Tikki Mehndi: Round Motifs for Palms & Backs of Hands

The round motif in the middle of almost every Indian mehndi design has a name — tikki — and learning to draw one well is the fastest way to make your henna look "proper".

**A tikki (or gol tikki) is a round, self-contained mehndi motif: a central dot or flower surrounded by rings of petals, arcs and dots that build out to a circle.** It's the anchor that the rest of a hand design grows from, and on its own it's a complete look for a palm.

A clean tikki is all concentric detail, so it rewards a fine, steady cone.

Henna ConesOrganic Henna ConesOrganic henna paste — no kerosene or synthetic dye₹30View product →

Anatomy of a tikki

Working from the middle out:

1. The centre — a filled dot, a small flower, or a paisley.
2. First ring — petals or teardrops pointing outward, evenly spaced.
3. Second ring — arcs, a net band (jaali), or alternating dots and dashes.
4. Outer ring — a scalloped edge, a run of dots, or flame-like points.
5. Optional halo — a broken circle of small motifs sitting just outside, tying the tikki to the rest of the hand.

That's the whole grammar. Change the shapes in each ring and you get an endless number of tikkis from one structure. A mandala is just this, bigger and with more rings.

Where to place a tikki

• Centre of the palm — the classic. One bold tikki, fingers decorated with finger vines.
• Back of the hand — slightly off-centre, toward the wrist, with a spray reaching the fingers.
• Two linked tikkis — one on the palm, a smaller one on the wrist, joined by a vine.
• Wrist tikki as a watch-face motif for a minimal look.

For a full palm, combine a tikki with the ideas in palm mehndi design ideas; for something you can wear to work, keep it to a single small tikki as in minimal mehndi designs.

How to draw a round tikki

1. Mark a faint centre dot and, if you're new, a light guide circle.
2. Build the centre motif, then stop and check it's actually in the middle.
3. Add the first petal ring — do the top, bottom, left and right petals first, then fill between them so spacing stays even.
4. Rotate your hand, not the cone, for each element.
5. Work outward one ring at a time, finishing each ring before starting the next.
6. Close with the outer edge and let it dry before adding the halo.

Henna ConesPracticing Henna ConesStain-free practice paste₹10View product →

Draw ten tikkis on paper or with a practice cone before you put one on skin — the evenness only comes with reps. The same skill carries straight into rose and peacock motifs.

Tikki ideas by occasion

• Everyday: one small palm tikki, bare fingers.
• Festival / Karva Chauth: a bold palm tikki plus decorated fingers and a wrist band.
• Guest at a wedding: a mid-size tikki with a short vine to two fingers — quick and photogenic.
• Kids: a single simple flower tikki — see mehndi designs for kids.

Getting the colour right

A tikki sits on the palm, which stains the darkest of anywhere on the body — so a good routine here pays off. Fresh paste, warm hands, 4–6 hours on (overnight if you can), no water for 12 hours after. Full method: how to get a dark henna stain.

Delivery across Bengaluru

Hennaya hand-rolls natural cones in Bengaluru, delivered across New Gurappana Palya, Bismillah Nagar, BTM 1st Stage, Jayanagar and HSR Layout — the same day — with pan-India shipping. Founder Aliya drills the tikki early in her Bangalore training batches precisely because everything else builds on it.

Your own hand vs an artist

A single palm tikki is very doable on your non-dominant hand. For both hands matched, or a big layered mandala tikki for a bride, an artist will get the symmetry faster — see booking a mehndi artist in Bangalore.

Master the circle and the rest of mehndi opens up.