Posts in category: Life Style

Life feels like a lone journey, Virgo? If you have been feeling indecisive about something, it may be time for you to pick, pack up and leave. For some, real movement and change of place may be on the cards and for some, a metaphorical one. Whatever it may be for you, you’ve got to think long term. You’ve got to ensure that you are not so shortsighted that you keep doing patchwork all your life. You’ve decided to go all in, and you, my dear, need to ensure you swim your way through this as brilliantly as possible.

Cosmic tip: Surrender to the stars and ask your guides for some additional support and a helping hand.

The sky may have felt like it was falling, Libra; however, look at you now. Aren’t you a shiny nugget that escaped the storm unscathed? Your vibe—glowing. Your thoughts—aligned. Your wisdom is needed. Now what’s lined up next for you? You will only find out if you keep going. One little pebble at a time filled the crow’s entire pitcher, and the same holds for you. Consistent efforts will lead to desired success and movement.

Cosmic tip: Take charge with authority and structure.

Your season is here, and you are feeling at your prime, Scorpio. The king works hard not only through execution but also planning, and while the experience may have felt varied for all individually, the overall emotion has been that of a pressure valve being lifted, a breakthrough thought filtering through the edges, and perhaps you gearing up to not settle in life and really take your fortune in your own hands. A little disappointed by this change of course? Perhaps. But stopping in your tracks? Nah.

Cosmic tip: Blend opposing forces—work & play—to get the most out of you and out of your life.

You’ve got your eyes locked in on something for a while, Sag and while your mind and efforts may have been sprinting towards it for for some time now, you may find yourself in a completely different mind scape recently—that of waiting patiently to see things through, to see what comes forward and that of knowing that no matter what, your ships are arriving. It is not that you no longer want your goals—you simply are not desperate for them any longer. And this strategy to simply ‘reel-it-in’ is bringing in opportunities, luck, excitement and divine support your way. Keep going.

Is there a more classic combo than a good V-neck and jeans? It’s a casual pairing, but there’s a certain degree of polish to this particular knit. “It’s a neckline that unites those who consider it a corporate styling staple and the fashion devotees who like to reference Miuccia Prada,” wrote Alice Cary for British Vogue earlier this year, after crowning the V-neck 2025’s “stand-out knit”. Indeed, on the spring/summer 2026 runways, everyone from Loewe to Christian Dior made a case for the preppy style, while V-necks from the likes of Prada, Bottega Veneta and The Row remain A-list staples.

While V-necks can be styled with everything from suit trousers to printed midi-skirts and cargo pants, there’s a specific deliciousness to a low-key V-neck and jeans. Think: cashmere grey knits with Levi’s 501s, or a plunging black sweater with some stiff selvedge turn-ups. To that end, with many more months of winter ahead (sorry), find a few pointers on how to style this winter’s cool-girl uniform below.

A splash of colour

Claudio Lavenia/Getty Images

Just because you’re wearing a V-neck doesn’t mean you have to go full corporate mode, or only opt for blacks and greys – plenty of street-stylers have been spotted in autumnal reds, oranges and vivid mustard tones. The exposed neckline also means you can show off some layered silver jewellery, as above.

Masculine earth tones

Edward Berthelot/Getty Images

Everyone’s maxed out their glam this festive season, as we’re sure your feed has been proof of. But now that we have a beat of rest, maximalism is giving way to balance. We’re seeing controlled bronzing over heavy contour, à la Alia Bhatt, hydrated bases instead of glassy shine and neutral tones instead of blush blindness. The focus is on refining texture rather than adding layers, while hair and brows have been beautifully used to frame and lift the face with minimal interference.

Yami Gautam’s skin has a natural, blurred finish that comes from using a fine-milled setting powder. There’s minimal contouring, just subtle warmth through the cheeks. Brows are softly defined, lashes separated and eyes lined with brown kohl. The peachy-coral satin lips are a breath of fresh air amongst all the nudes and pinks we’ve been seeing.

Alia Bhatt’s molten makeup emphasises controlled luminosity: a hydrated base layered with light foundation mixed in generously with a liquid bronzer and diffused highlighting on the temples and high points. The eyes followed a warm-toned palette with light brown across the lids and a touch of gold shimmer. The brows stayed full and the lips neutral. The result is a continuation of the glass-skin trend, but executed to look like a gorgeous, bronzed tan.

