Rangoli, also known as kolam or Muggu, is a folk art from India in which patterns are created on the floor in living rooms or courtyards using materials such as colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals. It is usually made during Diwali, Onam, Pongal and other Indian festivals. They are meant to be sacred welcoming areas for the Hindu deities. The ancient symbols have been passed down through the ages, from each generation to the next, keeping both the art form and the tradition alive. Similar practices are followed in different Indian states: in Tamil Nadu, there is Kolam in Tamil Nadu; Mandana in Rajasthan; Chaookpurna in Chhattisgarh; Alpana in West Bengal; Aripana in Bihar; Chowk pujan in Uttar Pradesh; Muggu in Andhra Pradesh and others.

An Ambassador car, licensed as taxi rolls past other vehicles through a busy road in Kolkata, india, Monday, May 26, 2014. India's oldest car factory has abruptly suspended production of the hulking Ambassador sedan that has a nearly seven-decade history as the car of the Indian elite. (Photo by Bikas Das/AP Photo)

In this December 23, 2013 photo, Indian army soldiers patrol near one of their forward post at the Line of Control (LOC), that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan, at Krishna Ghati (KG Sector) in Poonch, 290 kilometers (180 miles) from Jammu, India. The military commanders of longtime rivals India and Pakistan met on Tuesday in a bid to stop frequent cross-border attacks in disputed Kashmir which escalated tensions in the region in recent months. (Photo by Channi Anand/AP Photo)

Indian students play with coloured powders as they celebrate “holi” or the “festival of colours” during a special function in Kolkata on March 12, 2017. Holi, the popular Hindu spring festival of colours, is observed in India at the end of the winter season on the last full moon of the lunar month, and will be celebrated on March 13 this year. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP Photo)

A model makes a video call backstage during the Lakme Fashion Week X FDCI in Mumbai, India, Thursday, March 9, 2023. At the recently held premier fashion event, the backstage was buzzing as everyone from the hair and make-up artist to the stylist and the designer raced to get that perfect look that would stand out on the catwalk. (Photo by Rafiq Maqbool/AP Photo)

A mahout leads an elephant calf to the river Tunga for bathing at the Sakrebailu Elephant Camp in Sakrebailu in the southern state of Karnataka, India, November 12, 2016. (Photo by Abhishek N. Chinnappa/Reuters)

Devotees whirl their head as a ritualistic performance during the annual Jhiri Fair at Kanachack village, outskirts of Jammu, India, Monday, November14, 2016. According to the villagers, the fair is held in memory of Baba Jitu, an honest farmer who killed himself since he was not prepared to submit to the unjust demands of a landlord who wanted him to part with his crop. (Photo by Channi Anand/AP Photo)

A woman paints the floor of a pond as her child pulls at her saree in Delhi, India November 23, 2016. (Photo by Cathal McNaughton/Reuters)