POLISHED TO PERFECTION

IT’S BEEN DECADES since there was this much buzz about a skin rejuvenating ingredient. When retinol (a vitamin A derivative) first hit the market, it revolutionised the beauty industry. Retinol helps cells turn over faster, as skin does naturally in youth, which leaves it looking more luminous. There was one significant hitch: not all skin can tolerate retinol. So when bakuchiol came along, offering the same brightening benefits as retinol without redness and peeling, the excitement was palpable.

Bakuchiol, an extract of seeds from the babchi () plant, has long been used in Ayurvedic medicine but has only recently stepped into