Description

Mehandi Patta — dried henna leaf — is the primary commercial product of Lawsonia inermis, the henna shrub of North Africa and the Indian subcontinent. The dried and powdered leaves yield lawsone (2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) when moistened, forming a paste that bonds to the keratin of hair and skin through Michael addition reactions, producing the characteristic orange-red to near-black stains used in traditional art across South Asian, Middle Eastern, and North African cultures. In Unani pharmacopoeia, dried henna leaves are classified as a cooling botanical and documented in the Makhzan-ul-Adwiya for preparations targeting scalp conditions, hair strengthening, and skin cooling applications. Ayurvedic texts reference Henna as Raktagarbha for anti-inflammatory external applications. Commercial leaf production is centred in Rajasthan, from where India exports globally.