Shilpi Srivastava making colors from vegetables
– Photo: Amar Ujala
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Now only a few days are left for the festival of Holi. In such a situation, people have to apply a lot of color to each other while having fun, but people are afraid that their skin might get spoiled by such colors. Keeping this in mind, Shilpi Srivastava, a resident of Muzaffarpur, Bihar, is making herbal gulal for Holi from lush greens and vegetables. These herbal gulal prepared for themselves are now in demand not only in the neighborhood but in many places and people are also discussing a lot about it.
Herbal colors being made from vegetables
Shilpi told that she is preparing these herbal gulal in a very easy way usually from spinach, beetroot, turmeric, arrowroot and indigo. She is preparing these colors herself. This herbal gulal is prepared in just a day. These colors are leaving their unique identity and impression this Holi. He said that the colors used in Holi are also made from these vegetables which are easily available in the market. She is now engaged in competing in the market of chemical colors. The continuously increasing demand for colors made from vegetables has further increased Shilpi’s courage. Now these are in great demand in the markets also. In these only green vegetables are used, which are easily available in our homes. It is made by extracting the color of vegetables and preparing a thick solution and drying it.
‘Chemical color had affected, then got rid of it with Jugaad’
Shilpi Srivastava, who makes herbal gulal, told that once while playing Holi, someone had applied harmful and chemical colors to her. After that, his skin related disease increased, after which he took a vow to rid himself and others of it. He decided to rid people of these artificial colors sold in the market. Shilpi told that first she prepared herbal gulal for herself and her family. Then he prepared it for his home and relatives, which was greatly appreciated. Due to this, there has been a lot of awareness about natural colors instead of any harmful effects on the skin during Holi and people have also appreciated it a lot.
‘Five years of inspiration took us to new heights’
Shilpi tells that she has been making herbal colors from vegetables for Holi for the last five years. Now every year they also get large scale orders. There has been more awareness about this among people than before. There is a lot of demand for this especially among women. There is a unique experiment to get rid of the artificial and harmful colors available in the market by making them. People can now prepare it by themselves and after preparing it in just a day, it can be used. Now the whole family cooperates for this work. Especially the mother helps in preparing it.