Holi is the day to express love with colors, and we want to keep it that way. Artificial Holi colors available in the market are made from chemicals. These chemicals can have dangerous effects on our skin, right from allergic reactions to rashes & skin irritation. There are some horror stories about how artificial colors permanently damaged eyesight of children while playing Holi. Let the colors of Holi spread the message of peace and happiness. Lets celebrate eco-friendly Holi by preparing our own safe, natural Holi colors from easily available household, plant-based material like leaves, flowers, vegetables and simple kitchen ingredients. You would like to know how to celebrate green and eco friendly diwali.
Following are some simple DIY procedures to make the powders and solution of your favourite Holi colors:
Natural Red color for Holi:
Dry the red rose petals by spreading them on a newspaper. Grind these rose petals & use this powder as dry red color. Even the red sandalwood powder can be used as dry red color. It is also beneficial for skin.
Boil 2 teaspoons of red sandalwood powder in 5 litres of water. Dilute it with 20 litres of water to get a red color solution.
Take grated beetroots (5 to 6) in a bowl, add cold water. Stir well & strain to make a pink-red colored solution.
Natural yellow color for Holi:
Dry the petals of flowers like Amaltas (Cassia fistula), Marigold, Yellow chrysanthemums & grind them to yield different shades of yellow colored powder.
Soak 50marigold flowers in 2 litres of water and boil it to get a yellow color solution.
Take one tablespoon Haldi and add an equal amount of wheat flour, add lukewarm water and mix thoroughly to make a yellow solution.
Boil one teaspoon of Haldi in 1 litre of water to yield dark yellow color.
Natural green color for Holi:
Gulmohar, spinach, coriander & mint leaves can be dried and ground to get rich dry green color.
Make a paste of crushed spinach leaves, add lukewarm water to it, stir well and strain the mixture to get a beautiful rich green colored solution. Even Neem leaves can be used to make such green color. Neem will protect your skin from infections.
Experiment with different shades of green by mixing Henna (Mehendi) powder with equal quantity of wheat flour.
To get a green solution, you can mix two teaspoons of Mehendi in 1 litre of water and stir well.
Natural orange color for Holi:
Traditionally in India, flowers of ‘flame of the forest’ known as Palash are soaked in water overnight or boiled to give a deeper yellowish-orange solution. Legend says that Lord Krishna used to play Holi with Palash flowers, and the flowers also have a lot of medicinal properties. Palash blooms during the month of March.
Take pomegranate peels in a bowl, add hot water and keep for 4-5 hours to get a saffron-orange colored solution.
Natural black color for Holi:
Take 4-5 tablespoon of Amla (Indian gooseberry) powder, add boiling water to it, mix well and keep it overnight. Due to oxidisation, a dark black colored solution will be formed.
Apart from these, even Katha (Acacia catechu), Dry red hibiscus flowers, Black grapes, onion peels, Jacaranda flowers, etc. can be used to make various natural colors for Holi. Enjoy happy & safe Holi.
