Posts in category: Life Style

While the fiction landscape in India struggles to gain the attention it deserves, it continues to flourish globally, particularly in the US and UK, with novels consistently topping bestseller charts and fueling cultural conversations. But given the developed literary infrastructure in these regions, it’s not exactly a fair comparison. “Theirs is a more mature market with centuries of access to language, form, styles, genres and a long publishing tradition,” explains Thakkar. So, the real question is: what will it take for the Indian fiction market to catch up? Does it simply need time to mature or are there ways we can accelerate its growth?

The rise of social media has supercharged fiction in the West and it’s a trend that can—and should—be harnessed in India as well. With over 200 billion views on TikTok, communities like #BookTok have become powerful catalysts for books like A Court of Thorns and Roses and Fourth Wing. While we may not have TikTok in India, the Indian Bookstagram community is beginning to play a significant role in bringing fiction into the spotlight, with readers and influencers sharing book recommendations, reviews and discussions that help foster a vibrant literary community. In my own experience, when a celebrity posted about my novel Red Flags and Rishtas on Instagram, the impact was immediate. The book’s Amazon ranking shot into the top 100, and it quickly went into reprint.

Building awareness through social media, however, is just one piece of the puzzle. If the reception to shows based on Indian novels like Sacred Games, A Suitable Boy, Paatal Lok and Murder In Mahim is anything to go by, there’s definitely an appetite for storytelling that breaches the borders of believability. But to genuinely broaden fiction’s reach beyond our screens, we need to address issues around accessibility and the availability of books in regional languages. A major chunk of bestselling fiction by Indian authors like Arundhati Roy, Jhumpa Lahiri and Ruskin Bond is published and marketed in English. It’s crucial to remember that most Indians do not read in English, so publishing houses need to back regional-language fiction that will introduce native readers to the joys of fantastical worldbuilding. “We also need a much better distribution mechanism and ecosystem to reach out to remote and rural regions,” Thakkar agrees.

At 19, Coco Rocha was hailed as fashion’s next big thing. At 35, she’s not interested in chasing the label. “Models were considered trends,” she says. “But longevity doesn’t come from chasing a moment. It comes from building something meaningful over time.”

Rocha has been modelling for over two decades. Her face and those whip-smart poses are plastered across countless vision boards and Tumblr pages. But these days, she’s focused on showing up differently: as a mentor, teacher and a mother of three. At the Coco Rocha Model Camp, she trains new talent not just in movement, but in mindset. “Too many models just want approval,” she says. “But when we create images or speak from a platform, we need people to feel something. They don’t have to love it. They can hate it, be confused by it, shocked by it—but feel something.”

It’s a lesson she learned later in her career. “When I started, it was just do the job and hope the people in the room like it. But liking it isn’t really enough.” Somewhere along the way, her strategy changed: from pleasing people to leaving an impact. “That’s when my career started lasting. Even if I wasn’t trending, I stayed.”

The way she describes her work now is more like performance art than posing. “Modeling for me is about creating a performance. If I can make the audience feel something, it moves the character along. It gets the photoshoot going.” Music is her tool. “It’s our secret sauce,” she says. “Even if it’s just dancing a little behind the stage for a runway show, it helps me start moving and step into character.”

That connection between body and feeling runs deep. Rocha trained as a dancer, and her approach still carries that physical intelligence. She uses music to “get out of my head and into my body,” especially before high-pressure shoots. Once the job’s done, she’s quick to switch back to real life. “At the end of the day, I realise I’m Coco the mom who has to pick up her kids,” she says. “You flick a switch, and you’re back.”

Still, some feelings linger. “If it was a lot of emotions expected from me, I can still feel those when I leave and go home. But that tells me I probably did a really good job.”

If you get teary-eyed just thinking about opening up, try using a line like, “Hey, I’m going through a breakup right now and don’t want to get into the details yet, but I’d love your support when I’m ready.” That baby step can be enough to open the door to outside help without feeling overwhelmed.

You fill every hour of your day with distractions

Compared to bed rotting with Ben & Jerry’s, throwing yourself into work or saying yes to every invite sounds like productive, healthy progress. After all, being busy is better than being broken…right?

“These coping mechanisms may feel good in the moment, but doing it too often will only distract you from the pain,” says Carla Marie Manly, PhD, a clinical psychologist in Sonoma, California and author of Joy From Fear. In other words, “They don’t actually heal the pain”—which requires you to sit with your emotions and accept what happened. Otherwise, sooner or later, the heartbreak will catch up to you months, even years after the split, often when you least expect it.