Aditi Rao Hydari’s skin is smooth but not reflective, and strategic micro-contouring around the jaw and nose keeps things sharp, yet natural. The eyes feature a diffused brown smoky palette and feathered lashes, avoiding any hard lines. The hair’s slick structure complemented the symmetry of her face, pointing to a wider trend of pairing unique hairlines with minimal, monochromatic makeup.

Diana Penty’s look was grounded in ethereal glow and soft definition. Her base leaned radiant but not oily, balanced with fine powdering on the T-zone. A soft rose blush and highlighter ran high on the cheeks to lift the face visually. The eyes had faint browns and shimmer blending into each other and a thin coat of mascara. Nothing dramatic, just enhancing features with luminosity.

Janhvi Kapoor‘s golden glow makeup is the perfect specimen of refined bling. A warm-bronzed base, lifted eyeliner, cool-toned blush and precise lash placement created definition while keeping the skin sheer. The lips are a pink-nude but outlined softly to give shape. The combination of a sculpted, gradient eye and diffused contour is perfect for evening glam.

Kajol wore a satin foundation with a reflective setting spray to create a balanced glow. The eyes used soft taupe shading and accent mascara, making them look open and fresh. The glossed lips and barely-there blush add to the natural glow, emphasised by a snatched, sleek ponytail. Truly an evergreen look.

Below are the best beauty looks this week:

Where have all our friends gone? I’m not talking about the selfie you posted on Instagram last week with your running club buddy (“PBs before 9am!”) or your new yoga friend who just happens to have ten thousand followers. I mean your real friends—the ones you’ve known since school, Brownie camp or university. The “normal” people.

For so long, social media was the place where our most meaningful friendships lived. We all followed one another—real people we knew in real life. Our Facebook albums were full of group shots, everyone hugging as though we were in the Friends title sequence. It was cool to show off as many of your mates as possible—that performative element has always been there—but at least they were your actual mates, warts and all. Now, they’re disappearing. How many times have you looked at someone’s Instagram and wondered where their real friends are?

It would be easy to blame the algorithm for making us nervous about our pictures reaching the outermost corners of the internet. Which, though true, feels like an excuse. The real issue, I think, is how social media encourages us to behave: to be the shiniest, most exaggerated versions of ourselves. We’re rewarded for who we know and how well we show them off, which means sharing your normcore friends isn’t seen as cool, or aspirational. Even solo selfies are preferable. “Most of the time I just look like I live alone and sometimes go to the beach,” says Clare, 41.

We’ve been trained to think: Is this picture good enough to post? Is this person? And when it comes to our normie friends, the fear is that their mere presence might topple your curated online persona and expose who you are offline (horror). As Julia, 33, puts it: “It could ruin the vibe.” These days, it can often feel as though only certain friendships are allowed to be visible: the photogenic, high-status ones. The ones that position us as a “girl’s girl”—the kind of woman other women want to be ride-or-dies with. If “love my girlies!” is the new flex now that having a romantic partner is considered embarrassing, only certain “girlies” qualify. Taylor Swift’s 2014 #squadgoals era, which sold us the idea of a perfect group of influential female friends, has a lot to answer for.

And nothing grates more than seeing a photo of your friend with their arm around “this wonderful human!” when you know full well they barely like that human at all. Especially when they haven’t shared a single photo from your walk last weekend. When we do post pictures of our real friends, though, it’s usually accompanied by a caption explaining how we’ve known each other forever. (Translation: I’m worthy.) I should know, because I’ve done it myself. I’ve written about celebrating 30 years of friendship with my oldest school pal and still believe those milestones deserve marking, just as we would in a romantic relationship. But I also know that posting them is, in part, another request for external approval.

That imagination is riddled with potholes now. Everything is too expensive, too dug up, too incomplete. I’m a connoisseur of long walks, but taking a stroll in Mumbai today is about as seamless as crawling through a post-apocalyptic landscape. So I’ve made peace with the irony that I pay to swim in a city that’s infamous for its floods.

This change is evident across fields but no more than in showbiz. Today, fewer aspirants dare to arrive at CST station with a bag in hand. The deeply entrenched resentment surrounding nepotism goes hand in hand with the fading influx of fresh talent. Models walk at knock-down rates because the competition robs the ramp of rose-tinted notions. Mannat seems beyond reach, both spiritually and literally. If the dramatic change in the tone of this essay brings to mind the anti-smoking ads before Mumbai’s film­ screenings, it’s because the city’s transformation is a plot twist that everyone saw coming but stayed in denial about. What else explains my transmutation into a bitter veteran who can’t stop invoking the good old days? I’m one breath away from sounding like Tinnu Anand’s character in Agneepath, the fictional ­ madman who loudly laments the decay of humanity.

