Hairstyles of the 1950s. 1951 to be precise, this is from a Diwali Special edition of Ananda Vikatan. Almost all styles you will note use flowers or jewels for ornamentation. Click to view full size.

The translations of the captions below.  Of the commonly used terms Kondai=bun, Rettai=double, Pinnal=braid, Jadai=hairstyle, seems to refer to types of plaits

1) Malayala Kondai (Kerala style)
2) Pushpa Valai (Flower Net)
3) Kodali Pushpa Kondai (i think kodali is an axe or spear but may be wrong).
4) Alli Chorukku (Wrap and tie)
5) Rettai Pushpa Pichoda (this seems to be a two plaits coiled and the flowers are added on, Pichoda refers to hair being put up)
6) Pirimanai Kondai (Pirimanai=ring)
7) Bob Thalai (that is a very liberal interpretation of a bob!)
8) Shurul Thazampu Jadai (Rolled/Curled flower in hair, thazhampu=screwpine/kewda/ketaki)
9) Shurul Pinnal (wound around braid)
10) Madras Kondai
11) Rettai Saada Pichoda
12) Ennai Jadai (hair decorated post an “oil bath”, a common practice in South India, usually requires the braiding of a small portion of hair to keep loose hair away from the face)
13) Vaira Jadai (Pin puram aka back view); Vaira=jewels/diamonds
14) Thazhampu Kamala Jadai (kamala=lotus, may refer to the pattern on the hairstyle?)
15) Rettai Jadai
16) Careful Careless Jadai (Jagridai Ajagridai Jadai)-I think this means both ordered and disordered
17) Rettai Pinnal
18) Vaira Jadai (Front view)
19) Anju Thalai Nagam (5 headed snake)
20) Pushpa Vangi Jadai (vangi is curved, based on the arm ornament)

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Many thanks to Raghu – who is one half of sangeethas – for providing me with this document, I hope I haven’t mislabelled the numbers! He informs me that styles 1 and 18 are modelled by the Travancore sisters. And thanks are due to my aunt who helped me with translations, I got stuck at several points:)