We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shadoh Punnapuzha a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Shadoh thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

The medicinal science of Ayurveda has always been a part of my DNA. I was born and brought up in NYC by my parents who are immigrants from Kerala, India where Ayurveda is ingrained in daily life. My father’s family is an old agricultural family since the 1600’s. Raised in a household where an Ayurvedic lifestyle was paramount — my parents’ native land nurtured my enthusiasm for plant medicine. My father, a botanist, fostered this ever-growing hunger to discover the significance of each botanical embedded in the medicinal science of Ayurveda. He would uncover the secret of each leaf, each tree and each flower during our afternoon walks through the lush tropical foliage of Kerala. Discovering the healing powers of Ayurveda botanicals I felt compelled to bring this age old science to the modern day woman. My mission is to bridge the gap between eastern and western self-care rituals and make the healing powers of Ayurveda easy to incorporate into our fast-paced day to day lives. Approaching our well-being from a holistic level bringing mind body spirit into harmony — this is what it means to honor your beauty.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Growing up in NYC, it was hard to continue to appreciate these age-old practices, and sadly I grew apart from these values. I found myself more attracted to the pretty packaging instead of analyzing the ingredient lists. I had an epiphany in my early 30’s when I developed a bout of skin conditions which I had never experienced. Struggling with cystic acne, eczema and hives I realized with the help of my dermatologist I was allergic to the synthetic preservatives and sulfates in my skincare and haircare. I turned to Ayurveda to help heal my skin. My father brought over an array of Ayurvedic medicinal plants and herbs and told me to stop using all other products as we concocted an elixir. This is what healed my skin and this formulation is now known as our PRANA face oil. Through this experience it made me realize how important it was for me to share the healing power of Ayurveda with the world. This led to leaving my corporate job on Wall Street for over 15 years and embark on an exploratory journey to India which resulted in the creation of taïla skincare.

When creating taïla I focused on formulations that are high performance and multi-correctional that simplify your skincare routine. Products that are not only good for you but good for our planet. For us, the Ayurvedic texts have been a huge guide in ensuring that we are incorporating this sacred time-honored science accurately. The immeasurable array of knowledge of medicinal plants mentioned in the texts has been very helpful in the development of our capsule collection. Our collection addresses all factors associated with the health and appearance of the skin while ensuring that there are no toxic synthetic chemicals.

I am proud of the efficacy and providing natural products that deliver results while giving you a touch of luxury in your life. Creating a sensorial experience was important to me because of the mind body connection that is paramount in Ayurveda. Every formulation designed has natural aromas that come from the synergy of all the ingredients that are within to uplift, heal and balance. In our modern world, we move too fast and it’s these small self-care moments to embrace that help us stay grounded and be present in our bodies.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

We manufacture all of our products in our facility in Brooklyn, NY. I left a well paying stable job where I was established in my career when I decided to leave the finance industry. For me, taïla is my passion and heritage. It wasn’t about the money. When creating taïla I wanted the formulations to be authentic and true to the medicinal science of Ayurveda.

The beauty is these natural ingredients provide transformational results if the procedures of extraction follow the correct methods outlined in Ayurvedic texts. It can take a full week to make our in-house extracts, leading to the most potent ingredients clean beauty has to offer. The profound value is in the process.

The integrity of our products come from following time-honored processes, overseeing every stage of manufacturing and production. It is not the easiest or most profitable approach but it does result in effective products that are superior in quality.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

We first started out as Arya Essentials, while I was in the process of rebranding I came across an unforeseen hurdle. There was a company in Australia with the same name that would limit our growth potential, so I made the extremely difficult decision to undo three years of work and launch the brand under a new name, taïla which means divine healthy preparations in Sanskrit. In so many ways it has been a blessing in disguise, the new name is much more aligned with our ethos.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tailaskincare.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tailaskincare
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Taila
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shadoh-punnapuzha-b03a0b21
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tailaskincare9708