A still from Luck by Chance (2009)

All of this is to say that the Bombay of Bollywood has been replaced by a busy imposter. The city is too real to be romanticised anymore; it lacks the character to be a movie character. Those flowery ‘Bambai nagariya’ monologues are harder to believe in. Even the fairy tales have mutated into cautionary tales. The few memorable instances of Mumbai that make an appearance on celluloid, in fact, critique the diminished personality of the metropolis. Like Raj & DK’s The Family Man starring Manoj Bajpayee, a series in which even a star spy is swallowed by the compromised domestic rhythms of the city. Or Jasmeet K Reen’s Darlings (2022), in which Alia Bhatt’s character is gaslighted by the lack of space as much as she is by an abusive husband.

Don’t take yourself too seriously, Virgo. Zoom out so you can see the infinitesimal in the mundane. Your life is about to go through spins and turns around the sun, in ways you perhaps could not even imagine; however, there is only one key message for you through it all— be kind and gentle towards yourself. What meaning have you been searching for in life, Cancer? And what parts of you have been feeling like you have shed something huge, but you simply need to unclasp your hand to let it go? Is it the way you live and lead through your relationships? Is it what you expect from people? Is it how you make money? Is it how you view yourself and your well-being? Is it a mix of all of this or something completely different? You are coming into your own energy, Scorpio. And this is massive, all-encompassing energy we are talking about—one that feels prepared enough to command the cosmos and one that also has its strategy deployed to get to a certain place, vaguely if not rigidly. And while you may be experiencing a state of conflict between your inner values, your core needs and your outer world, you also know that at this point, you will need to make a decision that feels right for and by you. Keep your years and ears open, Libra. Your wisdom can feel like a badge of honour, but it can also keep you from living your truest, fullest life. When you stay curious, AKA keep your ears open to new possibilities, you live young and vibrant lives.

Read on for what the stars have in store for you, and make sure you check out your sun, moon and rising signs for the complete picture.

When you are afraid to venture into something new in life, equip yourself with tools, knowledge and perhaps even going back to the basics, Aries. Skilled work is always rewarded, and intuitively aligned skilled work is not only rewarded well but also feels equally rewarding. You are weaving a new life in some way—through your collaborations, networks and perhaps even just through the sheer drive to make each moment as happy and cohesive as possible for you and those around you. And with this, you are already remembering parts of you that you felt were lost. You are already calling in gifts from your ancestors and spirit guides, and you, my dear friend, are already buzzing and evolving at the same time.

Cosmic tip: Go back to school—pick up a skill or simply become a student of life for life. You will always find something you are curious about.

Detach. Breathe. Then choose your reaction. Taurus, what you thought was your never-ending chocolate fountain is now giving you sleepless nights, perhaps. As much as you feel alive with high-strung energy, ask yourself, is it really something you can thrive through? Is it not time for you to cut the metaphorical umbilical cord to your comfort zone, or to feeling crippled in life or anything else that keeps you playing small and actually do something about it? You don’t need to swing between extremes to feel alive—a balanced life is sometimes all you need to continue to do what you do best.

In a week that spanned wedding revelry, awards-night flashpoints and high-powered industry appearances, everyone turned up in styles intrinsic to them. From razor-sharp tailoring and sweeping lehengas to liquid drapes and sequinned evening blazers, the style docket was as varied as it was visually commanding.

Fresh off a win at an awards night, Aditi Rao Hydari chose a Manish Malhotra sari styled by Manisha Melwani. The ivory-champagne drape with a pearl-and-lace border was paired with a black velvet blouse with a deep, squared neckline. Jewellery featured a choker with a striking green centre stone and ruby drops, structured rose vine earrings that looped around her ears with glinting diamonds, rubies and emeralds, a mismatched stack of bangles and a bold stack of rings. With her hair slicked back into a centre-parted bun with soft tendrils framing the forehead, and luminous makeup—softly smoky eyes and a satin nude-rose lip—anchored by a small bindi, the old-world yet contemporary look was complete.

Deepika Padukone’s latest outing saw her in Sabyasachi Autumn/Winter 2025, styled by Shaleena Nathani: a deep-black Italian cashmere jacket covered in three-dimensional ivory floral appliqué and hand-worked borders worn over high-waisted Japanese cotton-velvet trousers that fell in a long, soft puddle. A minimal camisole kept the look clean while pointed black heels lengthened the line. Her only jewellery was a pair of oversized diamond studs from Sabyasachi High Jewellery. Hair was parted down the centre and pulled into a sleek low tie, while sculpted skin, neutral eyes and a warm nude-rose lip grounded the look.

