Powerful words, indeed. But, these aren’t the words of any famous philosopher. These are the words of Rupinder Ashan, an Instagram-popular makeup artist who is changing the rhetoric around makeup.
Makeup is all about expressing who you are, and using it, not as a mask, but as an art-form to show that outward beauty can be anything you want it to be.
Based in London, Ashan’s makeup looks have created a worldwide stir; what with her being featured on BBC for breaking the mold around bridal makeup.
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“I started doing normal beauty makeup back in 2015,” says Rupinder who has always been interested in makeup from a young age.
But, it wasn’t until early 2015 when she started to practice more and actually start posting her work on Facebook/Instagram.
“I soon started to discover creative makeup artists who did body painting/special effects. I was immediately drawn to those types of looks and started creating my own creative looks by watching YouTube tutorials.”
In 2016, she entered a competition. “I knew I needed to try and think of something unique. I decided to recreate Ganesh, using special effects techniques and this look got a lot of attention.”
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It was from there, that Ashan started incorporating Indian themes into her makeup.
“People seemed to like them as they were unique,” she says.
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Ashan then created a Zombie Indian Bride during Halloween season which went viral, gaining her 5,000 followers in one shot.
There has been no looking back for her, ever since.
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But, makeup for Ashan, who has a full-time career as a tax advisor(!), remains a passionate hobby for now.
“I love more unconventional makeup, because I really think that makeup is more than just about beauty – it is art,” she reasons.
“When I’m doing makeup, it’s therapy for me – some of my looks have taken up to 15 hours and I never get bored!”
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