The story of saffron

Besharam Rang, the Bollywood song that was out weeks ago got caught in controversy soon after it was released on YouTube. The lead actress Deepika Padukone is seen wearing a saffron-coloured bikini dress revealing her body. Netizens and people of prominence targeting the actress left, right and centre both personally and professionally for wearing saffron colour for a song of hers and in turn associating the colour saffron with vulgarity seem unjustified in taking a jibe at Deepika. If the saffron colour is to be associated with the actress, then the colour should also be associated with all the other things that the actress has achieved.

Deepika Padukone was awarded the prestigious Crystal Award at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2020 for her tremendous contribution to the cause of mental health. So saffron is also the colour devoted to the cause of mental health. Deepika Padukone was listed as the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine in 2018. So saffron is the colour of influence. In 2016, the actress bagged the International Woman of the Year award by Esquire Middle East Award. So saffron is the colour of India on a global stage. Financial Times called Deepika Padukone one of the most influential people in 2015 making saffron a colour of riches and glory. The same year witnessed the actress launched The Live Love Laugh Foundation committed to the cause of mental health that the actress has committed herself to publicly after coming out with her own struggles with depression. So saffron is also the colour of bravery and empowerment.

The story of saffron does not end with Deepika. Saffron is also the colour of the ruling political party of India, the Bhartiya Janta Party. So saffron is the colour of power. Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev dons a saffron loin cloth every morning for his daily Yoga YouTube videos. So saffron is the colour of Yoga. Saffroncoloured marigold garlands are offered at almost all functions in India, both to the people present and to the deity worshipped signifying one’s respect for the deity and the guests at gatherings. So saffron is the colour of respect, honour and worship. Decades ago, one of the most successful actresses in the history of Indian cinema, Madhuri Dixit, moved to the tunes of the song Dhak Dhak Karne Laga in a sexy saffron saree, taking the nation by storm. So saffron is the colour of nostalgia. Lord Hanuman, one of the many deities in the Hindu faith, known for celibacy, is usually seen adorned in saffron-coloured powder that is anointed on the foreheads of the worshippers as a mark of faith. So saffron is the colour of purity and divinity. The Indian flag consists of saffron colour signifying the strength and courage of the country. So saffron is the colour of the nation. Hence, by attributing a colour to just one meaning, let’s not stifle the universality of a colour.