Holi, the festival of colours, is here again. Playing with colours on Holi is fun, but can turn out to be harmful if proper care is not taken.

Though the festival is much awaited by people there are many who suffer from skin problems, allergies, breakouts and irritations later on. "Staying prepared and keeping a few things handy this Holi will enable you to enjoy a fun filled and colorful Holi", says Dr S Tolat, skin specialist. Use organic colours and stay away from chemical colours that could damage Hair, skin and eyes, say experts. Traditionally, Holi is a festival that celebrates the return of spring – a time when several trees are in bloom – and in earlier times, the colours that people used came from these flowering trees. The bright red gulal, that is the stamp of Holi, can be made from flowers of trees like the Indian coral tree which flower during the season of Holi. Similarly, ranges of other flowers were used to make shades of yellow, orange and even blue. The good news, however, is that it is possible to make simple natural colours in one's own kitchen.

These simple recipes for making natural colours were also freely distributed as part of the Safe Festivals campaign, and children were taught how to make colours through lecture demonstrations in schools. The Kalpavriksh environment action group has been leading a campaign on the subject of a safe Holi for the past five years. This campaign aims to highlight the toxic impacts of chemical and industrial dyes when used to play Holi Sessions have already been held at Revachand Bhojwani and Sunderji school and are coming up at Symbiosis International, Vishwashanti Gurukul and Vidya Jyoti.

Over the years, with the disappearance of some of these tree varieties from urban areas, the natural colours gradually came to be replaced by cheaper industrial dyes. Often, the colours are sold loose in the market and consumers have little or no idea about the source of the colours and their contents. Even when the colours are sold in a packaged form and carry a sign saying ' for industrial use only ', consumers do not understand the implications. As a result of the need created by the campaign, the Rang Dulaar colours were developed by a unique collaboration between Kalpavriksh, an environment protection organisation and a farmers group called Vanastree based in Karnataka, as well as a social enterprise called eCoexist.

The women farmers who are members of Vanastree, are part of a network of home gardens in Sirsi, Uttara Kannada. Led by the founder of Vanastree, Sunita Rao, they have developed a range of natural colours with feedback from Kalpavriksh.

Other than the use of naturally made colours, some easily available ingredients in the kitchen like coconut oil and besan can be used to prevent skin irritations due to colours. A good massage for your hair with coconut oil before you go out to play Holi is an absolute must. Oiling your hair prior to playing Holi will save it from harsh chemicals and make it easier to manage post-wash. A few natural remedies like using a paste of soybean flour or gram flour (besan) with milk etc could be sued. Using a cream cleanser or baby oil, gently massage off the left over colour.

Source: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Careful-with-Colour/283272/