Surely you have come across photos of Indian beauties, whose hands and feet are decorated with fancy dark brown patterns called mehendi. Recently, this art has gained immense popularity. What is mehendi? What do these patterns mean and how to draw them - you will learn about all this in the article.
What is mehendi?
This is the traditional art of painting hands, feet or bodies with paste from powdered dry leaves of lavsonia, i.e. henna. This substance, as a rule, has a color from cherry red to brown, can change it over time or under the influence of several other factors. Coffee, lemon, tea, essential oils are sometimes added to the paint to achieve a particular texture, smell or shade. Mehendi painting became known in the Middle East and North Africa more than 5000 years ago. Archaeologists have even found mummies with henna patterns on their hands.
In India, it has become an integral wedding ritual, but it is also painted during major holidays: Karva Chauth, Taj, Diwali, Ramzan and others.
Today, temporary mehendi tattoos are widespread throughout the world. The reasons are simple: the unique beauty of the result, the safety and painlessness of the procedure.
At an Indian wedding
What is mehendi in Indian wedding traditions? Weddings are known for their many rituals. In addition, in India, marriage is not a one-day ceremony. Sometimes it stretches for a whole week of celebration. What is mehendi for the bride and groom? For the wedding, exquisite patterns are applied to the woman’s arms and legs, and a small symbolic design is drawn to the man. Relatives of the bride and groom and close friends take part in this festive event . This is a very important part of Hindu and Muslim weddings in India.
The ceremony takes place a few days before the wedding or on the pre-wedding night. Mehendi patterns are drawn by a professional artist or relative.
Henna, which is obtained from a flowering plant, symbolizes the evolution of a woman who is called an innocent girl. In some regions, the future mother-in-law or sister-in-law inflicts henna. The ritual usually takes place at the bride’s house and includes festive traditional songs, dances, fun and meals. Not only the culprit of the event, but all relatives during this ceremony adorn themselves with mehendi painting.
Henna stays on your hands and feet until your wedding day and gets darker under the influence of air. The future bride should not leave her home after the ceremony of applying mehendi until the wedding.
In Indian culture, the darkening of henna symbolizes the degree of acceptance of the bride by the groom's family. Its hue may also indicate how happy and successful the marriage will be.
Practical benefit
But in addition to the ritual component, the mehendi also has a rather mundane purpose. Weddings are often associated with nervous experiences. Mehendi is designed to prevent negative emotions, because it is applied to the arms and legs, where there are many nerve endings, and helps to relax and pacify a person. In addition, henna is an antiseptic that can protect against viral diseases that are completely undesirable before the wedding. Any small cuts, burns and scratches that can occur during many rituals and customs will be healed thanks to the special composition of the paint for painting.
Popular patterns
- Peacocks are a beautiful and feminine design, widely distributed in murals for brides.
- Buta (Indian cucumber or paisley) - this motif, similar to a thick drop. They can be very beautifully combined with each other and various small forms, resulting in a unique pattern.
- Large round motifs. Harmonious and aesthetic, they just ask for their hands.
- Floral patterns - what could be more tender and feminine? Here are some exquisite “gloves” you can draw with henna.
- Geometric figures and lines - in such compositions there is no central motive and basic idea, but the fine detail and freedom of flight of the artist’s imagination make them no less attractive.
Any traditional pattern can be freshened up by adding color and sparkles.
Also, in the modern tradition of drawing wedding mehendi, it is very common to hide the name of the groom in a fancy pattern. During the celebrations, the man must find him.
Mehendi for beginners
Today, this art has found fans around the world, and more and more craftswomen want to learn how to create exquisite drawings on the body. Someone wants to be able to do them for themselves, and someone even turns this activity into a business.
Henna or biotatu drawings are popular in season in coastal resort towns, at Indian culture festivals and simply as part of the model’s image at thematic photo shoots. Of course, for those who know how to draw well, to learn this painting will be quite simple. For everyone else, as well as to save time, there are special stencils for mehendi. You can buy ready-made, but you can make them yourself. In addition, you will need paint to draw mehendi. For beginners, it will be easier to buy a ready-made mixture, which is sold in a horn-shaped package. Henna is easily squeezed out of it, and you can immediately draw it.
How to learn to make mehendi?
Before you start applying the drawing to the skin, always check if the person has an allergic reaction to henna. Make a test in a small area and only then continue.
To draw mehendi, first try making the basic elements: dots, commas, lines. Learn to draw their desired thickness by following the selected pattern. Then circle your hand on sheet A4 and try to draw the outline with a painting. When it turns out, you can try to make drawings for yourself and friends.
But, of course, there will be drawings whose level is too complicated, or those that require perfect symmetry. Then you can buy stencils for mehendi. Basically, they can be divided into two groups:
- made of perforated silicone that sticks to the skin;
- transferable patterns on carbon paper.
They come in different forms:
- small ornaments;
- strips with a pattern that are convenient to close around the wrist or ankle;
- ready-made compositions for hands or feet.
The choice of materials and drawings for mehendi is huge, you will surely find everything you need for this interesting work.