Floor Painting
 

              Among  Hindus in India, whether urban or rural, it is mary on festive occasions to  paint  pictures   on   the   ground outside the threshold with the aid of the simplest materials, mainly rice paste mixed  with  pigment or with rockdust and  some  colours   in  it.  Though this Art of  painting is  becomming  less   and   less   now  a   days  in  urban cities, it always attracted me from my childhood .My  mother  used  to   paint  in  front of our  house  every  day  in the morning though it is fectival or not , before starting any work .My father  was  very much  particular  about  this . Due   to   this   practice  in  our  house we  both  I and my sister  are used  to it   and  love  doing  it. I developed it as one of my hobby and  have  participated in many  of rangoli compititions   and  recieved  prizes.

In  Andhra  pradesh  these  paintings  are  called  Muggulu  and  are  painted over the coating of cow dung to the floor  of mud.If it is not mud  floor  then it is painted after washing the floor with water and is started while the floor is still  wet.This painting is done by holding the rock podwer with the fingers closely pressed together.

In  Maharashtra ,  they  are   called  rangoli  and  in  Orissa  as  ossan, or jhunti. This domestic art is the exclusive preserve of women painters.
 
In  Himachal  Pradesh , the Pahari  women give  a  coating  of  cow  dung  to  the  floors,  which is beaten flat, and painting begins while it  is still damp. The  paint,  consisting  of  earth  colors   and   rice  paste  mixed  with  dyes,  is  dribbed  onto  the  surface  with the fingers closely pressed together. It is locally known as haugaiyan, while other terms like  dehar,  likhnu  and  chauk  apply  to  specific forms of floor art painting.

In  Tamil Nadu,  the  art  of  floor  painting   is  called  kolam . This  art  is  aesthetically pleasing and has religious significance.

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