In the past, Neel was cultivated in India, mainly In Bihar, Orissa, Sindh. But recently it has become rare because of introduction of syn¬thetic artificial Neel. This natural, leaf powder was available to us after constant efforts for 2-3 years. It contains glucoside – Indicane.
References of using Neel for hairdye are available in the ancient literature. Leaves of Neel were used not only in making a hairdye but also for hair growth (Charakacharya has described the use of Neel for baldness. This was used in Perssian hair dye alongwithMehendi in Eastern Countries. Neel was, in those days primarily used by Royalties.