Mehendi: The Indian Body Art
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| The Tree of Henna |
Mehendi is a paste that is used to decoration on the hands, foot and nails by applying a paste made with leaves of Henna tree.
The Art:
Mehendi, also known as Henna, and the "Botanical name is Lawsonia inermis". In India, beautifying the body with Mehendi are normally carried out for the girl to be married during wedding and is part of the bridal decoration. It's safe and painless. It's completely natural and non-toxic. But now-a-days in the market, there are ready-made pastes available in the market, some of them are adulterated with chemicals like silver nitrate, carmine, orange dye, chromium etc. which will give more intense color but unsafe to use. But its batter to make the paste from fresh leaves collected from the tree. It's fun, exotic, beautiful, and as simple or complicated as you want it to be. It's a 5000 year old tradition and a modern craze.
An Ancient Wedding Tradition:
In the wedding season is Indian, weddings are noisy colorful family get-togethers, which would not be complete without the religious ceremonies, the feast for the guests, and of course, the beautiful Mehendi designs adorning the hands and feet of the bride and her friends. Mehendi, the ancient Indian body art that's reinvented itself as a modern fashion accessory.
A Craze:
Now, Mehendi has enjoyed both a revival and a renewal. Madonna created quite a stir at the MTV awards function, when she turned up with mehendi all over her body. Mehendi tattoos becoming a white-hot fashion trend. Now it is not just hands and feet that are adorned, but also the arms, neck, back and navel. The magic is no longer confined to just women - men sport mehendi tattoos too. The traditional reddish-brown color has been enhanced by a variety of shades (contrasts of black, red and maroon) and glitters (highlights of gold, silver or copper). Best of all, no longer is mehendi reserved for occasions like weddings - it's worn to a Valentine's Day bash, a formal party or even an evening at the disco!
