A walk through Sephora India

Last evening the Indian beauty industry took the first step towards a monumental change with the inauguration of Sephora in Select CityWalk, Saket, New Delhi. Shopping for makeup and grooming will now be a whole new experience and that was clearly announced by the subtle yet confident opening of the first store of Sephora India. From early evening curious, enthusiastic and almost hungry shoppers and beauty enthusiasts knocked at the store's shutters and waited till 7:30pm for the doors to open. And open it did, in style, with energy, warmth, and fun overflowing out of the store and it's staff. Those who witnessed the opening will tell you that just when shoppers outside were getting restless, from within the store (at the ground floor, central atrium of the mall) notes of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance floated out and the Sephora team dressed in their trade mark black danced to the tune as the shutters rolled up.
To say it in short, it was electrifying and the wait for The Beauty Authority to finally make it's appearance was worth the while. It was an experience that we, the ones who witnessed it, will not forget in a hurry.
So that was the opening, now let me walk you through it and tell you a little about what you should look out for.
As you step in, you will see two showcases, displaying "Hot Now" products, take a good look at them and remember them to test them when you reach the brands' counters. Then when you turn to your left you will find your favourite ayurvedic brand Forest Essentials. You may have already tried their products but do take a couple of minutes to once again linger over their Date and Litchi Cream and the Soundarya Serum. Since last evening, I have fallen in love with them all over again. Next as you move ahead you can't but miss the "propah" English grooming brand, Crabtree&Evelyn. You can't leave this counter without indulging on their fabulous pomegranate handscrub and those men, who are sulking and "just" hanging around, may want to check out the Nomad and Sienna ranges.
From here also starts the rows of grooming  brands that you will only see in Sephora India and they are Soap&Glory, Burt's Bees and The Face Shop. From this area you must also check out Sephora own bath and body range available in several variants. My favourite is of course their Chocolate and their Cotton Flower range. My advice: Please spend quality and quantity time exploring this area. The staffers are just right there to help you when you need, but you can is to explore the beautiful brands on your own as well for as long as you want. Pick up the black baskets kept close by and fill them in with what you like. Keep them with you and think over your choices as you walk through the rest of the store.
Once done with this area, move over to the fragrances segment. And, and here we have Tom Ford fragrances that are again now available in India exclusively through Sephora. After perfumes hop over to makeup and Oh My God! what a variety to choose from. I can spend an entire day just exploring this place. What do they have there? Ask what they don't! Ummm yes... Urban Decay, Nars, and Smashbox are awaited but there is Sephora's entire makeup collection and there is Stila, NYX (check out their Nude on Nude eye shadow palette) and Benefit. Oh, here they also have a gondola for men's grooming products. Must take a look at Zirh. On the right wall you will find an interesting collection of haircare and skincare products. For hair check out Ouidad and Oscar Blandi and in skin my recommendation is Peter Thomas Roth and NUXE.
Walk further ahead and you shall find your favourite brands like Shiseido, Clarins, Guerlain and Dior. After you cross Dior don't miss the "Skin care Wall". This smart wall display helps you choose skincare products as per your skin needs. All you need to do is look at the column head for the type of product you need (cleanser, scrub, moisturiser, serum, mask) and the row for you skin need (whitening, anti-ageing, acne etc). You know these are the little smart and thoughtful things of Sephora that makes you fall in love with the brand. It is organised, it's easy to navigate and it's not imposing. It offers you choices but never takes over your decision. In short it gives you the freedom to explore and make a choice.
I'll sign off with that today and with the hope that your Sephora experience is as good as mine.

