Khushnooma Kapadia

Balancing work and home...
Striking the right balance is a perennial challenge with most working mothers. The key is to take each day as it comes. My work never seems to me like an obstacle between my family and me, as I love what I do. However, I do feel it’s important to have an excellent support system at home. I have a great support in form of my husband, parents and in-laws. The biggest advantage is I work for an excellent organisation that gives me the flexibility and freedom to maintain the work-life balance. I consider myself privileged and lucky to be able to pursue such a high profile job and not have to compromise on anything.

First impressions matter…
Being well-groomed is as much a state of mind, as it is being physically presentable. I am of the firm opinion that appearance do matter in making the first impression so I work hard at it and make sure I don’t slip up. Beauty regime, is eating right, drinking enough fluids, sticking to a skin regime and resting well. I make sure I follow my cleanser-toner-moisturiser routine morning and night religiously. I do my pranayams daily and meditate for 15 minutes twice a day without fail.

Being a yummy mummy…
I know this is clichéd but seeing my little girl grow everyday is to me love personified. I don’t think any relationship in life can compare to this one. One really has to experience the pain of going through the labour to understand what ‘unconditional’ really means. I manage to get just as much time as any mother of a three-year-old would. Basically it’s all about a commitment to yourself. The day I conceived I had made up my mind that in no way would I let pregnancy become an excuse to let myself go. I ate right, I exercised, I delivered normal and in 40 days I was hitting the gym with my yoga and aerobics. Of course keeping to a healthy diet was very critical and since I breast fed for 6 months. Luckily my mom never forced me to follow any old wives’ tales so there never was a tiff with fatty foods, extra ghee etc.

Make-up essentials…
Luckily I am blessed with good skin. As a rule I don’t use make-up daily as it tends to take a toll on my skin. At work I use a M.A.C kohl pencil and some Body Shop lip balm. But for an evening out with friends or a business dinner I don’t shy from the vanity kit. I just love M.A.C and Shiseido. In my bag you will always find a M.A.C kohl pencil, a Shiseido makeup Perfecting Lipstick, Lancome Mascara and a few MA.C lipstick shades in neutrals and browns. I never wear reds.

Getting ready for a party…
Taking a hot shower really gives me the radiance. I use an exfoliating scrub by Artistry and for a quick fix I swab a cotton ball of raw milk on my face. Since after work my fatigued eyes quickly give me away, I take extra care to ensure they don’t look tired. An instant fix for tired eyes is putting either two slices of potato or chilled tea bags for 10 minutes. Another good way of getting the instant glow is grating potatoes and scrubbing it on your face, the juice does wonders for the skin.

Diet diary…
I am extremely particular of what I eat. For one week in a month I go off all cooked foods and non-vegetarian stuff. I only have raw vegetables and fruits. This really detoxifies my system completely. I soak 10 almonds, 10 black raisins and 2 dates overnight and eat them before I take anything else in the morning. The trick is to drink the water as well. This is an excellent blood purifier. I also make it a point to take in at least three types of fruits daily and one glass of vegetable juice which could be either lauki juice or a mixture of carrot and beetroot. I avoid carbohydrates at night and the meal usually comprises a salad, grilled chicken or soup accompanied with stir-fried veggies.

Hair talk...
I am paranoid about hair care. Since I have long hair, I get regular hair packs to keep it healthy, clean and completely split-end free. As a monthly ritual, I indulge in a deep massage treatment followed by an oil massage to condition my locks which tend to be on the drier side. Frankly I am quite scared of going to beauty salons and coming back with my hair chopped off in half. I use the Schwartzkopff Bonacure hair repair shampoo and conditioner and the Schwarzkopf hair serum which is an absolute must to kill the frizz. Every Sunday, I put a hair pack (for 2 hours before) comprising 2 tablespoons of some special herbal oil, mixed with curd and 2 egg whites.

Stress-busters...
I think the combination of pranayams, diet and meditation really helps me. Plus regular exercising flushes out the toxins. I pray religiously every day whatever the time I retire. I did the Siddha Samadhi Yoga program recently which beautifully explained concepts of happiness and survival. I try to imbibe a lot of my learnings into daily practice. This helps me cope with all the stress and pressure. Besides my greatest stress-buster is my husband, his approach to life is so positive that it doesn’t leave room in our life for any negativity.

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