Making Holi Colors at Home

Holi, the vernal color-festival of the Hindus, has attracted the attention of people all over the world. The festival is celebrated in India traditionally by applying colors to one another irrespective of age and gender. It's the festival of colors but the primary risk which Holi brings along with itself is exposure to harmful chemicals in the form of artificial colors.

Synthetic Holi colors contain harmful chemicals such as oxides, glass particles, and metal substances. They are dangerous to human beings as well as to the environment. Various ocular adverse effects of these colors have been reported including conjunctivitis and corneal necrotizing fasciitis, following exposure to Holi colors. In many places, such colors are prepared on a small scale and lack any quality checks.

Some natural ways to make Holi colors are:

• RED: Red color can be obtained by drying red hibiscus flowers in shade and transforming them into powder makes a lovely red color. Red sandalwood powder or lalchandan has a beautiful red color that can be used instead of red gulal.

• YELLOW: Yellow can be obtained by boiling marigold petals. Also, turmeric powder can be used by mixing with gram flour or rice flour. Haldi and besan are extremely healthy for our skin.

• BLUE: Blue color can be obtained from blue hibiscus, jacaranda, blue pea, etc which should be dried and powdered, and used.

• PINK: Pink can be abstracted from rose or rose periwinkle. It can also be prepared by mixing finely chopped beets in water or by boiling onion peels in water.

• GREEN: Green color can be prepared by boiling different green leafy vegetables in water.

• ORANGE: Orange can be prepared by using henna (jetuka leaves), bastard teak(palash), etc.

Therefore, considering how harmful artificial colors are, it is best to make colors at home with easily found natural ingredients. So, this Holi say no to chemical-based artificial colors and play with homemade natural colors.