“I envy your skin, talk to me about your beauty expenses,” said a dear friend who is obsessed with glowing and clear skin.

And all I could say was, “For almost six months, I kept my water intake high. For about another three months, I consumed marine collagen. And for another few months, I gave my skin its fair share of glutathione and NAD+ doses—all in the form of liquid supplements. And yes, I got my visible results.”

But here’s what I skipped—hydration, prevention, skin-first care, aka East Asian beauty philosophy. While that’s exactly what Ayurveda preaches, occasionally it doesn’t hurt to explore the highly effective skincare of other Asian countries. Especially with K-beauty and J-beauty making headlines globally.

© Instagram/Kim Seon-ho

The best part is you don’t even have to order overly expensive products from beyond our borders or request your NRI cousin to get you one.

The new wave of Indian skincare brands that are matching East Asia’s game with intelligent formulations, skin science and ingredients tailored for melanin-rich, tropical skin have entered the scene. You just be ready to use the dew-boosting toners and barrier-loving moisturisers and keep these homegrown heroes under your radar as they continue to launch their new bests.

© ClayCo.

Minimal, clean and ingredient-focused—ClayCo. brings a touch of J-beauty calm to your Indian skincare shelf. The brand, which is currently set in Japanese skincare traditions, promises lasting and consistent results.

Best known for its sunmist and sleep mask, the eco-friendly brand uses gentle yet effective actives like sake, rice water, matcha, Azuki beans, sakura and more, all packaged with a soothing, skin-first ethos. And yes, though Japanese skin and ingredients may sound a bit foreign to many who haven’t acquainted themselves with them yet, ClayCo. skincare is formulated to suit Indian skin.

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© Kimirica

Kimirica, a brand that often pops up on Instagram with gifting suggestions, is moving up the global skincare ladder by incorporating argan oil, a potent ingredient in Moroccan skincare, in its products.

The luxury lifestyle brand takes pride in its premium vegan formulations and creatively designed products. Its products and their packaging are indeed suitable for any form of gifting. The brand’s cold-pressed oils, serums and soaps have particularly impressed their customers.

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© Amazon India

We haven’t seen much of this one but whatever we have seen, we like it. You’ll find a couple of Moroccan skin care ritual products from IndiQ on Amazon—Nila powder and Moroccan Rhassoul Clay-based skincare in particular.

Both ingredients are used to formulate face masks and body scrubs in Moroccan body rituals and are an integral part of Moroccan beauty traditions.

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© 82°E

As we all know, it’s the brand co-founded by Deepika Padukone who swears by Ayurvedic wisdom. She has clearly incorporated the same in skincare products like turmeric-infused sunscreen and ashwagandha-based moisturisers.

The good news is that while her core comes from Ayurveda, a few Chinese-beauty ingredients have also made it to her list. Bakuchiol, for example, is the secret oil Chinese natives have been using for centuries to keep their skin clear and younger. Squalene, too, is another ingredient that’s popular in K-beauty products.

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© Hyphen

Another celebrity beauty brand that’s getting inspired by the popularity of K-beauty is Kriti Sanon’s Hyphen. It’s been creating smart multitaskers so far—think ice dunk cooling face mask and water sunscreen that are much different from what we’ve already seen in the skincare market. It’s clean, effective skincare without the overwhelm.

The brand is clearly not shying away from incorporating trending K-beauty ingredients like rice water and heartleaf in their products.

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Whatever works, works! But thanks to these desi skincare brands, you have options like never before.