Holi has always been a festival of touch. Colour pressed onto cheeks. Powder caught in hair. Water splashed across cotton kurtas. It is intimate, playful and gloriously unrestrained. Yet in recent decades, the vibrancy of the celebration has often come at a cost — synthetic dyes, artificial pigments and chemical additives quietly replacing the flower-based preparations once made in homes and villages.
In response to this shift, brands such as Advait Living are revisiting the older language of colour — one spoken in petals, roots and plant extracts rather than in industrial compounds. Their organic Holi colours are designed not as a novelty, but as a return to something more thoughtful and grounded.
A botanical box of dry gulal
The dry gulal collection reflects a palette drawn directly from nature. Each box typically includes four shades, carefully handcrafted from flowers and vegetables.
Blush pink is created from rose petals and beetroot, offering a soft, romantic hue rather than a sharp neon burst. Bright yellow comes alive through marigold flowers and turmeric, echoing the warmth of early spring. Sky blue is formed using orchid flowers blended with natural indigo, producing a cooler, gentler tone. Tangy orange carries the vibrancy of tesu flowers combined with turmeric and beetroot extracts — a colour deeply rooted in Holi’s traditional past.
Unlike conventional powders that may contain synthetic dyes and chemical fillers, these formulations avoid artificial colouring agents. The texture is fine and smooth, intended to feel light against the skin. They are created to wash off easily without aggressive scrubbing and are described as suitable for different skin types. For households where children and pets inevitably join the festivities, this gentler approach offers reassurance.
A small ritual can make the experience even softer: applying a thin layer of coconut oil or moisturiser before stepping into the celebration. With that simple preparation, the colours lift away with minimal effort at the end of the day.
Liquid colour, the traditional way
Holi is not only about clouds of powder. It is also about buckets of coloured water glinting in the sun. In earlier times, tesu flowers were soaked overnight to produce a glowing saffron liquid, while roots and petals infused water with delicate reds and yellows.
The organic water colours inspired by this heritage include two plant-based shades. Tesu, typically prepared from tesu flowers along with marigold and turmeric extracts, delivers a warm golden tone. Majith, made from the majith plant blended with beetroot and rose petals, offers a deeper reddish hue. Each modest 100 ml bottle is designed to colour an entire bucket of water, creating vibrant splashes without reliance on synthetic dyes.
Importantly, these water colours are presented as free from artificial pigments and formulated to avoid leaving stubborn stains on skin. They are also described as safe around animals — an often overlooked aspect of festival celebrations. Packaging in reusable glass bottles rather than disposable plastic further supports the intention of reducing waste and encouraging repurposing.
Beyond skin: Thinking about soil and water
The impact of Holi does not end when the laughter fades. Colours are rinsed off bodies and clothes, flowing into drains and eventually into rivers and soil. Synthetic compounds can linger, affecting water systems and ecosystems long after the festival concludes.
Plant-based gulals and biodegradable water colours, by contrast, are designed to break down more naturally. Being derived from flowers, vegetables and roots, they are less likely to introduce persistent chemical residues into the environment. This shift transforms Holi from a moment of consumption into a moment of consciousness.
At its heart, Holi marks renewal — the arrival of spring, the triumph of light, the blossoming of life. Using colours made from actual blossoms and plant extracts feels symbolically aligned with that spirit. The celebration becomes not only about brightness, but about balance.
By creating organic Holi gulals and botanical water colours, Advait Living participates in a broader movement that seeks to restore gentleness to festivity. The colours remain vivid. The joy remains loud. The memories remain just as colourful.
But beneath the riot of pinks, yellows, blues and oranges lies a quieter intention: to celebrate without leaving harm behind — on the skin, in the soil, or in the streams that carry our colours away.
Also Read: A step towards toothpaste tablets and shampoo bars
