Home » Fashion »  Accessories »  Bindiya Chamkege The auspicious red dot, the fabled red kumkum, the symbol of inner shakti, the mark of a married Indian woman. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Bindu" or a drop, and it is said to signify the mystic third eye of a person. Hence, when properly marked, it becomes the central point of the base of the creation itself. It is a symbol of auspiciousness, good fortune and festivity.

The bindi is an adornment that lights up your face and gives it a focal point. Bindi, on the beloved's forehead is supposed to mesmerise her lover. Poets, through ages have composed couplets on the beautiful bindiya of the damsel. This little dot has always received a place of importance in Indian customs. The bindi carries with it a wealth of meaning and is an on-going link with a very ancient tradition and past

But now, famous pop star Madonna sports it. Actress Demi Moore posed with it. As old as tradition and as new as the times, the bindi has come of age. With a change in perceptions about beauty and adornment, the Indian Bindiya, that the women wore in the centre of their forehead has now become a fashion statement.

The bindi is associated with marriage and fertility, the practice of wearing a bindi is a Vedic tradition that Indian women follow as a conformation to the spirit of womanhood . More than a beauty spot, the bindi indicates good omen and purity. But today, the famous bindi is more about mood and occasion. From a humble red dot, it has emerged as the hottest new fashion accessory sported by women of all ages and countries. You just need to take a look at all the Indian television serials to see the mind-boggling variety of bindis sported by heroines and vamps alike.

The latest rage now is the body art bindi - a magnetic collection of eye and eyebrows, naval, armlets, and nail bindis that can leave one speechless. The tradition of applying red kumkum only on the centre of the forehead has given way to a huge collection of stick on bindis that adorn the different parts of the body. The design of a bindi can vary from a small dot to an elaborate craftwork of an exquisite design. Red is no longer the colour associated with the bindi. You have a wide range of colours, in different hues and sizes that can match every dress that is worn.

Bindis today are worn more for dramatic effect than anything else. Leaving traditions aside, bindis today come in a variety of materials like vinyl, plastic, crystal, stone, coloured liquid, and so on. Bindi tattoos are a rage amongst the young. The sticker-bindi comes in all colours, shapes and designs, sequinned, dusted with gold powder, studded with beads and glittering stones and in different sizes. Some are truly exotic creations, using thin metal, in gold and silver colours, encrusted with glittering stones; others are shaped like a long straight vertical line or sometimes in a miniature alpana with a fine-tipped stick in squiggles, triangles and circles to work out a complicated artistic design.

The transformation of the auspicious bindi into a fashion accessory might cause the conservative to raise their eyebrows disapprovingly. But where fashion is concerned, it has definitely added a whole new dimension of creativity to this modest red dot. It has also ensured that this 5000 years old tradition will continue even though it has taken on a new avatar and dimension.