Gone are the days of settling for a limited range of dull bronzes and lip shades, or mixing three different foundations just to match your jawline. If your beauty shelf is not filling up with homegrown brands, you’re missing out. No longer simply filling gaps left by international labels, new-age beauty brands are creating products catering to the way we actually live, with formulas that can survive Indian humidity and versatile shades that understand the breadth of Indian skin tones.
While it may seem like there is a new product launch every week, a few names are carving out identities of their own. A new wave of indie, founder-led Indian beauty brands is rewriting the playbook. Think hyper-pigmented formulas, skin-first ingredients, inclusive shade ranges that actually suit Indian skin tones, and ultra-clever packaging designed for real life.
Fae Beauty
The Vibe: Beauty should be for everyone – and Fae Beauty has built its identity around exactly that idea.
Why It’s Iconic: With inclusivity and accessibility placed at the centre of its approach, Fae Beauty actively develops its products with a wider range of users in mind, from deeper skin tones to gender-fluid representation.
Hero Product: Lip Whip matte lipstick, Lush Blush, Mirror Glaze highlighter balm, and Face Card skin tint. Perfect for your everyday five-minute routine.
SimplyNam
The Vibe: Pro-level products, edited for your daily routine.
Why It’s Iconic: Created by celebrity makeup artist Namrata Soni, SimplyNam translates backstage beauty expertise into foolproof products. Designed keeping Indian humid weather in mind, the brand’s products refuse to budge.
Hero Product: Ultra Soft Matte Liquid Lipsticks, Velvet Cream Magic Blush, and Hydrafit Concealer. Trust these products to never let you walk out looking anything but fresh and flawless.
Mokae Beauty
The Vibe: High-impact eye makeup to add a dash of drama to your everyday life.
Why It’s Iconic: Trust Mokae Beauty to take classic staples and give them a clean, modern overhaul. Created by makeup artist Sandhya Shekar and photographer Vikas Vasudev, the brand approaches beauty as something that extends beyond the products themselves
Hero Product: Their signature waterproof Mascara and buttery-soft Kajal. It’s all about doing more with less.
Kay Beauty
The Vibe: A mélange of high-performance makeup and skin-loving formulations.
Why It’s Iconic: If there is one homegrown beauty name that helped make the conversation around celebrity-led beauty considerably more interesting, it is Katrina Kaif’s Kay Beauty. Whether you are after a barely-there base or a more defined makeup look, there is plenty to play with.
Hero Product: Hydra Cloud Cushion Foundation, Hydra Creme Lipstick and Jelly Blush Wand.
Diam Beauty
The Vibe: For anyone who believes makeup should do more than simply sit on the skin.
Why It’s Iconic: If your beauty mood board currently involves dewy skin, diffused blush and softly blurred lips, there is plenty here to explore. Diam Beauty’s product line-up feels very much in tune with the current appetite for makeup that sits somewhere between colour cosmetics and skincare.
Hero Product: The Glass Tint Balm and their viral Draw Me In Lip Marker.
Peep Beauty
The Vibe: Playful, expressive and unapologetically eye-catching.
Why It’s Iconic: Why limit your beauty routine to one category when your eyes can do all the talking? Peep Beauty is taking an eye-first approach to makeup, building its world around coloured liquid eyeshadows that bring Y2K pop back to the forefront.
Hero Product: Liquid Eyeshadows in the shades Bijlee, Pataka, and Chamkeeli.
RAS Beauty
The Vibe: Botanical, sensorial and rooted in Indian ingredients.
Why It’s Iconic: If your idea of beauty leans more towards rituals, RAS Beauty deserves a place in your cart. Built around a farm-to-face philosophy, the brand traces its ingredients back to sustainable farms and combines botanical ingredients with research-driven formulations.
Hero Product: 24K Gold Radiance Beauty Elixir, which doubles as a skincare treatment and a luminous primer under foundation, and the SuperPlump™ Maximizing Lip Oil Gloss.
Beauty has never been more fun or experimental than it is now. And there’s no single definition of what “homegrown beauty” looks like anymore. Whether your routine is all about playful experimentation, considered rituals or effortless everyday essentials, there’s a homegrown brand ready to find a place on your shelf.
