Beauty / The Ultimate Holi & Eid Beauty Guide For Women & Men

The Ultimate Holi & Eid Beauty Guide For Women & Men

Beauty Feb 26, 2026

by Meena Khan | Beauty Editor

March marks the first holiday season for South Asians, because in March we celebrate Holi and Eid. Holi is observed by Hindus around the world, is also referred to the festival of colours, and commemorates the start of spring. Eid al-Fitr is observed by Muslims around the world, and marks the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting.

Both occasions are times to look glamourous and to celebrate, because all South Asians love a good party! Given that these wonderful holidays fall in March, a time when many South Asians are slogging through the remaining days of winter, the glamour is not about the richness of colours (as was on display in December), as much as it is about the freshness of spring. The freshness is about harnessing the light so that you look like a star!

Men – Easy Steps to Glow

Men, like women, fret about looking tired and feel the pressure of being camera ready. However, men are not always at ease with using cosmetics and far too many just shave and face the work looking tired. I have discovered five amazing products that are easy to apply and create a fresh look:

The skin needs to be glowing, and shaving helps, because it lifts away dead skin cells but the cheeks and forehead still look ashy. I suggest using a manual exfoliator with fruit acids such as the classic Vasanti BrightenUp! Exfoliator on the two areas. You just need to dampen the area, squeeze out a pea-sized droplet of product and then massage it gently into the skin using circular motions. Once the areas are covered, rinse and pat the skin dry.

PRO-TIP – Use any excess product and massage it across the lips to remove dead skin. Do this only once because the lips have thin skin.

**Fresh Glamour Looks for Holi and Eid! Vasanti Cosmetics BrightenUp! Exfoliator.** Photo Credit: www.vasanticosmetics.ca

After any exfoliating activity the skin likely feels dry, so this is the moment to add glow to the skin. I recommend the Clé de peau Precious Gold Vitality Serum because this lightweight serum immediately plumps the skin and leaves a soft sheen. It instantly boosts the skin’s beauty. The product’s 24K Gold Retinol Complex improves the skin barrier and targets signs of aging such as wrinkles, loss of firmness, and lack of luminosity. You will look rested after applying this wonder product.

3. Eyebrows frame the face, and they should also ways be in order. If you are dealing with a monobrow, the excess hairs create a menacing look and add dark shadow to the eye area. To open up the eyes, apply an ice cube between the eyebrows, to numb the skin and then pluck the hairs between the brows so that you avoid the Bert look. After this step, or if you have two eyebrows, this is the first step, use a clear eyebrow gel such as the Benefit 24-hour Browsetter to brush up the hairs and to keep them in place. The applicator brush is densely bristled, so you just need to dip it into the tube once and then brush the hairs upwards. If the hairs that are too long you can brush them out towards the temples or just trim them.

Dark circles are a common beauty bane for South Asians, and due to bone structure and veins under the thin skin of the eyes, they are always present—even after 12 hours of deep sleep. I discovered and am now obsessed with the rms Beauty Refresh Eye Brightener, because it is a thin, lightweight moisturiser for the eye area that contains SPF 30 (so the delicate skin is protected) and comes in 4 tints which cut the intensity of discolouration. I love the metal rollerball applicator because I just squeeze a tiny amount, and I lightly glide the ball under my eye and on my eyelids. After one round of rolling, I use the ring finger on my left hand, as it has the least pressure, and I tap the product into the skin. I am always in awe of how a few taps literally chops the intensity of my dark circles by 75%. This product is a must-have!

Dry lips will age the face, because the thin skin will reveal lines in the lips and dead flicks of skin look ashen and gross. Exfoliate gently, as described in point 1 above, and at the end of your routine, apply a matte, rich lip balm, such as the Ghlee Lip Balm The Original, because it infused with ghee, mango butter and vitamin E which heal dry skin and provide lasting moisture. The lips will look plump, without going duck, and with the four previous steps, the overall look is one of rest and innate glamour!

Ladies – Use the Blue!

