Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Brunch
RETHINKING BEAUTY
Free of make-up during the lockdown, have women finally begun to feel comfortable in their own skin?
have taken a hit during lockdown, the sales of clean beauty products have been on the upswing in the past few weeks. India, with its tradition of Ayurveda, has an in-built affinity towards herbs, flora and fauna in beauty rituals.
Vivek Sahni, founder and
CEO of Kama Ayurveda confirms the trend. “Our communication on social media has seen an increase in engagement. As a result of staying home and reading, people have begun taking care of their health to build immunity.
—ALLY MATTHAN, LEADING INDIAN PERFUMER
Immunity has become a buzzword. The use of chemical-free products, ones that are pure and authentic, is a natural outcome of this trend.”
Jessica Jayne, who runs the clean beauty brand Pahadi Local, has noted an uptake in clean beauty products as well as everything associated with wellness. Customers have been happy to make prepaid purchases despite knowing there could be considerable delay in delivery, she observes.
“One of the biggest reasons for new customer acquisition is being able to convince them that our skincare products are less harmful to our skin and to the environment,” says Jayne. Pull facewash, which is a lake sediment salt, has proven to be Pahadi Local’s star product at this time. “Maybe that’s because salt is also assumed to be a wellness product,” explains Jayne. The product also doubles as a soft exfoliator, adding to its charm. Beauty rituals, such as the 10-step Korean skincare regime, had reached a painstaking extreme and things were getting out of hand.
The fragrance market has been “strongly” impacted by this trend towards natural products. Bengaluru-based Ally Matthan, a leading Indian perfumer, points out, “There is a perceived consumer shift from ‘wellness’ to ‘well-being’ and our offering must reflect these values. Fragrance has always played a critical role and in these times, the instant lift a good perfume offers is deeply appreciated. Of the roughly 3,000 fragrance ingredients available, our palate must be reduced to non-volatile compounds. Volatile compounds may cause instant gratification but they are also hazardous to your health in the long-term – they cause respiratory problems and skin issues apart from being subtle hormone disruptors as they are as toxic as car fumes.”
SKIN DEEP
Staying at home means we are more make-up free than usual, and the feel and look of natural skin has become more important than ever. Forest Essentials’ chief managing director Mira Kulkarni says, “As there is no requirement for make-up, the lockdown is enabling people to finally be comfortable in their own skin.”
The lockdown has not only turned us into chefs, it has also turned us into kitchen beauticians. This is not surprising, given that we have a centuries-old tradition of elaborate home remedies for skincare and we have the time to practice them.
The luxury of time will, of course, ebb as we go back to “a new normal,” so Delhi-based Dr Kiran Lohia, who runs the skin, aesthetic and wellness clinic, Isyaderm, is ready for her clients “to come back in droves.” She says #nofilter will be in demand now that laser hair removal is one of the most missed treatments and she also believes that invasive treatments like botox and fillers will take the backseat for now and “high performance skincare and home care devices will definitely be preferred over expensive cosmetics.”
Homegrown beauty company Colorbar is planning to launch two new skincare lines. The company’s founder and director Samir Modi says, “We are also
“THERE IS A PERCEIVED SHIFT FROM WELLNESS TO WELL-BEING”
worse hit than after the 1929 Great Crash. It took the Western world over three years to recover from that. But the 1930s are often called ‘The Golden Age’ as glamour came into the forefront (think of Hollywood sirens Jean Harlow and Greta Garbo or closer home, Fearless Nadia).
After months of wearing a mask, women might crave full-on glamour.
What makes the 2020 different from 1929 is that we were already marching towards a more natural look before the pandemic. According to Colorbar, 37 per cent of women in west India, 16 per cent in the south, 28 per cent in the north and 33 per cent in the east were already looking for natural make-up. Says Shroff, “Having been make-up free for so long it will be hard to go back to a full face Kim K sort of vibe.”
Even social media, which has in many ways encouraged the use of bold and beautiful colours, is toning things down. Popular
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