What to do instead: It’s still a good idea to keep yourself busy—go out more, meet new people, dive into your favourite hobbies. And if Sunday nights tend to hit the hardest, strategically planning hangouts with friends that day is a smart move to fill the void.

But balance is key here, meaning you’ve got to also make room to sit with your feelings. “Build in something I call cry time,” Brown says. Basically, it’s your window to wallow about what you’ve lost and grieve the future you thought you’d have together. “Even just 15 minutes works,” she adds. “It’s enough to tell your brain, ‘Hey, it’s okay for me to feel certain things,’ but short enough where your emotions aren’t getting out of control to the extent that you can’t pull them back.”

You’re waiting for the “perfect” closure to move on

According to Dr. Manly, lots of people cling to the belief that one final satisfying conversation with their ex will make it easier to move on for good. Then, there would be no more pain, resentment or lingering “what ifs”—which explains why so many of us might drag out texts, say goodbye a million different ways, or hold off on dating again just in case they finally want to talk things through.

Azelaic acid might not have the same hype as retinol or vitamin C, but this grain-derived dermatologist-love ingredient has slowly become one of skincare’s most versatile power players. With Korean brand Anua’s viral azelaic acid finally launching in India, the acid’s name is on everyone’s lips.

Naturally found in rye and barley, azelaic acid belongs to the dicarboxylic acid family and suits almost every skin type. It soothes inflammation, clears congestion, fades pigmentation and can be used during pregnancy. No wonder it’s cropping up everywhere, from prescription tubes to over-the-counter serums.

But what exactly does it do, how do you use it and is it safe to mix with other actives? Here’s your need-to-know guide to one of skincare’s most underrated multitaskers.

What does azelaic acid do for your skin?

“Azelaic acid is one of my favourite skincare ingredients,” says Dr Anita Sturnham, the founder of skincare brand Decree. “It is most well known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties, meaning it helps to prevent the formation of the comededone, the primary acne lesion.”

A hugely versatile ingredient, it also works to calm and exfoliate the skin, and reduce redness and oil production, as well as preventing the blocking of pores for a clearer complexion. “It also helps to reduce hyperpigmentation and even out skin tone by inhibiting an enzyme called tyrosinase, which leads to dark spots and patches on the skin,” adds skincare expert Nilam Holmes.

Is it ok to use azelaic acid every day?

A fantastic all-rounder, azelaic acid can easily be incorporated into your daily skincare routine with products that are available over the counter (and therefore are not too powerful). However, those with sensitive skin might want to start slowly and use it on alternate days, in order to build up to eventually tolerating daily use. If you’re using prescriptive strength azelaic acid, you might want to use it in conjunction with a squalane based serum, suggests Sturnham, as it can be a little drying.

If in doubt, always consult an expert. “It’s always better to seek professional advice to ensure you are using the right ingredient in the right way, especially when using other actives,” says celebrity facialist Teresa Tarmey. “It’s important that you’re not over-using, so as not to cause irritation.”

What should you not mix with azelaic acid?

On the whole, azelaic acid is a great team player, which means it works well with most other ingredients. If you suffer from sensitive skin, however, or are using prescription strength products and want to be extra careful, you can always separate it from other actives such as benzoyl peroxide, topical antibiotics or retinoids, by shifting these to be part of your evening skincare regime. One thing you might want to steer clear of, says Holmes, are facial exfoliation brushes and other physical exfoliators, given azelaic acid’s existing exfoliant properties.

Is azelaic acid better than retinol?

There are many similarities between azelaic acid and retinol. “Both can help with cell turnover and collagen production,” says facialist Keren Bartov. “They can also treat skin issues like hyperpigmentation, melasma and acne.” However, where azelaic acid treats inflammation and bacteria (hence why it’s ideal for skin that’s prone to breakouts and those with rosacea), retinol can reverse sun damage and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. “The best thing to do is use them in combination,” continues Bartov. “Together they are a powerful and complementary duo.” Note also that azelaic acid can be used when pregnant and on sensitive skin.

Should I put azelaic acid all over my face?

Yes. After cleansing, apply azelaic acid all over the face and neck. Just be careful around the eye area when using a higher strength product. Follow with your moisturiser.

The best azelaic acid products to try now

This article first appeared on Vogue.co.uk

Also read:

Retinol vs retinoid–what to start and when, according to experts

10 peptide lip balms that do more than just hydrate

How to use vitamin C the right way for glowing, even-toned skin (and the products to pick up)

Cosmic tip: Make those tough choices to catapult forward.

