तुम हुस्न परी तुम जानेजहाँ, तुम सबसे हसीं, तुम सबसे जवाँ
And you just sang सौंदर्य साबुन निरमा in your head, right?
From Lifebouy hai jahan to the Liril waterfall, soap adverts sure were a lot of fun to watch.

Unfortunately, despite these fantastic ads, people never really bought soaps. In fact, chances are high that you have never really bought a soap in your life.

Surprised? Peer at the fine print of the cover of any commercial soap sold in stores and you are likely to find “detergent or moisturizing or cleansing bars” in a very tiny font.

And we are back to the ‘Teja main hoon mark idhar hai’ conundrum.

The truth behind commercial soaps revealed!

Commercial soaps, the ones sold by big brands, are not really soaps. Rather, these products are filled with
– Chemical detergents (strip skin of its natural oils)
– Hardeners (makes hard long-lasting soap) and
– Synthetic lathering agents (reason for their thick lather).

In fact, it’s often said that a typical mass-produced soap is completely stripped of glycerine, you know the stuff that keeps your skin soft and smooth. This glycerine is used in lotions and creams and sold separately.

Soap is stripped of its natural glycerine and then you are asked to buy lotions, creams, and moisturizers separately to repair the dryness caused by the soap.

So, now you know from where Apple got its inspiration to sell chargers separately. Create a problem and sell the solution—that’s a ‘soppi’ marketing strategy (Marathi pun alert!)

So, paisa bhi bacha liya, aur profit bhi ho gaya. Yane ek tir me do nishane!

Enter the “REAL” soap thing!

Wahi apna traditional style wala. Jo hamare ancestors banaya karte the! They knew what they were doing, and did it for thousands of years – why change it no?

Traditional handmade soaps are made by

– Mixing sodium hydroxide (lye) with water
– Blending this mixture with oils
– Cooking this blend till the saponification (become soap) process takes place
– And finally, pour into moulds.

I have made it sound like kholo, milao, pakao, aur tayyar but trust me, it’s quite a process. It’s just like cooking, it needs precision, attention and time. You need years of practice to master the process of authentic soap making.

Soap ka Foreign-Returned Cousin—Handmade Soaps!

Swagat kare eske star ingredient “glycerine” ka!

Glycerine is humectant that attracts moisture from the air to the skin. Produced naturally during the soapmaking process, it maintains the integrity of the soap by basically settling in between the soap molecules. It’s one of the things that make handmade soap so amazing!

Also, these soaps contain natural herbal extracts, oils such as coconut, sesame, olive and some skin friendly butters. Plus, these soap does not contain any additional lathering agents that is why they produce less lather.

Myth alert: Remember that (in)famous Bhaag DK Bose song? It had the line – Sabun ki shakal mein, beta tu tho nikla kewal jhaag… the songwriters actually got it right.

Soap soap hota hai aur jhaag jhaag. Less foam or lather doesn’t mean soap is less effective. Actually, it’s the opposite. Soaps with more oil content generate less foam and clean better. That’s an important reason why real handmade soap is better than the commercial chemical-wala foam/lather filled soaps.

They are generally made in smaller batches, with authentic raw materials, so, more expensive compared to store-bought machine-made soaps.

Soap is that one product that you are going to use on your entire body. So, remember following points and be aware while purchasing it-
– Choose handmade soaps over chemically loaded detergent bars
– Always check ingredients (Do not purchase if not mentioned)
– Ask for their method of manufacturing
– Prefer handmade soaps for your babies and young children since they are more vulnerable to chemicals because of their thin, more permeable skin.
– Buy from authentic licensed manufacturers
– Spend on quality over quantity

Remember, selling any cosmetic product without license number is a criminal offense. Don’t encourage your friend and family to do so!

Prajakta Fadnavis
Cosmetologist