Holi is the festival of colours and shared joy. The spring festival symbolizes
Widely celebrated in the North, over the years it has gained a pan-Indian’s fervor. Young and old, men and women participate equally with gusto. Who can forget shaking a leg to dholak beats and phagun folk songs, or dancing with gay abandon to popular cinema songs, squirting coloured water at each other with water-guns…. There was the odd person/kid who would hide, runaway terrified of getting coloured only to be chased down – some would join with a bit of cajoling, few locked themselves shut.
While kids continue fun’n’frolic, elders would sneak away to delightful helpings of bhang-spiked or plain laddoos, gujia, thandai or lassi. Gradually, Bhang became rarer being officially banned, and alcohol took over the festivities. Bhang is a mixture of dried-ground leaves and buds of Cannabis sativa; technically therapeutic in small quantities, addictive in long term consumption – leading to hysterical paranoia and depression.
Colours became synthetic and nobody realized or even cared as long as it was cheap and easily available – all through 80’s and 90’s, when even metallic paints like silver were used – and their effects went largely unreported. It was a recent drive – a decade ago helped by the internet revolution, that the harmful effects of chemicals came to light and awareness of organic colours grew (used since time immemorial – well at least from the start of mythologies about Holika and Prahlad, festivities during the time of Rama and Krishna, etc.)
Below is a list of colours made naturally, at home, using commonly available flowers, vegetables, flour; I have also highlighted the chemicals that are avoided and their effects on humans.
| Colour | Dry use | Wet use | Chemicals avoided |
| Red | Shade dried red hibiscus flowers / Red sandalwood powder, mixed with flour of rice/chickpea (1:1) | Red-sandalwood powder mixed in water; Diluted limestone powder (chuna-100 gms in 10 ltrs) mix with 100 gms turmeric – dilute and use | Mercury sulphite – skin cancer, renal failure, nervous disorders, impaired vision, |
| Yellow / Saffron | mix (1:2) turmeric + chickpea flour Dried marigold, yellow chrysanthemums, cosmos; A mix of sandalwood powder and rice flour (1:2) for pale yellow. | Boiled pomegranate peels Boiled or soaked pomegranate peels for pale yellow, add turmeric for deep shade; strain, dilute, use. A pinch of saffron if affordable; Raw turmeric root, shredded and soaked overnight, diluted | Lead oxide – irritability, skin and vision disorders, brain damage, poisoning |
| Green | Dried Henna leaves, green leafy veg like spinach, dry amla powder Dried neem/methi/mint/coriander leaves – powder, mix with rice flour/besan | Soaked henna leaves overnight; paste of pudina / spinach, neem – mix with water and use; Grind wheat-grass diluted in water for light green | Copper sulphate – eye irritation & swelling, temporary blindness |
| Magenta / Pink | Shade dried rose petals, crushed; Gomphrena , mix with rice flour | Sliced Beetroot boiled and cooled Soak Kokum rind overnight, strain, dilute, use. (one beet = 5 ltrs colour; 100 gms kokum = 1 ltr colour) | Chromium iodide – bronchial asthma, respiratory ailments |
| Purple | Boil red/purple cabbage leaves – strain, dilute, use. | Chromium iodide; Gentian Violet – dermatitis, eye keratoconjunctivitis | |
| Blue | Dried blue hibiscus and jacaranda flowers, shade dried, powdered, mixed with besan; | Crushed Jacaranda/Shankh pushp / peaflower flowers, soaked overnight / boiled | Prussian blue – Dermatitis, Skin irritation, eye allergies |
| Yellow / Orange | Dried Palash flowers, powdered, mix with besan/chickpea flour Mix turmerix with besan (1:2) | Palash soaked overnight / boiled Boiled yellow chrysanthemum Boiled onion skin Boil Orange and lemon peels for light yellow / ochre shades | Auramine & Chromium Iodide – bronchial asthma, respiratory ailments |
| Brown | Mix mehendi leaf powder and amla powder, dilute with besan | Kaththa (Acacia catechu) powder (used in paan) | Chromium iodide – respiratory issues |
| Dark brown / black | Mix of all above colours! Dried amla powder, mix with besan | Soaked gooseberry overnight in an iron vessel; strain, dilute, use Boil few tea/coffee-leaves (one table spoon = 2 ltrs colour), strain, dilute, use. Boiled / overnight soaked henna leaves Charcoal soaked overnight, strain, use | Lead oxide – nervous damage, renal failure, mental disability |
In addition to the chemicals listed against each colour, there are harmful substances like Nickel, Cadmium, Zinc, Iron, , mica, asbestos, gypsum, silica. Remember – using chemical and metallic colours is like taking a shower with the contents of an alkaline battery! While we love to enjoy, we also have the responsibility to safeguard ourselves, our families and the environment from toxins.
