Beauty and Personal Grooming

Smriti asks: I am an 18 year old girl. Whenever I put Mehendi (Henna) tattoos I get small rashes on the back of my wrist and palms. Why does it happen? Should I not use Mehndi at all?

If you are likely to attend the Mehendi (henna) ceremony at your friend’s wedding, think again. The intricate, hand stenciled designs could give you something you didn’t expect – an allergic reaction like redness, inflammation and intense itching.

Does that premature gray in your hair embarrass you to no end? Has the natural process of ageing made your hair turn gray, with those first few strands of gray mocking at you, reminding you of your advancing age? Well, if you are the kind of person who has an aversion to chemical hair-colors and dyes , then try out this simple home-made henna hair-dye and cover your gray.

Since very early times, women have been inventing ways and means of beautifying themselves, mehendi being just one of them. Stylish, sophisticated and spiritual, mehendi is definitely here to stay. Whether you choose to doodle a little or decorate yourself intricately, mehendi(henna) is one of the oldest and most promising ways to enhance your beauty. Though initially North Indians were the most ardent users of Mehendi, over the years, it has spread out to almost all the areas in India cutting across religious, regional and linguistic barriers. No ceremony, religious, festive or otherwise in India is complete nowadays without women adorning themselves with Mehendi. A relatively foreign concept to westerners, it recently found way to the masses when rock singers & Hollywood stars sported Mehendi designs on their hands and faces. Mehendi is now considered “cool” and the “in-thing”. It is also gaining popularity as a painless temporary tattoo.