Bipasha Basu’s complete beauty evolution

It was opposite a well-established Kareena Kapoor Khan that Bipasha Basu made her unassuming debut back in Ajnabee (2001). But her work was so notable, that she took home the Filmfare Award For Best Female Debut the next year. She then sealed the deal as an A-lister by starring in the cult-favourite horror movie, Raaz (2002). After a string of thrillers, she broke the mould with Madhur Bhandarkar’s Corporate (2006), which awarded her another Filmfare nomination, this time for Best Actress. Hollywood came calling in 2013, and she made her Western debut with The Lovers, playing a Maratha warrior. It was on the sets of Alone (2015) that she met her now husband, Karan Singh Grover. Though it has been three years since Basu last featured on the silver screen, she has continued to keep her fans on their toes, be it with her fitness launches or her much-followed wedding in 2016. Here’s how her beauty game has evolved during her time in showbiz.

Bold beginnings

Basu started out as a model, especially on fashion shoots. She wore her strands straight, with a middle-part and layers. After making her debut in 2001, Basu has clung on to her fierce beauty aesthetic. Lustrous locks and a mean winged eye has been her constant over the years, but she won’t say no to a side-swept fringe either. Her beauty report card clocked in a layered bob in the mid-2000s, which she regularly wore with large barrel curls. In 2007, when she was nominated at the Filmfare Awards for Corporate, she walked the red carpet in a dramatic graphic eyeliner and glossy lips—a look that really stood out at the time—complemented her midriff baring red dress. The next year, she chopped it all the way off to debut the shortest bob she’d ever had. The following two years were monopolised by poker-straight locks, with occasional wispy buns and updos thrown in to break the monotony. At the IIFA Awards in 2009, Basu wore a messy top knot, with a slightly toned version of 2007’s graphic eyeliner. This time, the focus was on the underliner, and the glittery eyeshadow was placed on the top lid. A peachy pink lipstick sealed the deal. “A sexy smoky eye paired with a pale, nude lip,” was her favourite look at the time, as she told us in an interview.

In 2010, she changed up her hair colour, adding dimension to her otherwise dark strands. “I have naturally black hair, but I like to have some colour in the form of streaks and highlights,” she revealed in the same interview. The hair experimentation continued from there, with super-long hair extensions and over-the-top volume, and that was just in 2011, when Basu was working on Race 3D. “My hair is my biggest beauty asset, and I believe a good conditioner helps hair looking healthy, shiny and full of life. I invest in regular oil massages to keep my locks looking good. Whether it’s voluminous curls, sleek-straight or beach waves, I like to experiment with my hairstyles and resort a lot to styling,” she shared. 2013 saw fishtail braids and textured curls. But the statement winged eye continued to dominate her beauty looks well into 2014.

Siren call

You can track Basu’s official transition into a red fiend around the time of her courtship with Grover. Her silken hair slowly took a backseat over the next two years, with a head-turning scarlet pout becoming her go-to for everything from late night dinners to airport trips.

As a traditional Bengali bride in 2016, she opted for a matte red lipstick, and held on to it for the remaining ceremonies as well—only making an exception for pastel lips for her mehandi. In 2017, she played with other lip colours too, but the focus was always on bright hues.

In 2019, Basu made a splash on the Filmfare Awards red carpet with an even lighter, cooler hair colour in flipped out curls, which she paired with lots of mascara, a soft smoky eye and red glossy lips. Scroll ahead for a detailed walk-through of Basu’s beauty aesthetic through the decades.

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