Kajal is traditionally made from lampblack, a fine black soot collected from burning oils and fats like castor oil, ghee, and almond oil. This soot serves as the pigment, while the oils double as a smooth, blendable base. Modern commercial kajal replaces the homemade soot with cosmetic-grade carbon black and adds waxes, preservatives, and stabilizers to create the pencils and tubes sold in stores today.
How Traditional Kajal Is Made
The classic preparation method has barely changed in centuries. A cotton wick is soaked in a mixture of castor oil, almond oil, and ghee, then lit inside a shallow lamp. A clean metal plate or inverted bowl is held a few inches above the flame for 30 to 60 minutes, and the fine black soot that collects on the surface is carefully scraped off. That soot, called lampblack, is filtered through muslin cloth to remove any gritty particles, then mixed back into a small amount of ghee or castor oil to form a soft, dark paste.
Some traditional recipes add camphor for a cooling sensation, sandalwood for fragrance, or rose oil for its soothing properties. Almond oil and ghee aren’t just fuel for the lamp. They also act as moisturizers in the final product, helping the kajal glide on smoothly and sit comfortably on the sensitive skin around the eyes. A peer-reviewed formulation study tested kajal made from fig-tree soot, rose oil, almond oil, camphor, and ghee, finding that these natural ingredients supported skin hydration and provided mild antioxidant protection.
What’s in Commercial Kajal
Mass-produced kajal swaps lampblack for a standardized pigment called carbon black (listed on labels as CI 77266). This is the same pigment responsible for the deep black color in most eye makeup worldwide, and it’s considered safe in concentrations up to 10%. Carbon black gives manufacturers a consistent, uniform color that homemade soot can’t always deliver.
Beyond the pigment, commercial formulas typically contain a base of waxes (like beeswax or carnauba wax) to hold the product in pencil or stick form, along with oils such as castor or mineral oil for smooth application. Waterproof versions rely on silicone-based compounds that resist tears and sweat. To prevent bacterial and fungal growth inside the tube, manufacturers add preservatives. Common ones include parabens, phenoxyethanol, and formaldehyde-releasing agents listed under names like DMDM hydantoin, quaternium-15, and imidazolidinyl urea. These preservatives are standard across eye cosmetics, though they can irritate sensitive eyes in some people.
Kajal, Kohl, and Surma: The Lead Problem
The terms kajal, kohl, and surma are often used interchangeably, but the ingredients behind them can be very different. In parts of South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, products sold as kohl or surma are traditionally made from galena, a mineral that is essentially lead sulfide. Lead sometimes accounts for more than half the weight of these products. One product linked to lead poisoning in an infant tested at 82.6% lead.
This is not a minor contamination issue. It’s the core ingredient. The CDC has documented cases of lead poisoning in families using these traditional eye cosmetics, including a mother and her four children in New York City. Lead builds up in the body over time and is especially dangerous for young children, affecting brain development and organ function even at low levels.
The FDA classifies kohl, kajal, surma, and similar products as illegal color additives in the United States. None of these traditional formulations have been approved under U.S. law, and products declaring kohl, kajal, or surma on their labels are subject to detention and refusal at U.S. ports of entry. This applies to imports of traditionally made products, not to commercially manufactured eye pencils sold by established cosmetic brands, which use approved pigments like carbon black instead of lead sulfide.
How to Tell What’s in Your Kajal
The safest way to know what you’re applying near your eyes is to check the ingredient list. Commercial kajal sold by regulated cosmetic brands in the U.S., EU, or India will list approved colorants (CI 77266 for black), a wax or oil base, and preservatives. If the product has no ingredient list, was purchased abroad, or comes in unlabeled packaging, there’s no way to verify it’s free of lead or other heavy metals.
Homemade kajal prepared the traditional way, using lampblack from burning ghee and castor oil, avoids the lead problem entirely because the black pigment comes from carbon soot rather than a mineral. The risk with homemade versions is inconsistency: there’s no quality control for sterility, particle size, or contamination from the burning process. If you prefer the traditional route, the key distinction is that the soot should come from plant-based oils and fats, never from grinding a stone or mineral into powder.