Sephora India

Makeup, beauty, grooming is encoded in my genes. Thanks to my mother, I grew up in a world many girls would want to - in a glamorous beauty salon! Where every hour my mother showed women how to love looking good and taking pride in looking their best.
So my earliest memories of childhood include exploring my mother's dressing table, sniffing her delicate perfume bottles, running my little fingers over her brilliant nail paints and wondering when will my hands and nails be long enough to flaunt them as she did. I also remember watching her awestruck, dress up brides during the busy wedding season. In fact, I am till date mesmerised by her art. Girls walk in in simple T-shirt and denims and leave as resplendent goddesses. And who does that? My mom in her salon! What pride I feel in that can't be explained in words.
In short, what I am trying to say is that all my life I have been a worshiper of beauty. So when for the first time I walked into the beauty haven - Sephora, Champs Elysees, Paris - the feeling was that of sufi finding her kaaba. Yes, for me it was as poetic as that. And trust me it has taken me three years to come up with an appropriate expression for that experience. In trying to explain what it felt for a makeup enthusiast to walk into Sephora, I often described it as Alice walking into the Wonderland, or a child entering Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. However, every time I went back to a Sephora store my love/passion/obsession whatever you may call it grew. I have no shame in saying that I have visited Paris four times and have never been to the Eiffel or the Louvre. I have waved at them and quickly walked into Sephora! My main attraction to go to Singapore is to go to the awesome Sephora store in ION mall (and of course China Town for food). In fact, on our my wedding anniversary this year, we were in Singapore, and I spent three hours in the store. I was delighted but my husband was.... just accepted it.
I know, I know, I am mad! But you have to be a little eccentric to love beauty.
Therefore, therefore... Now that the beauty haven is all set to open it's doors in India (Select CityWalk, Delhi) you can just imagine my state. Being a part of this moment is what I have been dreaming of for the major part of this year.
So you may ask what will I do when the store opens? What else? Shop!
And here's my list of must-haves from Sephora India
1) Sephora Heated Eyelash Curler (eye makeup will look a 100 times better with the help of this amazing tool)
2) Sephora Nail Patch
3) The Face Shop Tissue Specialist in Olive (it's the best face wipe I have ever tested)
4) Sephora Instant Nail Paint Remover (I can't think of a life without this smart product)
5) Burt's Bees Lip Balms (Oh there are so many varieties that I still can't decide which one I love more)
6) Benefit Porefessional (perrrrrrfecttttt primer, I challenge you, find me one that beats it)
7) Benefit They're Real Mascara (gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous! apply it after curling lashes with Sephora lash curler. Your lashes can stir up a storm after that!)
8) Soap&Glory Breakfast Scrub (when I am watching calories, I satiate my craving for sweets by giving myself a rub down with this delicious scrub!)
9) Soap&Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Lip Plumper (just buy it girls, take my advice on this blindly)
10) Stila Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer (So my friends, that's the secret to my glowing skin - now you have the answer?)
11) Oscar Blandi Jasmine Shampoo and Conditioner (hair just speaks differently with these)
12) Burt's Bees Coconut Foot Creme (just the perfect foot treatment for this weather)
13) Forest Essentials Madhulika Honey Lep (that mask is a must this winter)
14) Burt's Bees Sensitive Facial Wash (it's so delicate and lovely)
15) Soap&Glory Clean On Me Body Wash ("Cleanliness is essential when godliness is improbable)
16) Burt's Bees Daisy White Moisturizing Cream
17) Calvin Klein Forbidden Euphoria (I have spotted a gift set, and am dropping hints to my husband that maybe he wants to get that for me as a Christmas present from Sephora)

Ummm, so that's all for now. Will get back with more soon.
Till then I will leave you with a thought - "A truly beautiful person is one who's good at discovering beauty," Daisaku Ikeda

Kashmir

Dal Lake, Srinagar

Yes, I know I have been away for a while... quite a while. But, can you blame me? I had been to paradise! I know, I know poets, authors, lovers etc have often described Kashmir as paradise on earth, but you know what it is not a bit exaggerated or overrated. It is heaven on earth. It is beautiful. And this time when I visited this heavenly land I realised that in my soul I carry a little part of the soul of the place. I mean like if you can have a soul land like a soul mate, then for me I guess it would be Calcutta (my homeland) and Kashmir (the land from where I get my name).

They say what's in a name and I have also always thought, really what's in a name? However, after I visited Kashmir this time (this is my third visit) that I realised that perhaps there is a lot that a name can mean or do. Perhaps my affinity for the place stems from my name. Or perhaps this land has this intoxicating and mesmerising effect on every romantic soul. 

