“For the longest time, skin fillers have been treated like a dirty little secret,” declares entrepreneur Aanam Chashmawala. And she would know—after all, as the founder of the beauty brand Wearified who also juggles a career as a content creator, Chashmawala’s skin is the subject of immense scrutiny. Having witnessed the blogging evolution in India since its nascent stages, she decided to let her followers in on her journey with skin fillers.
“I like the fact that people are becoming more open about their experience with fillers. For me, it was a conscious choice to vlog my experiences with fillers, sharing every minute detail from the pre-procedure prep to filler aftercare as well as the process with my subscribers. The way I see it, if I am getting it done, it’s only fair to share the ‘beauty secret’ because so many of us have been completely clueless about how this works. Skin fillers remain an incredibly personal choice, and on my part, I chose to let more people in on the information so that they can decide for themselves,” she shares.
However, her journey wouldn’t be as seamless as the transitions in her videos. Chashmawala concedes to a liberal amount of nervousness during the research process. “There was a fair amount of trial and error involved in the process. I remember meeting a couple of dermats who told me I needed fifteen different procedures—I did nothing with them, of course—until I found those who gave me some genuinely good advice. It helps to broaden your horizons and speak to different dermats as well as friends to find the right fit,” she advises.
Ultimately, Chashmawala chose to opt for lip fillers twice as well as an under-eye filler and a chin filler once. “I will not lie, I was very nervous on the day of the procedure because the idea of needles poking my face didn't seem exciting at all. Having said that, it was mostly painless, and I was happy with the final result, so it was worth it at the time,” she reminisces. For the next 24 hours, she complied with the dermat’s instructions of no makeup or skincare after fillers and no sweating in the area of the filler.
What she did not expect, however, was that the fillers would ultimately only serve to strengthen her own relationship with her skin. “I was happy about the decision to get fillers but I also spent a fair amount of time attempting to anticipate how people might take it because my whole career is about sharing my life and beauty experiments. Most people told me they wouldn't even have noticed the lip filler if I hadn't vlogged about it myself—which translates into a mission accomplished for me and my dermat!” she laughs.
However, she started gaining some weight for unrelated reasons, Chashmawala would unfortunately find herself on the receiving end of the internet’s ignorance. “I started getting ‘botched filler’ kind of comments which made me realise that people know so little about this space. Fillers are not permanent since they dissolve, and my choice of trying them or not maintaining them has to do with how it made me feel. While I am currently filler-free at the moment and intend to keep it that way for a while, I still feel it was worth it,” she affirms.
Among other misconceptions that she’d like to dispel about fillers is the notion that they are the equivalent of ‘going under the knife’. “In fact, if you don’t like them, my dermats instructed me on how one can get rid of them in 24 hours by dissolving them. If not, they automatically dissolve into your system over a period of months,” she adds.
Looking back, she credits her decision to opt for skin fillers with the same itch to constantly try something new. Whether it is dying her hair pink or taking off from a plane for skydiving, Chashmawala has always chosen to try everything so that she can decide for herself rather than allowing her opinions to be weighed down with unfounded stigma. “As women, if we are more honest and open about our experiences—across every type of life experience beyond skin fillers—we will be extending a helping hand to so many others,” she concludes.
Cover Image : Instagram/@aanamc
