Sephora Canada has unveiled its second Diwali campaign in celebration of the Diwali Festival of Lights in November. Reignite the light this year as you get ready for the Festival of Lights, with the perfect assortment of products to achieve bright and bold Diwali looks. Featured looks include Supercharged Glam, Dramatic Eyes, Power Pout and Cast a Glow, all brought to life with a range of products available at Sephora, and with the help of four new local Canadian collaborators in distinctive Diwali beauty looks. We chatted with them all, including Gurleen Gill, to find out about their favourite Diwali traditions and describe what the holiday means to them. —Noa Nichol
Hi! Please tell us a bit about yourself to start.
Hi! My name is Gurleen Gill, also known as GlamByGilly on Social Media. I am a 27 year old Toronto-Based Makeup artist and content creator. I started my journey in the makeup industry in 2016 and built my platform trying to bring more South Asian representation to the beauty space. I love sharing my culture and background online and incorporating it into my content.
How did you hook up with Sephora Canada for its 2021 Diwali/Festival of Lights campaign? What about the partnership made it a perfect/poignant fit?
Working with Sephora Canada has been a true dream of mine since I started working in the beauty space. I had the opportunity to create some Diwali Instagram content with Sephora Canada last year which was exciting, and I am also one of the 2021 Sephora Squad members. When I received the email that Sephora Canada wanted me to be one of the people in their Diwali campaign this year, I honestly could not believe it. I truly try my best to represent my culture online and I’m so thankful that I am able to scale it to a larger audience with this opportunity. Diwali has a different historical meaning for every religious background and I am extremely thankful that I was able to bring light to what this holiday commemorates for the Sikh community. The “Diwali Holiday” my community celebrates is called Bandi Chorr Divas and knowing that I could represent such a positive and beautiful holiday is a dream come true. Growing up, I never saw anyone in the beauty space that looked like me and that had a similar background. It is amazing to see how many young women can relate to my journey – what an honour to celebrate that Indian features are beautiful!
For those who don’t know, what is Diwali a celebration of? What does it mean to you, personally? Any special/fun traditions that happen annually at your home?
Our family loves starting off Diwali by going to the Temple, also known as the Gurdwara. If we cannot go right in the morning we will definitely stop by during the day to pay our respects and light some candles! For the Sikh community, Diwali means the Day of Liberation, also known as Bandi Chorr Divas. We use this holiday to celebrate a major moment in our religion’s history. This holiday commemorates the day our 6th guru, Guru Harbobind Singh, was released from prison. He was able to secure and release 52 hindu prisoners that were imprisoned as well. Sikhs celebrated the return of Guru Hargobind by lighting up the Golden Temple and after almost 400 years, this tradition continues today where we light thousands of candles in Sikh gurdwaras around the world. Diwali reminds our community about strength, freedom and resilience. My mom and I have a tradition at home to light divas all around our house. Divas are clay lamps, which in India are handmade. We have a few from my grandma that she had personally handmade, and I really love lighting those. For these clay lamps, we add in mustard oil, make a cotton wick, and light them. They last for HOURS AND HOURS. I love putting them at every window sill and even outside if the weather is good. Since we cannot go to the golden temple, this is our way of lighting up our homes. One last tradition would be fireworks! I love a good firework show!
The past year, in particular, has had a focus on diversity and acceptance. As we near the end of 2021, how do you use your platform to impact those who follow you when it comes to these topics?
I believe it all comes down to respect and education. I believe the beauty community has started to become more inclusive and respectful with their understanding of different cultures, traditions, and backgrounds. It is a learning curve for the beauty space but it makes me proud seeing how respectful Sephora Canada has been throughout this Diwali campaign. With my platform, I try my very best to educate myself and others on different cultures and ongoing world issues, regardless of religion or background. What I love about social media is that you are able to truly connect with people from all different backgrounds and learn so much. There are so many different, beautiful traditions and celebrations and I’m glad I am able to share them on social media. When you hear about a holiday or cultural tradition that you do not know much about, I love that you can easily search the historical meaning and educate yourself, which is the first step to true acceptance.
Back to Diwali, what do you do to get glammed up for the holiday? What are some of your favourite Sephora-sourced products to use this time of year?
Honestly, you have probably already noticed by looking at my socials – I LOVE GLAM. I love getting dressed up and having my makeup done. It truly makes me feel so confident and happy. I love wearing a new outfit and doing my makeup to compliment that outfit. In my opinion, your hair and makeup shouldn’t overpower your outfit. I am a true Sephora lover. This year I will be using the new HUDA BEAUTY GloWish Soft Radiance Bronzing Powder and the PAT McGRATH LABS Mothership IX Eyeshadow Palette: Huetopian Dream palette that was used in the campaign. The duo chrome qualities of the palette blew me away, and I cannot wait to play with it again. I love a dramatic eye and a neutral lip. I will most likely use a nude lip – my favourite is the Pillowtalk Collection from Charlotte Tilbury. For lashes, I will definitely be applying my favourite Lilly Lashes in Miami.
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