Beginning of October, the localites explained, is not the ideal time to visit Kashmir. There are neither beautiful blooms nor the stately snow. It's barren and cold. But even in this emptiness I found something longingly beautiful. Pahalgam, which I have seen before in it's youthful, lush greeness; was a somber shade of brown with strokes of warm orange and mellow yellow. The apple orchards stood bare with the luscious red produce neatly arranged in heaps near the gates - ready to be weighed and sold to distributors. The days had suddenly become shorter and the evenings longer and chillier. Yes I know I am sounding like an incurable romantic but trust me while sitting in the lawns of Woodstock Hotel in Pahalgam and watching the gentle Lieder river flow by I couldn't help but recall John Keats' poem To Autumn. So all I did in my three-nights stay in Pahalgam is eat, laze and dream, and of course shop (can't ever forget that, can I?). One of my best memories of Pahalgam from this trip is the breakfast that we had in Cafe Log Inn. It was the most delicious fish and chips I have ever tasted in my life! Fresh river water trout and crisp chips, it made even the dated music of the cafe seem fresh and new.

The last three nights of my stay in Kashmir was in Srinagar - one night in Clermont Houseboat just opposite the university and two nights at Shahenshah Hotel at the boulevard overlooking the Dal Lake. While at the houseboat I lazed and lazed and lazed a little more and had numerous cups of kawah while greedily catching up on reading books that I have been meaning to read for months. At the boulevard I became active. I shopped, shopped and shopped...till I dropped. Those delicate pashminas, colourful kani embroidery, intricate wood carvings and bright and fragile paper mache are just irresistible for a shopaholic like me. In between shopping I took breaks for eating and on a particular afternoon when I was scanning the shops on Residency Road we discovered the famous Adhoos restaurant, which had been highly recommended by friends. The rich and scrumptious meal (purely non-vegetarian) was in itself the taste of paradise. Even after days, I just need to close my eyes and the delicious aroma and flavours of gushtaba, tabak maas, rista and biryani envelop my senses. 

So while I relish and relive these memories till my next visit to paradise, I urge all those reading this space, that if there is a place that you must visit in this lifetime then it is Kashmir. Do make it!

Rains

October is not really the time to write about rains but what shall I say, the weather gods have been very whimsical of late and have sent the predicted seasons for a toss. I have grown up with my birthday almost always coinciding with a rainy day (it happens to be July 10) - and perhaps that's the reason why I love rains so much. From the gentle pitter-patter to the lashing showers and rumbling, grumbling thunder, the scent of the wet earth after the first shower, the spray covering the face when droplets rush in through the open window of a moving car, the sting of water that splashes with the rain lashes into a swimming pool, and gettting drenched to the skin when caught without an umbrella in a heavy shower - I love everything about rains.
In school in Calcutta there used to be days that were declared "rainy days". These were days when the entire city would come to a stand-still because of heavy showers and we'd get a holiday just like that, out of the blue. However, my excitement  of the "rainy day" was not due to the fact that it was a holiday, rather it was from the calls that my parents would make to the school to find out if school was open and if they should send their child to school. I would wait in front of my mother with wide eyes eagerly waiting to know the answer but as always the phone would go unanswered. Mom and Baiya (that's what I call my father) would debate if I should go and of all days on such days I would be more than willing to trek or rather wade to school. Seeing my excitement they would give in and the car would be taken out for me to be driven to school. I'd arrive at the gate late but with absolute confidence that I am one of the few who have braved the weather to attend school and this would mean a lot more exciting things: 1) It would mean that classes would be dissolved as perhaps teachers were also absent 2) It would be declared a "rainy day" which meant it was a holiday (there was a different pleasure in going to school and then discovering it's off rather than knowing it from before).
 3) Since my best friend's house was just across the school, such a sudden holiday meant that I would spend the time with her till someone came from home to pick me; and given the state of the city on such a day no one would arrive anytime soon. So the day would be an amazing day.
On holidays when it would rain, what i would like doing the best is curling up in my bed with a book and my cook would humour my mood with hot chocolate, piping hot pakodas, and delicious tea cakes.
Alas! such days are luxuries now but still once in a blue moon if I do get a chance to enjoy a holiday which is a rainy day I still love spending the day reading a book over a cup of Darjeeling tea. Sometimes I add another passion to this day. I treat myself to a nice at-home manicure - a scrub, a little buffing and a quick massage. What more can one want.

