Nila Thana-Haran, the founder of Beauty By Nila recently launched a cosmetics line – something new in the Toronto Tamil community. I caught up with her to learn more about her inspirations and role models for her craft.

Her inspirations come from everywhere imaginable. Not the typical celebrities and blogs, but more-so the daily encounters she faces and sees throughout her day. Like nature and the beauty around us. No one can truly make it alone, and that is something Nila can attest to. Her greatest support is her husband and family.

She has been in the makeup industry for 5 years, and started practicing applying makeup at the age of 16 on her baby sister. It’s something that  is truly her passion, and the reason why she doesn’t consider it work. It’s the ability and enjoyment to create something from just a few textures and colors that allows an idea or concept to come to life that fuels her passion. Special effects is a genre that Nila is avid about and is something of interest for the future for her and her craft.

There are always the what if’s in  someone’s life. I had to ask, “ What else would you do other than makeup?”  Nila responded with “I went to school for Cognitive Science and did my post-Grad in Autism and Behaviour Science which I am as equally passionate about, therefore I would work with children who have special needs and pursue my masters in ABA and Deaf Education.”

If you ever meet Nila, you will see she shines from within. There are morals in her life that exude positivity and you can’t help but smile alongside her and feel empowered.

She is a role model for many young Tamil girls as evidenced by the countless comments she receives from her social media followers. Below, Nila shares some advice for those young fans.

What is the most important beauty advice that you can give to women?

Every girl/woman needs to exude confidence. You need to love yourself and walk with pride for who you are. At the end of the day it is you that will make yourself proud, and it’s your life not anyone else’s. You can wear as much makeup as possible and dress impeccably, but if you aren’t confident in yourself, you will not feel beautiful. Beauty is within every individual you meet. Be sincere, stay humble and kind, and show your personality.

The world depicts certain images to young girls who are often taught that being skinny and flawless is true beauty. What are your thoughts/advice on this for young women facing this societal pressure?

I believe that the girls who think they are not pretty or pretty enough, is usually due to someone along the way making them feel that way, or perhaps even telling them so. No one is ever born ugly, be it their personality or their looks. Someone’s perception of beauty, whether it is external or internal is a reflection of their surroundings.  If someone or something is making you feel down, get rid of it, you should not feel guilty about it, your happiness is key. There should be no room for negativity at all! It will only bring you down.

Young ladies are usually battling their thoughts on self worth, and their contribution and sometimes even think “ is it all worth it?” -what do you have to say to that?

You don’t know how valuable you really are, you might just have that one thing the world really needs, and you won’t realize it until you give yourself a chance; for example maybe you could be the next cure for cancer! Don’t take life for granted and underestimate yourself. Life is a journey and it can be a new start everyday. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what people think, it matters what YOU think and what you can offer to the world.

And Nila’s final words for her young followers:

 “Life begins the moment you decide to be yourself, so take a deep breath, trust, let go and see what happens.”

With the recent launch of her Beauty Signature Collection, Nila continues to pursue her passion for creativity and entrepreneurship. We wish her the best of luck!