Why to wear Kumkum or red dot on forehead?

It is a custom of Hindu Tradition and Culture to wear Bindi or Bottu or a bright red dot on the forehead. Wearing kumkum on forehead is a holy gesture and its shows devotion towards Gods and Goddesses. We normally see priests, all Hindu women, especially married women wearing kumkum on their foreheads. Though some people apply kumkum on the throat and high on the forehead, the place above eye brows is the common place for wearing Bindi or Bottu or Tilaka.

Wearing kumkum on the forehead is called as Pundradhaarana or Thilaka Dhaarana.