JNU

Just realised.... It's been a decade since I came to Delhi from Calcutta (God! really has it been that long??? It only seemed yesterday!). In July 2002 I came to Delhi to join the MA English course in JNU (Jawaharlal Nehru University). My plan was set I had to spend two years here and then I would for sure go back to where I belong, my Calcutta, my city of joy. But then that evening some of our classmates trekked to the famous PSR (Parthasarthy Rocks) and on the way a Nilgai (it's a species of antelopes that are often spotted in the campus) crossed my path and looked straight into my eye. "And that's it!" It was declared by a classmate who had already updated himself on the myths of the place that now I would stay here for the nest 10 years. It's an urban legend in JNU that if a nilgai crosses your path and looks into your eyes, you are doomed/blessed to stay in the campus for a decade. Well now it's a different story that nilgais are often spotted roaming the wild campus and JNU offers a life that not many want to leave in a haste. After all, it's a little universe of its own and the air I believe has an anti-dote for ageing (surprisingly something that beauty brands have not yet got the wind of). Life is forever young here, it is a one long party where you can walk in anytime but can never check out. You may physically leave the premises but you will always carry a bit of the soul of the place wherever you go. So while I may have left the campus five years ago, I continue to hold it in my heart.
JNU is seen as a hot bed of politics but it is also a world of lotus eaters who live life in their own rhythm and rules. However, their senses and intellect are not dulled, rather they are supercharged. They exist in a state of drunkeness akin to that of a sufi perhaps. Metaphorically it is a place where there is eternal spring but actually it is in this place that in reality I experienced different seasons and their beauty. Before coming to JNU, I had only read about seasons in Rabindranath Tagore's and Keats' poems, but it was in campus that I actually learnt and felt grey winter melt into beautiful spring, young spring ignite into a blazing summer, the angry summer doused by a soothing monsoon, the lush monsoon bloom into a rich autumn and mellow autumn grow into a severe winter. When I first came to the campus for my admissions, everything was a dry, angry, saffron. It was harsh and unwelcoming, almost like a primeval beast belching out fire to keep one away. But when I returned to check in a month later - everything had changed. The campus was a lush green and young tress and rain as it were embraced me with open arms. The long walks to the school buildings (where we had our classes) became a time to exercise and catch up with friends before the day started. The evening sojourns at Ganga dhaba over cups of extra sweet chai and aloo bonda became sacrosanct, the midnight snack of wai wai noodles with Miss Curly Hair in Colgate Smile grew into a ritual that we now giggle over on our chats on bbm. And then who can forget the much hyped hostel nights and the freshers' and farewell parties. Each one had and I guess will always have the potential to ignite many a love story.
Apart from these JNU has a few more interesting evenings, the North East festival for instance, the International Food Festival (this used to be generally on 14th February), the Chat Sammelan on Holi eve, and the Presidential Debate. Yes elections in JNU can be a festival, from the campaign to the night of counting votes it used to be one long carnival.
While these were the marked iconic days in the life in campus, there were other unmarked yet equally iconic moments like Prasad sir's post-4pm classes, where sir would offer tea to his students. It was a class in Room No 15 in SL Building that one would look forward to because while sir would call for only tea, we placed orders for coffee and snacks. Then there were evenings in Jhelum Hostel's Warden No. 4's residence where dairies were written and shairies were recited over an interesting concoction of rum and tea.
I know this is just an indulgence of nostalgia but those from JNU like to indulge in it nevertheless. And the beauty of the place is that one just needs to step into that world to relive it once again. While we of those times may no longer be the same, as the Nawab, for who to stir is human and sleep is divine, says if the place calls out to you just go drive through it and if you are in a hurry just throw out a coin at the campus as you would to the river or shrine and your prayer will reach the universe.
(Well that's Nawab's style; I just drive down to the campus with my husband to give him a taste of the place and refresh my memories of the wonderland.)

Fridays :)

