The Hindu color palette
MediaThe Hindu employs a classic, authoritative color palette centered on a deep blue, reflecting its legacy and journalistic integrity. The palette is complemented by neutral greys and a signature red accent, used sparingly for highlights.
thehindu.comThe Hindu colors
Click any swatch to copy its hex. Hover for RGB and HSL.
Brand colors
The colors people recognise.- The Hindu BluePrimary26, 35, 126
- The Hindu CharcoalSecondary38, 50, 56
- The Hindu RedAccent211, 47, 47
Surfaces
Page, cards and dividers.- The Hindu WhiteBackground255, 255, 255
- The Hindu Light GreySurface245, 245, 245
- The Hindu Divider GreyBorder224, 224, 224
Text
Three tiers of copy.- The Hindu BlackText33, 33, 33
- The Hindu Dark GreySecondary text66, 66, 66
- The Hindu Muted GreyMuted text117, 117, 117
Semantic
Feedback and state colors.- The Hindu GreenSuccess56, 142, 60
- The Hindu AmberWarning255, 160, 0
- The Hindu Error RedError198, 40, 40
- The Hindu Info BlueInfo25, 118, 210
Use The Hindu's colors in your project
Pick a format, copy or download. Everything below is generated from the exact hex values above.
the-hindu-palette-colors.css · Paste into your global stylesheet.
:root {
--info: #1976D2;
--error: #C62828;
--accent: #D32F2F;
--border: #E0E0E0;
--primary: #1A237E;
--success: #388E3C;
--surface: #F5F5F5;
--warning: #FFA000;
--secondary: #263238;
--text-muted: #757575;
--background: #FFFFFF;
--text-primary: #212121;
--text-secondary: #424242;
}Contrast and accessibility
Every text tone tested against every surface, per WCAG 2.1.
Text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
16.1:1
Pass
Text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
14.8:1
Pass
Secondary text on background
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
10.0:1
Pass
Secondary text on surface
Needs 4.5:1 for body text
9.2:1
Pass
Muted text on background
Needs 3:1 for large text
4.6:1
Pass
Muted text on surface
Needs 3:1 for large text
4.2:1
Pass
The Hindu gray and neutral colors
The quiet part of the The Hindu palette: page background, card surfaces, dividers and the three text tones that sit on them. Click a value to copy it.
- The Hindu WhiteBackground
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- The Hindu Light GreySurface
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- The Hindu Divider GreyBorder
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- The Hindu BlackText
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- The Hindu Dark GreySecondary text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
- The Hindu Muted GreyMuted text
- HEX
- RGB
- HSL
About The Hindu's colors
The Hindu's palette is rooted in deep blue and neutral greys, conveying credibility and seriousness. Red is used as a highlight to draw attention to important elements.
Primary blue and charcoal provide a strong, trustworthy base.
Red accent highlights calls to action and headlines.
Neutral greys balance the palette for readability and clarity.
Psychology
Deep blue evokes trust, authority, and reliability, aligning with The Hindu's journalistic values. Red provides urgency and draws attention to key information.
Evolution
The Hindu's color palette has remained largely stable, maintaining its blue and neutral focus for decades. Minor adjustments to accent and secondary tones have modernized the UI without altering its core identity.
Where The Hindu uses each color
- Primary
Used in the website header, navigation bar, and key branding elements.
- Secondary
Applied to footers, secondary navigation, and background panels.
- Accent
Highlights headlines, links, and important notifications.
- Backgrounds
White is the main background for articles and content areas.
- Text
Primary and secondary text colors are used for body copy and metadata.
- Semantic
Success, warning, and error colors are used for alerts, notifications, and status indicators.
The Hindu color questions
Hex codes, RGB values, neutrals and how to use the palette.
The Hindu's primary brand color is #1A237E, known as The Hindu Blue.
The Hindu Blue (#1A237E) is RGB(26, 35, 126) and CMYK(79, 72, 0, 51).
The Hindu uses a range of greys such as #263238 (Charcoal), #F5F5F5 (Light Grey), and #E0E0E0 (Divider Grey) for backgrounds and UI elements.
Use The Hindu Blue (#1A237E) for primary branding, red (#D32F2F) for accents, and neutral greys for backgrounds and text to maintain clarity and hierarchy.
The secondary color is The Hindu Charcoal, #263238, and the accent is The Hindu Red, #D32F2F. Together with the primary they make up the three brand colors at the top of this page.
6 of 6 text and background pairings meet WCAG 2.1 AA contrast. The contrast section above shows every pairing with its exact ratio.
Use the export block on this page. It gives you CSS custom properties, a Tailwind config, W3C design tokens or a shadcn/ui theme built from these exact hex values, with copy and download buttons.
Yes. Export the Claude Code skill, Cursor rules or Codex prompt from the same block. The agent then applies The Hindu's colors consistently when it generates UI.
Make something in the spirit of The Hindu
Start from this palette's mood and get an original 13-color system for your own project, contrast-checked and ready to export.