For an event appearance in Dubai, Alia Bhatt stepped out in a look rooted in Bob Mackie’s signature, stage-born glamour. In true Dubai style, the outfit leaned fully into shine, from the gown’s crystal-laced surface to the statement jewellery framing the look.

Styled by Rhea Kapoor and Shanaya Kapoor, it was crafted in nude-illusion mesh, featuring a mandarin collar, long sleeves, and a body-contouring silhouette that opened into a thigh-high slit. Across the base, frosted winter-white sequins, silver bugle beads and Swarovski crystal loch rosen formed sweeping zebra print-like motifs, creating a rippling, sculptural effect under light. The beadwork followed a body-hugging silhouette, heightening the designer’s hallmark curve-enhancing structure.

The actress rounded off the look with Aquazzura’s Tequila sandals, their crystal-edged straps adding shine without competing with the gown’s surface. Her jewellery matched the high-impact mood: House of Yarané solitaire earrings—a round centre stone set in white gold and encircled by a starburst of accent diamonds—and a stacked ring set from SWE ME, pairing a wavy gold band with a structured diamond cluster above.

A knot at the top of her head kept the high collar and beadwork uninterrupted, while dewy bronzed makeup balanced the overall luminosity.

From Vogue’s fashion desk:

“Let shimmer steal the spotlight. Opt for skin-hinting silhouettes: a slinky shimmery tank paired with relaxed cargo pant for an effortless look. Keep the rest minimal, thong sandals and a wrist stack to finish the look,” says Vogue India fashion associate Divya Balakrishnan.

Also read:

Isha Ambani Piramal’s plum satin suit sharpens into a corseted waist and column skirt

Ananya Panday’s Bhumika Sharma lehenga paired a textured tissue skirt with an embroidered velvet bodice

Alia Bhatt’s custom olive Dhakai Jamdani sari was handwoven over three months

In South Korea, black beans are considered an elixir of health and beauty; a beauty secret for achieving healthy, strong hair and toned and radiant skin. If you take a closer look at the skincare and haircare products on your shelf, you may just find that black beans are the star ingredient.

But what exactly are they? And why are they so good for your skin and hair? Read our full guide below.

What are black beans?

Black beans are a legume native to South and Central America, where they were already cultivated and consumed by the pre-Columbians, the Mayans and Aztecs.

The world’s largest producer of this legume is Brazil, where “feijão preto” is an integral part of the national culinary tradition and the daily diet of many in the population. Nutritious and inexpensive and higher in protein and fibre than other bean varieties, this food is full to the brim with nutrients that help maintain strong hair and radiant skin.

Black beans are not only a staple food in Korean, Caribbean and Latin American cuisines; they’re a super-legume with a rich and complex nutritional profile. They contain minerals such as iron, magnesium and calcium, as well as B vitamins, folic acid (essential during pregnancy), powerful antioxidants like anthocyanins, amino acids valuable for athletes and protein needed to strengthen muscles : a priority today, even for women.

They’re also a versatile, inexpensive and tasty food that will help you hit your protein goals, especially if you’re a vegetarian or trying to reduce meat consumption. Here’s how they stack up nutritionally:

Nutritional values of 170g black beans (cooked)

Calories: 227
Protein: 15 grams
Fats: 1 gram
Carbohydrates: 41 grams
Fibre: 15 grams
Folic acid: 64% of the recommended daily value (DV)
Copper: 40% of the DV
Manganese: 33% of the DV
Magnesium: 29% of the DV
Iron: 20% of the DV
Phosphorus: 19% of the DV
Potassium: 13% of the DV
Vitamin B6: 7% of the DV
Calcium: 2% of the DV
Selenium: 2% of the DV

What black beans can do for your hair

These magic beans help strengthen hair. The combination of minerals such as iron and zinc, vitamins such as biotin and folic acid (vitamin B9) and amino acids and antioxidants makes them highly beneficial for health, vitality and healthy hair growth.

• Chock-full of antioxidants such as polyphenols and flavonoids, they fight free radicals and help maintain supple, toned skin.
• They are rich in anthocyanins: antioxidants that help prevent degenerative diseases.
• Due to their high fibre content, they promote proper digestion and intestinal transit. Rich in prebiotic fibre, they are also beneficial for the gut microbiome.
• They help lower “bad” LDL cholesterol.
• They help stabilise blood sugar levels.
• Rich in protein and fibre, they give a sense of satiety, keeping you full for longer.