LOVE POTION

Beauty rituals, steeped in tradition, are undergoing a metamorphosis for younger generations, and helping them reconnect with their roots.

- JISHNU BANDYOPADHYAY

It feels like yesterday. I am seated on a flat cushion on our grey-black mosaic floor, only about six or seven years old, as my grandmother massages oils of olive, camphor, peanuts, and soybean onto my arms and legs. Like she has done with my mother before me, she is gently twisting and tugging on my limbs, and humming a rhyme too familiar. A rhyme that wishes for me to grow as strong as the trunk of the banyan. It’s peak winter, and my skin turns from an ashy sand to a honey beige in seconds. Once the limbs are oiled to her satisfaction, she swiftly moves on to the back, the belly, and the neck. I feel the cold breeze from our veranda dance past my face, but it’s got nothing on me. It would take me years to appreciate the warmth that spreads through my body. The meaning that her care holds, passed down through generations of women who came before me, would help me take care of myself one day.

India and South Asia have nurtured a deep connection between beauty and wellness for millennia. One that sees beauty from the inside out as a necessity, not a luxury you occasionally indulge in. This connection, fostered through communal knowledge of natural produce, and the careful chemistry that makes them potent, has nourished our bodies and protected our gorgeous melanated sheath through time. As the world rediscovers the power of sustainable ingredients and self-care, these age-old practices are experiencing a renaissance, captivating a new generation eager to reconnect with their roots. As prodigal children often do, we are collectively realising that our culture, which we were taught to hate, is being sold back to us. Our creamy hair, and golden skin, are being clean-girled and bronze-boyed into coolness without much regard for the sacred wisdom that backs them.