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Indian Ornamentation: Part 4 The Anklet

© Meenakshi Subramaniam

Since this is the last feature in a four-part series, by now you would definitely have garnered a fair idea of Indian ornaments. Most women in the country go to great lengths to deck themselves in jewelry from head to foot. And it's not just a metaphorical expression; the feet are indeed decorated in jewels that have been specially made to grace them.

I would particularly like to talk about the anklet, which in recent times has become a fashion statement in the West. One should understand that any ornament or tradition for that matter, may be a common one, seen anywhere in India. But its manifestations run into many, chief among them is the North and South avatars.

In South India, the anklet goes by the name of "golusu". It is almost always a silver one, since wearing gold on one's feet is taboo. Gold symbolizes the deity of wealth, Goddess Lakshmi and it would never do to cause her disrespect by draping her on one's feet. The anklet is studded at intervals by groups of three, tiny spheres. When they rub against each other at every step the girl takes, the tinkling sound that it produces is unique and musical and unlike any other.

The three-ball design is the most popular, although bells all around the anklet are also common. Unfortunately, they produce four times as much noise and are usually equated with women of ill repute. Anklets are also worn by the performers of the classical dance form, BharathaNatyam.

Here, the anklets are large wads of leather or cloth, nearly 2-3" high. On it are sewed marble-sized round copper bells, that give off a deep, clanging sound at the lightest vibration. In Tamil, it is called "salangai'; even folk dances like "karagattam" and "theru-koothu" uses these anklets to emphasis the earthy rhythm of their songs and ballads.

Another ancient variation of the salangai is the "Silambu" This anklet is a round hollow tube of silver or gold, the inside of which was filled with precious stones or pearls. The women of ancient TamilNadu (a state in Southern India) wore this. One of the famous regional epics, the Silappathikaram revolves around the "silambu". Legend has it that the hero, Kovalan is unjustly suspected while trying to sell his wife's anklet. Since it is similar to the Queen's, the royal guards take him prisoner and the King, not bothering with a fair trial, beheads Kovalan, Kannagi, his wife storms to the palace and smashes her other "silambu' on the floor of the court. Out of it spill emeralds, the Queen's anklet has pearls. The mortified King rues his injustice and dies on the throne along with his consort.