This list is just indicative of natural colours; there are many Grandma’s recipes for homemade colours; but should all this delightful process of making your own colours is too much of work and a quick purchase of colours is unavoidable, there are various options now to buy naturally made colours, some listed below:
Petalists: Their colours are made by recycling flowers collected from Temples and Wedding halls, by mixing with other non-toxic ingredients mentioned earlier. The flowers used to make the colours give them a natural and mild fragrance as also a soft texture. These are dry colours which being very easy to clean, are skin-friendly and suitable for people of all ages, including kids.
These colours are carefully packaged using zero plastic, making it totally pro-environment. Significantly, it generates livelihood for over 200 persons with intellectual disability, offering them a dignified source of income (Patients of Nimhans in Bangalore, undergoing psychiatric treatment, whom I have personally visited and seen their laborious colour making process). more on this visit shortly.
Phool is another organization that collects flowers from temples of Varanasi to make fragrances and Gulaal.
Others: eCoexist’s Rang Dular | Redearth India’s Swarang | Greenpractices, but of course, online portals like Amazon have many brands.
Notes to Colour
- Call them by any name – organic, natural, herbal, floral, satvic, traditional, eco-friendly, earth-sensitive, etc. they must be made of naturally grown items. These natural colours are safe for the skin, hair, eyes, and even if ingested by mistake, they do not cause any harm.
- Natural colours require less than 1/3rd of water required to remove chemical / commercially available colours.
- Use of rice flour and chickpea flour is better than using maida, starch or talc, as the powders are heavy, with less dust that reduces absorption by lungs. Sandalwood powder adds aroma to Blue, Brown, Purple,
- For Dry powder colours just dust off, before rinsing. For wet colours, if skin stains, they will wear-out with a bath or two.
- Whether you use dry/wet colours, clothes will stain – be aware. Wash them quick enough so as to reuse/recycle.
- In this era of water shortage, and conserving water is necessary, it is best to avoid wet colours, or water hosing.
- Use of dried flowers is the best! But since we are used to the habit of showing off dyed clothes and stained skin, colours become necessary.
- The camaraderie, community celebrations, the feeling of ‘playful togetherness’ and ‘shared joy’ is more important than amount of colour used, it doesn’t harm to be frugal. Let’s not buy tonnes and get bored.
No to Colours
- Among the big no-no’s, other than synthetic colours and wasting water are – water-balloons, metallic-colours (gold, silver). These ultimately pollute our rivers and oceans!
- A no means no! If one doesn’t enjoy getting coloured, please let them be – sport needs spectators too to cheer!
- For those who are not the colour-filled kind, find a place to plant a tree that gives beautiful colourful flowers – or gift a packet of colours to a poor kid – spread the cheer!!
No plastic! Refuse to use plastics and disposables (incl tetrapaks, paper cups, juice/water bottles, plastic pichhkaris), tissues, food-waste and recycle bottles if used..
While on the topic of being earth friendly, there are delightful recipes for natural juices
- Palash based – a cool juice from dried flowers, infused with saunf and sweetened with jaggery! add crushed mint leaves for additional flavour.
- Saunf based – which doesn’t require any hard word, except soaking the required quantity overnight and to add a zing to this drink, a dash of soda will do perk it up!
- Cucumber based – ground cucumber juice diluted in water, with a hint of jaggery is a surefire cooler on a warm spring afternoon!
Enjoy the Splash of Colours, Sensibly!
Holi Hai!! होली है!
respect nature | conserve water | plant trees
Tigers have ~100 black stripes, each one distinct, and no two tigers share a pattern – like a human thumb. Seen here – an adolescent at Bannerghatta National Park. (Photo from own collection)
Wise | OtherWise 