Yeah! It's Friday! - my friends are more than familiar with this shout of joy for me. After all, it has been my unfailing weekly update on Facebook and Twitter. And as the popular saying goes - you can love me or hate me but you can't ignore this inevitable update from me :-)
So yes, I love Fridays. And well who doesn't when the following two days are off? Tell me who doesn't like sleeping in a little late one day of the week, linger over the cup of morning tea or coffee, savour another cup with the newspaper, and the rest? Yes, so tell me who doesn't? Errr of course, my husband is an exception. Monday or Saturday, weekday or holiday, he is up each morning bright and early... as early as 5am. Ah well... that's my husband but again that habit doesn't stop him from loving Friday. He says by waking up early he gets more time to enjoy the holiday! So that's his reasoning.
However, let's get back to where I started from - I love Fridays. So much so that I talk to the day. Okay I have to admit, that I talk to all days of the week. If you follow my tweets you will know with what passion I speak to Mondays, how I dismiss Wednesdays and Thursdays, and how I flirt with Fridays. Yes, this behaviour has alarmed some of my friends. Many have advised me to enjoy my work, some have asked me to change my job, and others have asked me to cheer up! Hey, thank you every one. But friends I am absolutely fine. I love what I do, and I do what I love. So no complains there. The thing is that I love connecting with days, its fun! And no, don't get alarmed there's nothing wrong in doing that. It's just a whole lot of fun. Try doing this, write a letter to the day, expressing what you want from the day or what you feel about the day. I assure you, you will really like it. Let me give you an example. Who shall I choose? Okay let it be Monday. So it goes like this, first imagine you have had a nice weekend and now you have to get back to work/school/college on Monday. Yes, you like your work but come on that moment when your alarm clock goes off, what exactly is the emotion? Now don't lie, be honest. Don't you feel a cheeky fellow grinning at you and saying "lazy bones, I am here, wake up!" - that's Monday for you. Monday is not evil or dark or foreboding, it is just a mischievous prankster and sometimes can be that sulking spoilsport who has to be taught by holiday, that despite itself it can be quite fun.
A friend of mine, once alarmed by a series of such tweets called me to esquire if all was well with me. She was calling me almost after a year and half, and was half amused and half concerned. Concerned to know if I am still sane and amused because she said that this banter with days made her laugh. So you see that's the effect this chatting with days have. Think of it, if this talk can make a friend call you after years and you have a lovely conversation at the start of the day, then can this activity be bad?
Go on talk to your day!

Comfortable in my skin

Not so long ago and perhaps still in some cases makeup would start with a layer of 'pancake'. This layer would prepare the face like a canvas to be painted on. And trust me it did look as flat and fake as a face painted on canvas. However, in the last few years makeup techniques have evolved to such an extent that now even a thin veil of foundation is becoming redundant and getting replaced by multi-taskers like tinted moisturisers and BB creams. Yes, makeup quality, technique and options have improved by the day, but the primary reason why this has been possible is due to the fact that over the last five years skincare has become a part of most urban Indian woman's daily regimen and therefore their skin condition in general has become far better than what it used to be. Thanks to popular beauty brands and constant affirmation by beauty writers CTM is no longer an unknown acronym. Women know what it stands for and they follow it regularly as well. Okay, they may not be doing the T (toning) daily, but most women these days will definitely never miss cleansing and moisturising. And they do it twice a day. Very few will hit the bed without taking off their makeup. This simple change itself has gone a long way in taking care of skin woes, especially problems like acne. And honestly, cleansing and moisturising is the best anti-ageing regimen that one can follow, just add in a bit of toning and exfoliation and you are sorted!
Trust me no makeup, just no makeup, can match up to fabulous skin. So work on it a little every day to keep that glow on. Here's my secret to fab skin:

Follow your CTM ritual regularly. You can exfoliate by using a scrub at home once a week or go for a peel to a salon once a month, but for best results I'd suggest you use either include an exfoliating cleanser or an exfoliating toner in you CTM ritual. Now, why CTM helps? Clean skin is necessary for healthy skin and healthy skin is a prerequisite for glowing complexion. Toning and exfoliating help in smoothening out the skin texture. Remember an even surface reflects light, similarly even skin will glow. Moisturising helps plump up cells which again help in getting the glow. Now, pigmentation and spots could be a dampner. So how to tackle that? Here I suggest you opt for a serum or cream that targets this specific problem or use a serum like Estee Lauder's ANR, Lancome's Genefique, Keraskin's Derma-Morphose that work on turning back the clock for cells.
Apart from this I recommend you have plenty of water and at least four cups of green tea. Green tea really works wonders, it helps in flushing out toxins from your body and keeps your system humming. Keep a face mist in hand to mist your face whenever skin feel stretched or dehydrated. And of course exercise. Exercise improves blood circulation and helps in getting that glow. Sluggish metabolism will reflect on your face as dull complexion. My special recommendation: try doing surya namaskar or Tibetan Rites. These two workouts make your complexion radiate with positivity.
So glow on!