You Do Your Hue

Parul Karn speaks to experts to help teens understand their skin, glow-up trends, the pressure to blend in, and the power of standing out by looking like yourself

- Parul Karn

Who are you when nobody is looking? There's a line in the song One Day by rock band Kodaline that goes, "You're always trying to see yourself.

.. Through the eyes of someone else." Have you ever wondered how you'd truly look to yourself if your perspective were not consumed by the noise of a trendy world, where, one day, it's beautiful to wear clean-girl makeup and, the next day, the messy girl aesthetic takes over like nobody's business?

Everyone starts following trends like sheep in a herd, not really knowing where they're going. That's exactly how we sometimes lose our identities without ever figuring out who we truly are. Trends slowly turn us into clones: we end up doing the same nails, the same hair, putting on the same gloss, and wearing the same crop tops.

But it doesn't stop there. These trends are making us look older than we actually are. Ouch. We no longer look our age! The media is full of discussions about how Gen Z is “ageing like milk”. But why? What's changed?

Gurgaon-based psychotherapist Aishwarya Chawla explains: “Teens often feel anxious or inadequate when their appearance doesn’t match dominant trends. Early signs include obsessively checking how they look on camera, comparing themselves constantly to (images on) social media, or needing validation for every new style choice.”

The media plays a huge role. Social media and TV shows are filled with teenagers using gua sha, stressing over dark circles, or even considering cosmetic treatments at a very young age. “Some teens feel extreme distress if they can't buy a trending product or replicate a certain aesthetic,” Aishwarya notes. “Over time, they start believing beauty trends define their worth rather than see trends as forms of expression.”