Mrs Vijaya Mohan, Rangooli artist, a guinneess recorder – January 8th, 2012
I am doing Rangoli from young and I developed the interest from my mother by looking at her creations .
2. Can you explain briefly what is Rangoli?
Rangoli is an Indian flour/ colourful visual art created during festivals like Deepavali, Dassera, Pongal, Holi etc , as well as during childbirths, weddings etc
3. How many guinneess records have you made?
I have one GUINNEESS WORLD RECORD
4. What are your other awards/accolades in Rangoli?
I have created Singapore book of Records in various category and was awarded Bharath Gaurav award for spreading Indian culture in Singapore.
5. How do you choose the pattern/colour combination for your rangoli?
I choose the design and the pattern according to the occasion and need of the organizers
6. Can you explain us your process to Guinness record…like how did you come to know about the Guinness record, what are its requirement? How did you prepare yourself for this feet?
One lady in London did the first Guinness record in Rangoli of 1,400 sq feet with the help of a big group. So I thought that I could easily do something bigger all alone . I approached Whampoa Community Center and they were very supportive and allowed me to use their function hall. I then wrote to Guinness and they required me to register with them. They also had a lot of conditions like appointment of judges, media coverage etc… all of which we were greatly helped by Whampoa Community Center.
The total carpet area of the hall was around 3,000 sq feet so I could use the most of it and draw upto a size of 2,750 sq ft after allowing some space for people to walk and move around. If the hall was bigger then I could have drawn a bigger Rangoli. I did the drawing in 7 hours.
I did not prepare much for this event. In fact my husband asked me to do a trial drawing but I was very confident that I would be able to achieve it. So straightaway on the appointed day went and drew the Rangoli. My prayers to Sai Baba helped me a lot and I felt that he was with me throughout the event.
7. What is your family’s support and a brief introduction about yourself
My family has been extremely supportive to me. My children always help me by running errands and my husband supports me a lot. I started my career in Singapore as a kindergarten teacher and then shifted to special needs children. Later on I did my post graduate in Art Therapy from La Salle College of Arts and I am now a practicing Art therapist. I also do Social work and to-gether with my husband we are running a recreation centre for persons with special needs
8. How do you balance your family and career?
I have not found this very difficult. My children have been independent and co-operative and we are a very adjusting family
9. Do you want to say anything more?
Creating Rangoli is my passion and I am trying to promote and preserve this traditional art form for future generations of Indians and Singaporeans. The colours give lots of energy and it stimulates the brain very much so I feel everyone should do rangoli.