The mehendi has become part of any Indian wedding, be it north Indian or south Indian. The reason is not hard to find. It is that part of the joyous celebrations that sets the tone for the days to follow, a day when all the guests simply enjoy themselves decorating their hands with lovely designs that are deftly applied by professional mehendi artists who almost seem to speak with their hands! While the parents of the bride arrange the get-together with a sumptuous lunch thrown in, the guests, which include the bridegroom's relatives and friends also, simply let go of all inhibitions and just enjoy themselves thoroughly. Originally a purely female function, these days the mehendi celebrations are thrown open to the men also, and one may find many adventurous men having these temporary tattoos drawn on their arms or shoulders just to be part of all the fun. The bride gets loads of gifts and is made to feel like a princess with everyone dancing attention on her and special, intricate designs drawn on her hands, feet and even her back by the mehendi artists who vie with each other to show off their skills.
Even while the beautiful, cosmetic use of mehendi as a kind of tattoo that adorns a bride is well known, are you aware that it also has medicinal properties? Did you know that mehendi is still used in villages and rural areas as well as by practitioners of alternative medicines to treat cuts and scratches? In the days when chemical hair dyes were unknown, mehendi was the natural dye that not only covered the grey, but also conditioned the hair and prevented hair loss. In fact, the use of mehendi dates back thousands of years when the Egyptians used it to dye the fingers and toes of their dead before the mummification process. These days, however, even the use of natural henna has been corrupted, as the preparation process is a tad too long for our hectic lifestyles. Instead, the market is flooded with instant versions of mehendi in various colours and are available along with stencils that make the application that much easier. These of course, fade much faster than the natural henna and have no medicinal benefits whatsoever.
Interested in making the paste at home? It's easy.
- Just take a container with a fitting lid. Fill about half of it with henna powder (got from grinding dried henna leaves). To give it a better colour, you could add tea leaves, or a spoon of coffee powder, a bit of lemon juice and some sugar.
- Mix all this to a paste by adding sufficient hot water. You could also add a few drops of jasmine oil so that it is not too sticky and makes the application easier.
- Cover the container and allow it to stand for 2 to 3 hours.
- To apply, you may use a stencil or if you are an artist, draw your own design with the aid of a toothpick.
- Keep the mehendi on for at least 3 hours.
- Keep applying a mixture of sugar and lemon juice on it so that it does not dry and flake fast.
- After 3 hours, you can just scrape off the mehendi. It leaves behind a rich, lovely red colour that is worth all the trouble you have gone into. Only, do not wash your hands for at least 10 - 12 hours, or the effect will not be the same. Allow the colour to sink into your skin for best results.
Got any suggestions on preparing and applying mehendi? Do share your ideas with other readers. Send in unique designs and we will publish your contributions. Better still, start a 'Wedding preparations' discussion on Sitagita and get flooded with suggestions! Ready for all the action?
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