A fun eye trend that hails the return of spring and really pops against all shades of brown skin is blue eye shadow. The fun of blue is that it can be as intense as navy or as whimsical as sky, and all shades of blue work with gold and silver jewellery. The trick to pulling off the blue eye look is to keep the rest of the face soft, while your eyes do the popping.

a. Prepare the eye area by filling in and setting the eyebrows and then apply the rms brightener. I cannot extol its virtues enough! It has reduced the amount of concealer that I use, and it does not alter the colour of my eyeshadows. I love this product! After the brightener has set, curl the eyelashes.

b. The prevailing eye look for spring 2026 veers towards whimsical, so the focus should be on using a light hand and blending to create softness. My favourite blue eye shadow quad is the Clé de peau Azure Blue Sea, and I love applying the shimmery white shade on my mobile lid and then applying the sky blue shade in the crease; it is like I created the sky on my eyes and topped then with a hint of shimmer. If you have a deeper skin tone, you can create the same effect, by applying the sky-blue shade on the mobile lid and then define the crease using the shimmery navy blue.

I like to define my eyes using a medium blue pencil such as the Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Liner in Surfside. For deeper skin tones, I recommend the Navy Noir pencil from the collection. After applying the liner, I only dab on a droplet of concealer and blend, because the under eyes are brightened.

The eye area should not look heavy, so I suggest using a lengthening mascara to define and separate the lashes. A classic one is the Shisiedo ImperialLash MascaraInk, because its bristles coat each lash in product and the formula adds a few millimetres of length.

c. For the complexion, I recommend using a long-lasting product because South Asian celebrations last hours which encompasses several house visits. The foundation that fits the bill is the newly reformulated Estée Lauder New Double Wear Stay-in-Place Longwear Matte Foundation. This new formula is lightweight and spreads like butter across the skin. It sets without making the face look dry and in pictures my skin looks naturally flawless.

d. Given that the eyes are swathed in blue, I recommend using soft pinks (light and medium skin tones) and plums (deep skin tones) on the cheeks. In keeping with the whimsical nature of the eyes, stick blushes are ideal because they deliver product in a controlled manner and then you can tap it into the skin to create a fresh effect.

I am obsessed with Nars the Multiple in Orgasm Crave because this peachy-pink shade with a hint of gold adds energy to my medium complexion. The product glides on easily and when I tap it into the cheeks, I have a soft flush that flatters my cheekbones.

For deeper skin tones, I recommend the Benefit Cosmetics Juice Stick Gel-Cream Blush in Figgie, a cool purple pink. I love this product because when you glide it on, it feels cool and imparts a hint of colour and touch of shimmer. The colour dances with the light and bring out the cheekbones.

e. The lips need to be samosa strong because South Asian festivities are in part food-a-thons. I recommend using satin-finish lipsticks pink (light and medium skin tones) and plums (deep skin tones) to complement the blue eyeshadow look. The satin finish reflects the light and acts as a luminous point on the face. To ensure that the lipstick has staying power, I recommend using a nude liner to define and fill in the lips, and the pencil should be soft, otherwise it will pull the skin on the lips and leave them dry. I am a fan of the Chanel Lip Pencils, because the pencil has excellent drag on the delicate skin of the lips and delivers beautiful pigment. The two shades that are ideal for the fresh, glamourous look are Pivoine (a mauve rosewood) and Berry (a milky burgundy).

Once the lips are filled in, apply the satin finish lipstick. I enjoy the Clarins Joli Rouge Shine collection because it adds shine to the lips and infuses the lips with caring ingredients such as shea butter and sunflower seed oil. This product keeps the lips hydrated and sensual. The best shades from the collection are Sandy Pink because it has a hint of mauve so the lips do not veer into candy territory and Soft Plum because it is not too deep but still has a purple touch.

It is fantastic to be part of a culture that includes multiple holiday seasons because they remind us that life is meant to be celebrated. It also ensures that we can express glamour differently throughout the year and I love that in spring, glamour is fresh and it encompasses whimsy; it helps to break free from the shackles of winter.

Meena Khan | Beauty Editor

Author

Meena (@meenalaregina) always loved the idea of exploring the non-conventional idea of beauty. Having grown up as a pimply chubby teenager, she wanted to see the change in the world that best reflected your uniqueness as well. Her well-received collection of blogs where she tries on various beauty p...

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