Toxic synthetic colours are the bane for most of us on the occasion of Holi. Such colours often prove to be a dampener, as they cause skin rashes and allergies, and are difficult to remove. Here are some initiatives that offer organic colours this Holi.
Trash 2 Cash
Flowers used in temples and hotels for decoration often go waste. However under the Trash 2 Cash project, by the Society For Child Development, these flowers are used for making organic colours. “We have a flower programme called AVACYAM in which 500kgs of flower is collected everyday from temples and hotels, and brought to our center. The petals are removed and dried in the sun, and are later processed and packed into holi and rangoli colours,” says Madhumita Puri of the Society For Child Development. What makes this program special is that those with intellectual disabilities are involved in making the colours, which also provides a source of wages for them. A pack of 100 grams of colour is priced at R60.
Contact: 9810003512/ 8447097445
Available at: At Dilli Haat INA and Pitampura, From March 20. The colours are also available at Tatsat in Hauz Khas Village.
Swarang
Swarang, a project by Red Earth India, attempts to revive the age-old tradition of playing holi with natural flowers and ingredients. Their best selling product, genda gulaal is pure flower colour made from marigold petals. 30 kgs of marigold flowers are used for making 1 kg of genda gulal. Keeping in tune with the festival of colours, a range of natural colours made with ingredients such as turmeric, sandalwood, arrowroot, under the supervision of curator Himanshu Verma, are also available for sale. Some of the products available include a 400 gms colour block (R350) made of arrowroot, Tesu Rang Bauchhaar (R600) for 2 kilos of tesu flowers. Attractive packaging in earthen pots, chai glass and potli makes it great for gifting as well.
Available at: Visit redearthindia.com to order
Contact: 41671100/41764054
Swarang
Swarang, a project by Red Earth India, attempts to revive the age-old tradition of playing holi with natural flowers and ingredients. Their best selling product, genda gulaal is pure flower colour made from marigold petals. 30 kgs of marigold flowers are used for making 1 kg of genda gulal. Keeping in tune with the festival of colours, a range of natural colours made with ingredients such as turmeric, sandalwood, arrowroot, under the supervision of curator Himanshu Verma, are also available for sale. Some of the products available include a 400 gms colour block (R350) made of arrowroot, Tesu Rang Bauchhaar (R600) for 2 kilos of tesu flowers. Attractive packaging in earthen pots, chai glass and potli makes it great for gifting as well.
Available at: Visit redearthindia.com to order
Contact: 41671100/41764054
Antarkranti Herbal Gulaal
A prisoner reform and rehabilitation program offers herbal gulaal made by the inmates of Tihar Jail. The gulaal is made from natural ingredients like lemon grass, rose petals, turmeric and sandalwood, and inmates are paid wages for making them. They are sold in various malls and can be ordered online. The price of the gulaal starts at R85 for 120 gms.
Available at: Tihar Outlets, Dilli Haat INA and Pitampura (March 20 onwards), Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan outlets.