Karimani Mala

Karimani means black bead in Malayalam — small, polished beads of dark glass or onyx, threaded together with gold pieces into a long chain. A Karimani Mala is the necklace formed by these alternating beads and gold elements, worn close to the throat or as a longer single strand.

Across South India, the black bead is the marker of the married woman. It is believed to ward off the evil eye, to protect the wearer from envy, to guard the marriage from outside ill-will. In Kerala, the Karimani Mala is given to the bride by her mother-in-law shortly after the wedding and is worn from then onwards.

The black beads are spherical and uniform — the consistency matters greatly. They are interspersed with small gold tubes, gold beads, or sometimes a single gold pendant at the centre. The chain is strung on a fine gold wire that runs through every bead. The work is patient — a long Karimani Mala may carry a hundred and twenty beads, each threaded one at a time.

The Karimani Mala is worn daily by married Kerala women, often beneath the saree or salwar so that only a small section is visible. It is layered over the cheruthali and is rarely removed. Many women remember the Karimani their mothers wore on their last days.