The Kolams have no subtribes, but are divided for purposes of marriage
into a number of exogamous groups. The names of these are in the
Marathi form, but the tribe do not know their meaning. Marriage between
members of the same group is forbidden, and a man may not marry two
sisters. Marriage is usually adult, and neither a betrothal nor a
marriage can be concluded in the month of Poush (December), because
in this month ancestors are worshipped. Colonel Mackenzie states that
marriages should be celebrated on Wednesdays and Saturdays at sundown,
and Monday is considered a peculiarly inauspicious day. If a betrothal,
once contracted, is broken, a fine of five or ten rupees must be paid
to the caste-fellows together with a quantity of liquor. Formerly,
as stated above, the tribe sometimes captured husbands, and they still
have a curious method of seizing a wife when the father cannot procure
a mate for his son. The latter attended by his comrades resorts to
the jungle where his wife-elect is working in company with her female
relations and friends. It is a custom of the tribe that the sexes
should, as a rule, work in separate parties. On catching sight of her
the bridegroom pursues her, and unless he touches her hand before she
gets back to her village, his friends will afford him no assistance. If
he can lay hold of the girl a struggle ensues between the two parties
for her possession, the girl being sometimes only protected by women,
while on other occasions her male relatives hear of the fray and come
to her assistance. In the latter case a fight ensues with sticks,
in which, however, no combatant may hit another on the head. If the
girl is captured the marriage is subsequently performed, and even
if she is rescued the matter is often arranged by the payment of a
few rupees to the girl's father. Nowadays the whole affair tends to
degenerate into a pretence and is often arranged beforehand by the
parties. The marriage ceremony resembles that of the Kunbis except
that the bridegroom takes the bride on his lap and their clothes are
tied together in two places. After the ceremony each of the guests
takes a few grains of rice, and after touching the feet, knees and
shoulders of the bridal couple with the rice, throws it over his own
back. The idea may be to remove any contagion of misfortune or evil
spirits who may be hovering about them. A widow can remarry only with
her parents' consent, but if she takes a fancy to a man and chooses
to enter his house with a pot of water on her head he cannot turn her
out. A man cannot marry a widow unless he has been regularly wedded
once to a girl, and once having espoused a widow by what is known
as the pat ceremony, he cannot again go through a proper marriage. A
couple who wish to be divorced must go before the caste panchayat or
committee with a pot of liquor. Over this is laid a dry stick and the
couple each hold an end of it. The husband then addresses his wife as
sister in the presence of the caste-fellows, and the wife her husband
as brother; they break the stick and the divorce is complete.