In pictures: Gauri Khan’s complete beauty evolution

By Anjan Sachar, Avanti Dalal8 April 2020

Gauri Khan's beauty notes include dabbling with blonde highlights and green eyeshadow. Here, we trace her complete evolution through pictures

After hosting a music countdown show for MTV India in the early '90s, Gauri Khan shifted her expertise to behind the camera and turned producer in 2004 with Farah Khan's directorial debut Main Hoon Na, which went on to become the second-highest grossing film of the year. She served as the executive producer for a string of blockbusters over the next decade—including Om Shanti Om (2007), My Name Is Khan (2010) and Ra.One (2012)—she went professional with her passion for art and launched a furniture line in 2012 with good friend, Susanne Khan, which then turned into her own interior design business and store, Gauri Khan Designs.

Khan stepped into the limelight in the early '90s with a signature puffed half ponytail, layered bangs and defined eyeliner at all times. As was the custom back then, her beauty kit featured frosted lipsticks, opalescent eyeshadow and a tweezer for her finely plucked brows. At her wedding to Shah Rukh Khan in 1991, she went the traditional route, choosing red lipstick and kohl-rimmed eyes as her makeup look.

With the turn of the century, she gradually grew out her bangs to make way for a side-swept fringe that frames her face even today. She did however experiment with the rest of her tresses, and opted for caramel highlights in 2008, which she styled in easy waves. Her lipstick palette meanwhile received an update in the form of nude shades and the all-important bronzer that she used strategically across her face to play up her defined cheekbones in 2010. At a red carpet that year, she used underliner and blush to amp it up as well.

2011, when she attended the premiere of Jab Tak Hai Jaan, had her playing around with the upside-down eye makeup look featuring heavy kohl on the lashline and little else. The staple nude mattes in her beauty palette were replaced with an array of interesting lip colours in 2014, including everything from rusty orange, deep berry to soft corals. Coloured eyeliner became just as noticeable—she reached for blues, purples and dark greens to accentuate her eyes. That same year, Khan made an appearance at a design event in a tight top knot, red lipstick and no bronzer, signalling a slightly different makeup look of choice.

Gauri Khan's signature specials

The eyeliner finally made a comeback in her beauty regimen in the form of a razor-sharp winged eye in 2015, but it was in 2016 that she hit upon the winning formula: Statement eyeliner and a mean blowout on the red carpet, and siren red mattes and a no-fuss top bun for instant off-duty chic. Her blonde and brown highlights were always touched-up, so she usually had a fresh colour job for most red carpets and events.

In 2017, for the launch of her store, Khan added silver eyeshadow on her top lid, which continued into the next few years. At the Vogue Women of The Year awards that same year, she rocked retro waves and traditional french tips. In 2018, she attended Sonam Kapoor's wedding reception, wearing green shimmery eyeshadow and a pale pink lip. The next year, at the Vogue x Nykaa Power List, that same eyeshadow took centerstage. At Armaan Jain's wedding in 2020, she reached back to her original favourites, picking kohl, a pink-nude lipstick and gobs of shimmer on the lid.