An unwillingness or an inability to pick a side may be leading you towards more conflict and a push-pull scenario in life. Leo, sometimes the fear of making a mistake keeps us feeling trapped, and sometimes all we need to scale the wall is to decide whether we want to jump over or walk around it. Either way, the only way through is by choosing not to stand in front of it wishing it would disappear, unless, of course, you use your magical intent and urge the cosmos to make this happen. Even then, a decision on your end would be needed. You have divine support flowing in, now will you please choose to rise above this conflict and focus on better things in life?

Cosmic tip: Pick your battles to be able to fight them.

You’ve decided to take the higher road, Virgo. And while this may feel very warrior-like initially, the sadness and despair end up creeping in one way or the other. Now, here is the thing, it is never healthy to suppress your emotions, but it is also not healthy to dwell so much in them that you forget to move, go beyond and look up into the sky to breathe some fresh air. You need not hold up to any standards, Virgo, not even ones you have set for yourself. Remember you are a person, not a machine? Yes, it is important to find that strength to power through, but also yes, it is important to remain soft and open through it all.

Cosmic tip: Your innocence is the tool that keeps you going. Don’t you lose it!

This is a crowning moment for you, Libra, where you not only see things differently but also begin to hold and nurture them differently. For those worried about material success, stability and gratification, your angels remind you that you are not stuck; in fact, you are far from it. As you view yourself as more worthy, you will realise that you are no longer attached to appearances, how you look and seem to others, what begins mattering to you is how you feel about yourself in a totally non, cocky way. You are no longer a slave to titles and perceptions; you have made your choice, and it is your view of yourself.

On Friday evening, in the heart of Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, a convoy of brightly decorated trucks—festooned in traditional Indian lorry art—pulled into the Eva and Marc Stern Arrival Court at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. Inside them: 100 life-sized elephant sculptures, made not of stone or bronze but of a humble invasive plant. This was the final stop of The Great Elephant Migration—a 5,000-mile public art journey that has moved through cities, tribal lands and national parks across the United States—and the elephants arrived swathed in something new: more than 70 bespoke blankets, created by designers and Indigenous communities around the world in a ceremonial offering called “Wrapped in History.”

Photo: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

Photo: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

The sculptures themselves are the work of the Real Elephant Collective, a sustainable, community-owned enterprise of 200 Indigenous artisans from India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. Using Lantana camara—an aggressive weed that chokes native forests—the artisans spent years handcrafting each elephant based on a real-life counterpart.

Bulls, cows, calves and tuskers were shaped with anatomical precision, their forms bent and woven from dried reeds in a process as environmentally conscious as it was emotionally resonant. The stop in Los Angeles marked the first time the Real Elephant Collective had joined the US tour in person—representing a powerful reunion between creator and creation.

Ruth Ganesh, Kristin DavisPhoto: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

Photo: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

Since debuting during the pandemic in London’s Hyde Park, the herd has trotted through Newport, Manhattan, Miami Beach, Jackson Hole and more. But Los Angeles was something different: a ceremonial close, a new artistic layer and a powerful gesture of reverence. “Blankets are wrapped around members of the community as a sign of respect,” said Ruth Ganesh, the UK-born conservationist and co-creator of the project. “This echoes traditions across many Indigenous cultures, where blankets symbolise protection, honour and belonging. In the context of the Migration, each draped elephant becomes a living monument—wrapped in collective memory and care.”

Photo: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

Photo: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

The idea for the blanketing was born last fall, during an All Night Smoke hosted by the Blackfeet Nation, where Ganesh saw elders and guests alike arrive wrapped in traditional blankets. What followed was a new curatorial initiative led by Indian designer Vikram Goyal, who invited collaborators from the worlds of fashion, Indigenous craft and textile heritage to create ceremonial pieces—each infused with ancestral motifs and messages of coexistence.

Kristin DavisPhoto: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

Olubi Mairumbi, Karin Betts, Luke MaamaiPhoto: Victor Arriola/BFA.com

“In Indigenous cultures around the world, blankets hold profound significance,” said Goyal, who contributed his own design. “They are often intricately woven with traditional patterns and colours, representing a tribe’s history, identity and spiritual beliefs.” Goyal’s blanket took inspiration from his repoussé metalwork, translating a gilded wall sculpture—based on a 17th-century Rajput manuscript called The Book of Dreams—into an embroidered textile layered with symbols of good fortune: the Gajaraja (Elephant King), Gajasimha (Elephant-Lion), blackbuck antelope and parrots in a flowering tree.

