Adrishti bommai (Tamil), drishti gombe (Kannada) or drishti bomma (Telugu) is a talisman represented as a doll, predominantly found in South India. Regarded to possess apotropaic properties, these dolls are prominently hung at construction sites, houses, residential buildings, and trucks,[1][2] intended to ward off evil. They are regarded to be benevolent asuras, featured as intimidating in appearance to frighten malicious forces.[3] Similar to the Gorgoneion heads of ancient Greece, the decorative wide-eyed, often red, yellow, or green[4] moustached masks and can be seen in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh, and the union territory of Puducherry.[5]
