Ghazal Alagh

A corporate trainer turned artist and entrepreneur who co-founded Mamaearth after struggling to find safe products for her baby, and helped grow it into Honasa Consumer, a listed house of beauty brands.

Born: 2 September 1988, Gurgaon
Country: India
Known for: Mamaearth, Honasa Consumer
Role: Co-founder and Chief Innovation Officer

Early life and education

Ghazal Alagh was born in Gurgaon, Haryana, and grew up in a middle-class family. She studied Information Technology and earned a BCA from Punjab University. Alongside that technical training she followed a love of art: she took a summer course in modern art and design at the School of Visual Arts and, in 2013, an intensive course in figurative art at the New York Academy of Art.

Early career

She began as a corporate trainer at NIIT, teaching coding languages and software to managers and engineers. She has said her first pay was ₹1,200 a day for weekend sessions, and that she took her mother shopping and out to dinner with it. She later tried other ventures, including the diet-consulting business Dietexpert, and worked as an artist under the name Being Artsy.

The problem that started Mamaearth

After the birth of her first son, Ghazal and her husband, Varun Alagh, looked for baby-care products free of harmful ingredients and found the Indian market offered very few. Rather than settle, they decided to make their own. Ghazal has said she still tries every product herself before it is sold, and that they would never launch something they would not use on their own baby.

Founding Mamaearth

In 2016 the couple launched Mamaearth with seven baby-care products and about ₹25 lakh. It became the first brand in Asia to earn the MADE SAFE certification, and it sold mainly online at first, with clear ingredient information and a focus on educating customers. The range then grew into skincare, haircare and body care, and the brand later moved into physical stores as well.

Building a house of brands

Ghazal leads innovation, community and new brand development at Honasa Consumer, the parent company. She works closely with customer communities, especially groups of mothers, whose feedback shapes new products. Besides Mamaearth, she helped create The Derma Co., Aqualogica, Dr. Sheth's, Staze and Lumineve, and the group also owns BBlunt and Reginald Men. Honasa describes itself as India's largest digital-first beauty and personal care company.

In January 2022, Honasa became India's first unicorn of the year, valued at US$1.2 billion. Its IPO opened on 31 October 2023, and it listed on the BSE and NSE in November. Its share price fell sharply in late 2024, but the company has since reported stronger results: roughly ₹2,392 crore in revenue and ₹200 crore in profit for FY26, according to StartupTalky.

Shark Tank India and investing

Ghazal was one of the judges, or "Sharks", on the first season of Shark Tank India. She also invests in startups as an angel, including Leap.club, Crib, unScript AI, FS Life and, in 2025, the shapewear brand UnderNeat.

Timeline

1988Born on 2 September in Gurgaon, Haryana.
2013Studies figurative art at the New York Academy of Art.
2016Co-founds Mamaearth with Varun Alagh, with about ₹25 lakh.
2021Named Women Entrepreneur of the Year by Entrepreneur India.
2022Honasa becomes a unicorn in January; she appears on Shark Tank India Season 1 and in Forbes Asia's Power Businesswomen.
2023Honasa's IPO opens on 31 October and the company lists in November.
2025Invests in UnderNeat.
2026Honasa reports FY26 revenue of about ₹2,392 crore and profit of about ₹200 crore.

Recognition

Women Entrepreneur of the Year, Entrepreneur India (2021)
Forbes Asia's Power Businesswomen (2022)
Fortune India's Most Powerful Women in Business (2022 and 2023)
Business Today's Most Powerful Women in Business (2024)
BW Businessworld 40 Under 40 and ET 40 Under 40

Leadership lessons

Start from a problem you feel yourself. Mamaearth began with one family's search for safe baby products.
Build trust first. Clear labels and honest communication helped a new brand win customers.
Do not plan only for your past customers. Ghazal says today's best customers got a company here, but its future customers will fuel the next stage.
Favour progress over perfection. She talks about steady effort, a sensible pace and learning from mistakes.

The takeaway: a personal worry can become a product, and a product can become a company. Ghazal Alagh's path from corporate trainer and artist to co-founder of a listed beauty group shows how creativity, technical skill and close attention to customers can build a brand people trust.

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Sources

Written from public information, including Honasa Consumer, StartupTalky and Success India Magazine. The sources differ on some details, such as her degree and the exact IPO and listing dates, so the company's own page is followed where they differ. Several figures are reported rather than confirmed. Net worth is left out because no audited figure exists.