Rashmika Mandanna is now an entrepreneur; banks on scent and storytelling with Dear Diary, her D2C fragrance debut

Actor Rashmika Mandanna has launched Dear Diary, a direct-to-consumer perfume label that marks her entry into India’s fast-growing fragrance market, and also her attempt to turn her celebrity status into brand value.

The debut line features three perfumes, National Crush, Irreplaceable, and Controversial, with each positioned as a chapter from Mandanna’s own life.

“Perfumes bring back special moments that might otherwise be forgotten,” she said in a launch video, framing the brand around memory, identity, and resilience.

Developed with brand accelerator, The PCA Companies, Dear Diary’s ingredients, which are culled from pink lotus and jasmine to sugarcane and passionfruit, are pitched as a blend of Indian heritage and global notes. Priced at ₹2,599 for a 100ml bottle, the range is firmly in the premium mass segment and, for now, is sold only through the brand’s website.

Fragrances and perfumes: A crowded but booming market

India’s fragrance market, valued at $1 billion in 2024, is expected to more than triple by 2033, growing at nearly 14% a year. Gen Z and millennial buyers are leading this shift, treating perfume as an extension of personal style rather than a grooming afterthought. Nykaa, for instance, has seen its prestige fragrance category grow 74% between 2022 and 2025.

 That rising demand has attracted global perfume houses, homegrown indie brands, and a growing list of celebrity founders. For Mandanna, one of the most bankable pan-India stars, the bet is that personal storytelling and a digital-first play will help Dear Diary stand out in a crowded shelf.

Rashmika Mandanna: Beyond the launch buzz

Mandanna is only the latest celebrity who has decided to foray into entrepreneurship, wanting to leverage her considerable celebrity heft and channel that into creating bankable products. Earlier, Bollywood stars like Katrina Kaif, Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt and Hrithik Roshan too have charted the same course. But, not all celebrity products have caught on.

Celebrity-led D2C labels tend to start with fan-fuelled momentum, but the challenge is staying power. Retaining buyers, beyond the first wave of curiosity, depends on product quality, repeat purchases, and brand differentiation.

Dear Diary leans hard on emotion to build that connection. Whether that narrative turns into a viable business will depend on whether Rashmika’s fans – and fragrance lovers – decide the story is worth wearing.