16 To 2 Chukki Kolangal

Design facts

Dot grid

16 to 2 dots — tapering from 16 dots across the middle down to 2

Structure

Dot-Grid

Tradition

Kolam

Video

5 min 16 s, uploaded 30 December 2019

Views

412,000 on YouTube as of 1 October 2026

Step by step: how to draw 16 To 2 Chukki Kolangal

1. Mark the 16-to-2 dot grid.
2. Down the centre write the greeting HAPPY NEW YEAR as three stacked words, using the dots to keep the letters aligned.
3. Frame the lettering with eight butterfly motifs – a pair across the top, a pair along the bottom, and a pair on each side.
4. Give every butterfly two large upper wings and two smaller lower wings meeting at a slim body.
5. Decorate the wings with a double outline, rows of dots and small curls, and add two curled antennae.
6. Finish the lower edge with a scalloped border line; keep the kolam white.

Related designs

• New Year Andamaina Puvvu Muggulu With 16 To 2 Dots
• Sankranti Muggulu For Competition
• Traditional Rangoli Designs 16 Dots

Further reading

• Venkatraman Gopalan & Brian K. VanLeeuwen, “A topological approach to creating any pulli kolam, an artform from South India”, Forma 30, 35–41 (2015). doi:10.5047/forma.2015.005

Read more

• Grids, Lattices, and Thinking in Space
• Counting the Grid
• The Kolam Style Families
• Tamil Nadu