About Isha Says

Every review starts with the full INCI (International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient) list, taken from the brand's own site or the pack itself — never from a retailer's summary. We identify the actives and, where the brand discloses them, their concentrations, then check the claims on the front of the pack against what the list can support, citing peer-reviewed research where it exists.

Each product is scored out of 5 on four things, in this order: formulation (modern actives at working concentrations), honesty (does the packaging match the ingredient list?), value (price against products that do the same job) and tolerability (irritants, sensitisers and allergens, judged against who the product is for).

We assess formulas; we do not run hands-on trials. We do not accept product samples or payment for reviews, and our ratings and "Our Take" sections are our own editorial assessment.

Isha is the voice of this site, not a real person. Isha Says is an independent project, and its reviews are researched and written with the help of AI tools, working from primary sources — the brand's ingredient list, the pack and published studies — against the rubric above.

Prices on this site are the MRP — the maximum retail price printed on the pack. Retailers usually sell below MRP and change their prices daily, so the buttons take you to today's price instead. Value comparisons in our reviews use MRP, so every product is measured the same way.

Some reviews include a short "What buyers report" section: our own summary of recent Amazon.in customer reviews — texture, scent, irritation, results. It is written in our words from reading those reviews, reflects a small and recent sample, and is separate from our verdict.

The "See today's price on Amazon" and "See today's price on Flipkart" buttons are affiliate links: if you click one and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you. Nykaa links are not affiliate links.

Affiliate income helps keep the site running and the database growing. It does not influence our reviews. We apply affiliate links equally to all products, regardless of commission rates.

All affiliate links are marked with rel="noopener nofollow sponsored" as required by Google's guidelines.

Most skincare content is written for Western skin tones, Western climates, and Western budgets. Indian skin is more melanin-rich, Indian climates range from humid coastal cities to dry northern plains, and Indian water is often harder than in European countries where many products are formulated.

These differences matter. Retinols may cause more post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) on deeper skin tones. Heavier moisturisers may pill in Mumbai humidity. Some sunscreen actives leave a white cast that's less visible on lighter skin but very visible on darker skin.

We factor in these realities when writing reviews. Our skin type tags and concern tags reflect the Indian context.