Other contributors to “Wrapped in History” included Ralph Lauren, Tarun Tahiliani, Sabyasachi, Diane von Furstenberg, Johanna Ortiz, Ozwald Boateng and the Navajo Nation, alongside India’s craft communities and schools like Chanakya, whose women artisans stitched together a textile map of India using techniques drawn from the Deccan plateau to Assam. “Craft has always evolved within contemporary frameworks,” Goyal noted. “Textile has long led by this example.”

Sudha Reddy attends the 2024 Met Gala.Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Mind you, she doesn’t have it all figured out—quite the contrary, in fact. If there’s one thing she swears by, it’s the power of continuous learning, as much in career as in life. While engaging with experts and fostering open dialogue within her teams has helped her create impact in the workplace, raising her sons, Manas and Pranav, to embody empathy is something she and her husband have taken upon themselves. “We actively involve them in our philanthropic discussions and activities despite the privileges they enjoy. I speak openly with them about the responsibility we bear. The goal is to pass on this legacy to them when the time is right.” Her advice to fellow parents hoping to raise kind kids is to lead by example. “Children learn more from what you do than what you say, whether it’s volunteering, helping a neighbour or simply showing compassion to a peer.” At the end of the day, it’s the little things that count.

Motivated by my conversation with Reddy, I decided to cull out the takeaways from our conversation to practise small acts of philanthropy in my day-to-day:

Offer mentorship

Share your skills with someone who’s just starting their career. Take an hour out each day to offer guidance, especially to those without privilege or access. If you’re in a position to share contacts that will help them get a head start, make necessary introductions.

Donate smartly

Often, we have the intention to give but get bogged down by the ‘to which cause’ of it all. The trick is to regularly set aside a small amount for causes you care about each month and try to channel some money towards each of them. Set weekly reminders on your phone that notify you to make your donation for the week to reduce the sting of a chunk of money disappearing from your account in one go. Even micro-donations can go far when done consistently.

Support small and ethical businesses

Where you spend is as powerful as how much you give. Supporting local artisans, women-owned ventures, queer-led initiatives and environmentally conscious brands converts your purchases into intentional and impactful acts. From your morning coffee and your laptop cover to the clothes you wear and the shampoo you use, aligning your purchases with your principles can go a long way.

Use your voice

Reddy may have 1.1 million Instagram followers but she insists that you don’t need that many to make a difference. Whether it’s a post on your private profile, a comment in a group chat or a thoughtful conversation at the dinner table, raising awareness is a form of philanthropy too. When you talk about causes that matter, be it gender equity, mental health, caste privilege or climate justice, you’re not just sharing information, you’re influencing your inner circle and nudging them to think, act and give in ways they might not have known.

Be kind in micro-moments

Philanthropy isn’t always grand or headline-worthy. It’s in tipping your delivery person generously, enrolling your house help’s child in school or buying a meal for someone who looks like they need it without their asking. In a world that moves so fast, taking a moment to be soft, patient or generous is subversive in its own way.

“Every woman you know is fighting a lifelong battle against a single chin hair.” That viral tweet, recently written by stand-up comedian Julia Claire, has garnered more than 41,000 likes and counting—so it sounds like she might be onto something.

Hey, we’ve certainly been there. Sometimes you just happen to catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror and suddenly there’s a chin hair right there, in all its glory, protruding from the same spot it always mysteriously appears in, even though you could swear you plucked that sucker like a month ago.

Responses to Claire’s tweet may have been just as relatable as the original thought: “You never see it growing. It’s either freshly plucked or 3 inches long,” one person tweeted. “That thing is not of this realm. Dark forces summon it overnight because I cannot accept that it’s been growing all this time and I didn’t notice it until it was Rapunzel length,” another added.

Of course, chin hair (or any facial or body hair, for that matter) is “absolutely normal in everyone” and nothing to be ashamed of, regardless of your gender, Susan Massick, MD, associate professor of dermatology at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, tells SELF.

That said, it’s also totally fine if you prefer to remove any of your body hair, including the ones on your chin that seemingly sprout overnight. Chin hair can seem different and even tougher than other hairs on your face, and there’s a reason for that. The hairs on your body can generally be divided into two camps: vellus hairs, which are usually lighter, thinner, and smaller (peach fuzz); and terminal hairs, which are darker, thicker, and longer.

