DD #01

All the real sh*t that lingers. Best viewed on desktop btw :)

Aug 2025

You’re reading the very first drop of The Dry Down: our not-so-newsletter newsletter.

This isn't a product update. It’s not a campaign push. It’s definitely not an automated marketing email.

It’s a quarterly dispatch of scent, culture, and chaos straight from Rahasya’s drawing room. Unfiltered, honest thoughts on our successes and failures, fun insights into the complex world of perfumery, and a sprinkling of culture through spotlighting South Asian artists and creators that inspire us. And importantly, an opportunity for us to share with you voices from our wider community. 

Why dry down? Because the dry down is always the best part of the scent.

What’s been brewing at Rahasya (besides the chai)

There’s a lot going on at Rahasya currently (if we're being honest, when is there not), and we wanted to give you a big picture view of everything we’re focusing on for the next few months so you’re up-to-date.

Lately, our heads have been neck-deep in taking Rahasya overseas. We’ve launched at Stele in NYC and Arielle Shoshana in Virginia, just 30 mins from DC. We’re also in conversations with other retailers, both in the US, as well in other cities in the UK, Europe, and Australia - so hopefully we’re not too far away from stamping our mark across the globe!

Speaking of the UK, our sensory activations across London are coming to life, and we’ll be sharing that journey with you real-time on our IG. We’re planning something really special and cool - we can’t wait for Londoners to experience it. 

Back home in Singapore, we’ve been gearing up for the launch of the new Magizhchi collection, scents inspired by the deep, quiet joy found in everyday moments. We’ve announced Chai Addiction, Hill Station, and Rickshaw Rhythms, and the early response to these scents has us incredibly excited for the official release sometime in October. Also, those in Singapore, mark your calendars for National Chai Day on Sep 21st - there may be something interesting coming your way.

And finally, India. We’re exploring a potential collab with an incredible Indian brand that we’ve admired for the longest time. While we’re not officially live in India yet, this collab is a way for us to test the waters in our own country, and for those in India to get a little taste of our creations. 

.edu #01

Most people don’t know this - but India has one of the oldest living perfumery traditions in the world. Long before French perfumeries bottled accords or Western noses mapped pyramid structures, India was distilling memory into oil - drop by drop, season by season.

Distilled slowly from flowers, woods, and herbs, often by hand, ittar is India's original scent language. One that speaks not in top notes and sillage scores, but in mood, and memory.

Because that’s the thing: Indian perfumery was never just about smelling good. It was about feeling something.

Kings and queens knew this.

Legend has it that Emperor Jahangir had entire canal systems in his palace filled with rosewater - not for bathing, but for the breeze. His wife, Noor Jahan, is often credited with popularising ruh gulab - a pure rose distillation still made in Kannauj today - by infusing it into her oils and bath rituals.

This wasn’t indulgence. It was intentionality. Fragrance was design. It was power. It was presence.

At Rahasya, we don’t recreate these ittars.
But we’re deeply rooted in the same idea:
That scent is a form of expression - quiet or bold, soft or chaotic, always personal.

So as we start this new chapter - taking Indian perfumery into new cities, new shelves, new skin - we’re also bowing our heads to where it all began.

<3 #01

South Asian creativity has never fit neatly into boxes.

And honestly, it shouldn't. We’re working in a space where we have the privilege of meeting and collaborating with some incredible people doing amazing things.

From the avant-garde to the everyday, from hyperlocal to globally loud - we’ve been inspired by lots of people who push culture through their own craft, and in the process, remind us why we’re pushing culture through scent.

This section is a small act of archiving. Of noticing. Of giving flowers - scented or otherwise - to the creators, thinkers, and artists shaping what it means to be desi and doing extraordinary work.

Shivas is a London-based creator of bespoke speakers, turning sound into sculpture. Each piece is crafted with meticulous attention to detail, blending audio engineering with an eye for striking, modern design. His work isn’t just about how music is heard, but how it’s experienced - tactile, visual, and deeply personal. It’s this seamless merge of function and art that resonates with Rahasya’s philosophy: sensory experiences should be immersive, layered, and unforgettable. Follow his journey @friendly.pressure on IG.

YOU #01

At Rahasya, scent is a two-way conversation.
We’re creating with you.

Our “Bottle Your Rahasya” series invites you to share the scent you’ve always wanted to smell: a memory, a place, a story you’d bottle if you could.

In this issue, we’re sharing one submission that made us stop, reminisce, and imagine.

Sitaphal Mandi

Submitted by Rachana

"The sounds and smells of going through Sitaphal Mandi. I remember the man who rode his bicycle through the narrow streets, carrying jasmine garlands, while I stood with my mother picking ripe custard apples. As we left, I could always smell fresh lemons and the intoxicating scent of cardamom and sandalwood incense from the temple nearby."

Suggested notes: Custard Apple, Jasmine, Sandalwood, Green Cardamom

Our take

There’s something so visceral about this. The sweet smell of Sitaphal (custard apple), indolic jasmine floating through the air, a market in motion. It’s a full-body memory. We have memories of visiting fruit and flower mandis with our parents, and of being overwhelmed by the sheer vastness and chaos of these markets. 

Rachana’s submission makes for a beautifully unique sweet floral woody fragrance. We imagine adding crushed vetiver root for that earthy temple-floor coolness, and perhaps a trace of metallic/aldehydic notes for the bicycles weaving through these markets. Wow. That got us excited. Keep your submissions coming - we’d love to feature them here, and potentially bottle them. Btw, our mailbox has, in the past few months, been flooded with your love for Mystery One. Thank you so much for writing in, and for patiently waiting for us to announce its release. It’s not far off now - because Mystery One is Chai Addiction.

EXP #01

Before you leave, we thought we’d leave you with something too.

Each issue, EXP is where we drop the fun, experimental stuff: playlists, scent games, tips, memes, unsolicited scent pairings with food (don’t tempt us), and things we’d totally do if we weren’t busy being “a fine fragrance brand.”

This time, it's a playlist.

No theme. No genre limits. Just songs we’ve been vibing to while at work, creating our social media posts, fighting over concentration in our scents, and shipping culture in 50ml bottles.

Thank you for being with us.