Toxic colours on Holi can be bad news, last year a 13 year old lost his life after playing with non-branded colours which contained toxins. The festival of colours is round the corner but gone are the days when Holi was played withflower petals and natural colours. Now toxic and synthetic colours are ruling the market which can lead to allergies and irritation. This Holi shun synthetic colours and explore the fascinating world of natural colours. They are safe and easy to make.
Green: Dry and finely powder the leaves of Gulmohur tree to get green colour. Avoid henna as it will turn orange and stay for a few weeks! Spinach, coriander or mint leaves can also be dried and ground to get a rich green colour.
Yellow: Mix haldi and besan in equal quantity and make a healthy uptan. You can also soak marigold flowers in water and boil it to get yellow colour solution.
Red: Instead of red gulal use red sandal wood powder. You can also use tomato and carrot juice diluted with enough water for natural colour.
Magenta: Slice or grate one beetroot and soak in a litre of water. Boil or leave overnight for a deeper shade.
Light brown: Grind fresh sandalwood or you can also use a sandalwood face pack.
Purple: Take some amount of potassium permanganate and put it in a bucket of water.
Some love to play wild and dirty Holi so for all those here are some healthy tips:
· Use flour instead of dirty Greece.
· Squeeze a tomato on your friend’s face.
· You can also use dried amla powder.
· Instead of water colour use diluted juice or milk to make your friends wet.
· Take out all the left over face packs and use them as colour.
· Make a mixture of besan, lemon juice and yogurt.