Your body—including your face and neck—is covered in vellus hair, but sometimes vellus hair can turn into terminal hair, board-certified dermatologist Ife J. Rodney, MD, FAAD, founding director of Eternal Dermatology and Aesthetics and professor of dermatology at Howard University and George Washington University, tells SELF. The culprit, she says, is usually testosterone; everyone has this hormone in their bodies, but some people produce more of it than others and each person’s hair follicles react to varying hormone levels differently. Cis women “mostly have vellus hair with very few thick dark hairs on the face,” Cindy Wassef, MD, assistant professor at the Rutgers Centre for Dermatology, tells SELF.

This was the kind of exhaustion that built up slowly. I was working with the best in the business as a travel writer but the routine had worn me down: mentally, physically and emotionally. I quit my job, deleted the apps and tried to remember what silence felt like. I quit writing altogether. The burnout wasn’t urgent, but something felt off.

A month later, I was packing for a family trip to Madikeri, Coorg. Normally, I’d use the time to chase stories. This time, I left the pitch emails behind. If I were Ethan Hunt in a Mission: Impossible film, I’d have said ‘no’ to any mission that came my way.

Branching out

In Coorg, I spent nine out of ten days in the suite my parents had booked, cocooned in a lush coffee plantation. Travel, which had always fueled my passion for writing, now repelled me. It became more of a chore: one of the prospective risks of making your passion your work. The only time I left was when my mum convinced me to join the family to go forest bathing in Madikeri’s thriving coffee estates. “Come for the vitamin D,” she said. I didn’t expect much.

It’s strange how things open up when you stop trying to optimise every moment. As a travel writer, I’d been trained to look for the highlights, to find the hook. But that day in Coorg, with no agenda, I felt something change.

Following the path, not the plan

We walked for over an hour and I remembered why I pursued travel writing in the first place. Silver oak trees arched above us. The path was damp, slippery and alive. The Japanese call this Shinrin–yoku, also known as forest bathing, only I was not expecting to encounter it in Coorg.

I watched as my dad chatted with our guide over Arabica beans, my mum collected fallen avocados and my sisters battled bugs. I was finally travelling the way I always meant to. Instead of chasing moments, I was inside them. A stray dog started following us. I was scared at first. But the deeper we went into the forest, the more I stayed close to it. We kept walking together, like we’d done this before. Just as the rain stopped, we heard the sharp call of the rare Malabar Grey Hornbill. We spotted it a few minutes later as it flew by.

Photo: Mishri, Arundhati and Rhea Mulani

I didn’t feel the need to make sense of it all. And perhaps that’s why my senses felt awakened, for the first time, in a long time.

Cosmic tip: Make time for yourself, and in that, you will be able to hold space for those you love as well.

You wish you had support and love a certain way, perhaps you reminisce about the old times or even romanticise days where you feel you felt loved, seen and cared for. Perhaps some of you even wish that you were loved differently and this has led you to your present moment where your desire to once be held is now translating into goals that make you feel everything you desired to feel, it may be a money goal that helps you live the life you wanted, or a love goal that will make you feel the way you wished you felt, or anything else. Whatever it is, Scorps, move beyond feeling bound by duty, and move towards what really fits into what gets you to where you wish to be. There are a million ways to save the day, and sacrificing yourself need not be one.

Cosmic tip: Step into the unknown and allow life to surprise you.

As you pull strings from the cosmic mind, you also remember lost fragments of your soul that were once joyous, less concerned about appearances and more focused on feelings. Sag, while you hold on tightly to your money bag right now, remember to also focus on the ethers that are willing to be birthed through you. Simply put, that idea that haunts you, that call to do more with your life, that inkling to formulate a version of your life that still yearns for it to be born, for attention and for your nurturance, waits to come alive. Soon you will be transitioning into a new phase, but before that, bask in the sun and enjoy the warmth that surrounds you.

Cosmic tip: You are pure magic. And when you pour from your heart, everything comes alive.

You’ve held solid ground for so long. You’ve fought battles to keep your spark alive, Capricorn! And now, when you look back, you wonder how you did it. You wonder what drove you, and you wonder how you would get through your present phase in life. And the answer remains the same, the way you found your way earlier will be the same way you will find it going forward, through the cosmic helping hand that opens elevator doors just in time to allow you to make an entrance. Support from across the realms is available to you now. Open your palm wide and receive all that is being blown your way.