Growing up, I was absolutely a tomboy. I cared more about playing in the dirt than any kind of beauty or self care routine. Growing up in an Indian Sikh family that was primarily women, I was surrounded by the practice of a south asian beauty routine.
It is in the moments of getting ready for parties and weddings that I learned the most and began to adapt my own routine. As a child, my mother and older sister would help me get ready. They would do my makeup and my mother would tell us stories of how she used to do her makeup and what products she grew up using and what she preferred to use now. I was fascinated but would always lean away anytime it came time to do my eyeliner, remaining unconvinced they wouldn’t jab me in the eye. I eventually learned how to do it myself to save us all from the process of either of them attempting to do my eyeliner.
Now, it has come full circle and my mom will ask me to do her makeup for parties. She is better at sitting still than I am though so it’s a much easier process. Still, the process of getting ready together remains a joyful experience that we can share as the rest of our lives change. And to this day, I continue to put mud on my face.
