year-old resident of Chrompet, says she started keeping kolu with about 10 dolls three decades back. Today, she has collected more than 6,000 dolls and they are arranged in different themes in over four rooms in her residence. “One of the remarkable changes I see is, one can get any kind of doll now. For instance, finding a Kuberan, Valli Thirumanam, Navagraham set or the vedha murthys was almost unimaginable those days. But I have it all in my kolu now,” she added.
