Malleswaram maker Hari Vishwas on thaale hoovu kumkum for Navaratri

At his Malleswaram puja-products business, Hari Vishwas points to thaale hoovu—the fragrant screw pine flower—as the ingredient that gives a traditional kumkum blend its scent.

Vishwas, a third-generation manufacturer, says standard kumkum is made by combining dried turmeric powder with slaked lime, turning it from yellow to deep red. For the scented variety, he says, essential oil from thaale hoovu is mixed into the turmeric-based kumkum.

He says his business uses flowers from Karnataka for the preparation. Thaale hoovu is also known as thazhampoo in Tamil and ketaki pushp in Sanskrit. The plant grows in moist tropical landscapes, including coastal stretches, riverbeds, backwaters and marshes. Its fragrance is used in attar, and its leaves have been made into mats.

Vishwas says scented kumkum is used for Navaratri offerings and kumkumaarchana. He describes the related thazhampoo kumkum tradition as being associated with Madurai and offerings to Goddess Madurai Meenakshi.

For the fragrant variety, Vishwas says, the turmeric-and-screw-pine combination has been used for centuries.