Indian red is a pigment composed of naturally occurring iron oxides that is widely used in India. Other shades of iron oxides include Venetian Red, English Red, and Kobe. Chestnut is a color similar to but separate and distinct from Indian red.

The name Indian red derives from the red laterite soil found in India, which is composed of naturally occurring iron oxides. The first recorded use of Indian red as a color term in English was in 1792.

Deep Indian red is the color called originally called Indian red from its formulation in 1958 until 1999, but now called chestnut, in Crayola crayons. This color was also produced in a special limited edition in which it was called Vermont maple syrup.

At the request of educators worried that children (mistakenly) believed the name represented the skin color of Native Americans, Crayola changed the name of their crayon color Indian Red to Chestnut in 1999. In reality, the color Indian red has nothing to do with American Indians but is an iron oxide pigment the use of which is popular in India.