Sindooram (in Sanskrit,
Telugu,
Tamil,
Kannada,
Malayalam and Oriya, or
Sindoor in
Hindustani: सिन्दूर, سندور,
Bengali: সিঁদুর and
Gujarati: સિંદૂર) is a traditional red or orange-red colored
cosmetic powder from
India, usually worn by
married women along the parting of their hair. Use of sindooram denotes that a woman is married in many
Hindu communities, and ceasing to wear it usually implies
widowhood. The main component of modern sindooram is usually
vermilion.. Traditionally, Sindooram is made from
Bixa orellana pods, but commercial sindooram contain synthetic dyes and chemicals like Vermilion containing Mercury and Lead.