Justice for All Flowers: A movement to save Tamil Nadu’s native blossoms

CHENNAI: Growing up, we connected differently with the flowers around us — whether they bloomed in backyards, village lanes, terrace gardens, or temple courtyards. Sadly, many of these native flowers, once a common sight across Tamil Nadu, are now slowly disappearing. To bring these forgotten blooms back into public consciousness, historian and storyteller Meenakshi Devaraj has launched an initiative called #JusticeForAllFlowers.

“Just by looking at today’s flower markets, I realised that many of the flowers I saw growing up have disappeared — different varieties of jasmine, kanakambaram, and December poovu were once everywhere. Now, all you mostly find are mallipoo and a few hybrid varieties," says Meenakshi.

As someone focussed on local history and social traditions, she has long observed how flowers are woven into the Tamil culture. "We have more than a hundred native flowers. There’s even an ancient Tamil literary work, 'Kurinjipaatu', which mentions 99 different flowers. We even have traditional methods for how to pluck them.”

She was surprised to see how so many of these culturally rich and medicinally valuable flowers were simply vanishing. “When I was young, my grandmother used to make tiny garlands out of magizhampoo. I can’t even find that flower easily now. Pavazhamalli is another one, with such a short lifespan, it’s fading away," Meenakshi tells DT Next.

"If we don’t take action now, the next generation might not even know what some of these flowers looked like. The magizham flower, which I used to see every day as a child — will anyone even be able to recognise it ten years from now?”

Another concern, she adds, is how we’ve shifted to imported flowers, especially in bouquets and decorations. “We no longer celebrate our native blooms. For example, kondrai flowers were once used to make wedding garlands here. It was considered sacred, especially for Lord Shiva. Today, hardly anyone uses it.”

To reverse this trend, Meenakshi began wearing local flowers, creating new garland styles, and encouraging their use in poo kolam, flower vases, and even hair adornments. “If people start using them again, demand will rise. And when there’s demand, the supply will follow. Flower cultivators will start growing them again. It’s a cycle.”

Part of her mission includes documenting every native flower she comes across. “Even the way garlands are worn varies from region to region. In Chennai, we wear them as hanging strands. In Coimbatore, where my husband’s from, they make small circular garlands. I try to experiment with different styles whenever I get new flowers," she shares.

She has also held workshops on traditional garland-making, aiming to spread awareness and revive lost practices. “We even use imported flowers for poo kolam now. But our native flowers are not just beautiful, they also help prevent soil erosion, especially those that grow along the coast. Today’s generation only knows flowers through textbooks or social media. They’re missing a real, lived connection with our native flora. It’s time we change that.”