Turn Over A New Leaf

Thanks to the rise in popularity of green notes in perfumes, there’s a forest on your dresser and it might be making you happier than you know, finds Rituparna Som

It’s so passé to associate perfume with nostalgia and memory. No, really. We are in the process of creating perfume playlists—look up oPhone, a device that curates smells to be released at different times through the day to reflect your different moods, just like a playlist of your favourite songs. Or the IBM powered Philyra, an AI algorithm that can customise a scent based on the browser’s digital activity— creepy but very special, yeah? Smell is being looked at as a sense to be explored via technology, just like sight and sound. So, why not discard nostalgia and memory and look towards the future.

Because perhaps we aren’t quite ready yet…

Never mind the fact that these wearables and devices haven’t yet been fine-tuned, we still rely on smell to draw from our past to propel us into the future. A spritz that can trigger a happy memory or an undefined moment is all it takes to change our mood sometimes. Smell empowers, uplifts, comforts, excites. And as our tastes evolve, thanks to the world coming to our doorstep, so does our sense of smell. Top, middle and bottom notes be damned. Male and female scents? No thanks. We’re looking for unique notes beyond roses and grapefruits, because disposable incomes in developing economies have meant that we want to create our individualities through perfume. Nitya Tandon Abrol, head of communication from Indian fragrance company Sacheerome, says, “When we started our journey from Grasse, France, 40 years ago and brought fragrances to India, the consumer was not as experimental. The fidelity to one fragrance was very high as a mark of identity. Today, people want to try new things and their choice reveals a mood or an intention.”