Meet Anusha Dandekar Who Is Breaking The Stigma Around Brown Skin With Her Startup

The beauty company celebrated her first birthday on November 14. In this Women's Entrepreneurship Day, Anusha talks to HerStory about setting up a skincare brand specifically for brown-skinned women.

Break the stigma around the brown skin

Regarding Brown Skin Beauty, Co-Founder says, “I've always been involved with fashion and beauty because that's when I started doing shows like Style Check, India's Next Top Model, Supermodel of the Year surrounded by it. I never thought about setting up a skincare line. "

"People have been waiting for the clothing line to start. Skin and beauty care is already a busy market, it is seasonal and I did not know if I wanted to focus too much. But as I continued my journey of growing up in Australia and being in India all the time, I realized in the beauty industry and that we only focus on fair-skinned women who are probably only 0.5% of the country, ”she adds.

The only thing that changed, according to Anusha, was when she saw an ad that again touched a woman's picture and made her look white.

Start with the beauty of brown skin

Anusha, who grew up as a brunette in Australia, shares how she likes to sunbathe, but when she came to India and went into show business, she realized how difficult it was for young women to 'adopt their skin color because she bothered them because of it.

"Everything has built up over the years and I have decided to do something about the stigma of dark-skinned women. As the pandemic hit everything and slowed it down, it gave me time to focus on building this brand, because I don't always take pictures and don't travel, " he adds.

We started in June, I was in LA and my business partner Gaurav Kumar was in Mumbai and we decided to move with us. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to call it the Beauty of Brown Skin, which is what I think is 'you're beautiful' for brunettes in India and the rest of the world, "says Anusha, adding to the slogan that the brand is right -" Without no matter how brown you are, it looks good ”- dispels the myth that all shades of brown, not just deeper, darker, look good.

Starting a brand that targets dark-skinned people in a world obsessed with fair skin color can be quite a challenge. Anusha says she was against all odds.

“Are everyone ready to accept themselves as they are?” It was a big question for us. Specifically, I wanted to focus on brown skin issues like hyperpigmentation, melasma, dark circles, etc. He adds.

Making skincare sustainable, affordable, and effective

Brown Skin Beauty offers a line of cruelty-free, parabens, and SLS-free skincare products. The range is made up of a mixture of natural and chemical ingredients. It comes in a glass container and its products range from Rs 275 to Rs 899.

Anusha states that she is committed to keeping her products affordable. “We make sure we use the best ingredients to make it effective but also affordable. I grew up in Australia and watched pop culture. We watched our faves wearing the things we wanted to try on but couldn't afford because we were in school and college etc. So we bought similar things for a better price. With BSB, I wanted to make products that are effective and really accessible for everyone to try, ”he shares.

He also talks about the environmental friendliness of the packaging and says, “All of our products come in glass containers, which are so hard to get in our country,” he says.

Being the boss - a business trip

When starting a business trip, you need to leave with the knowledge that there will be trials and tribulations that you will have to constantly contend with, Anusha says, adding that she barely slept because she was in LA and her. partner was in India. so that jet lag affects one's night's sleep.

In the interview, she also talks about being an artist and a businesswoman and how the two are so different. “Being an artist is under a lot of pressure when you're in a place where you play for hours, but when you get home you can turn it off. But as a businesswoman, there is no shutdown, ”he says.

"It took a while to get used to it because I was done with my job, but my phone was still ringing. Second, as an artist, we have a team of people who can do something, but that as an entrepreneur, even though I have a team, I find myself in so many different roles, so I learn all aspects of business, ”HerStory explains.

Closing the gender pay gap in the entertainment industry

Gender inequality is evident in all spheres of life, especially in the professional sphere.

Anusha says that as an artist she has faced differences in pay between women and men. “Doing the same hours and working with a male co-moderator and getting half the amount he got, finding out and being broken. It doesn't even make sense. It was really horrible when I found out about it. 'gender pay gap and I had to find a way to make sure that didn't happen again, ”he says.

According to Anuš, during her business trip, she realized that they would take her male partner more seriously and that she had to force herself to be seen.

After working with Pretty Secrets, when her lingerie line sold out, a lot of people came across similar models. Once she met someone to get an idea, and after the meeting, the man said, "So you're not just a pretty face?"

“I told her I would take that as a compliment, and she left the meeting,” he said.