ELLE Exclusive: Can K-Formula Make Peptides A Bathroom Shelf Essential?

India’s relationship with hair has always been rooted in rituals, oil champis, overnight masks, and endless patience. But between heat styling, colouring, hard water, and pollution, traditional routines don’t always match modern lifestyles. That’s where K-Formula steps in. The homegrown brand is making its debut with six peptide-powered products: a pre-shampoo treatment, shampoo, conditioner, leave-in magic mask, molecular repair hair oil, and a peptide dry shampoo. The idea isn’t just another routine, but a reimagining of what care can look like for hair that’s constantly under stress.

Behind the Formula

Anoushka Adya, Founder & CEO of K-Formula, describes the philosophy in a single word: transformation. “It’s not about a temporary shine or a cosmetic cover-up,” she says. “It’s about a deep shift you can see, touch, and feel, in just five minutes.”

For decades, haircare in India has been rooted in longer routines, oil champis, overnight masks, andelaborate rituals. Adya’s perspective challenges that narrative. “I didn’t want to reject tradition, but I felt it needed reimagining. Oil champi has emotional value, but today, five minutes can deliver results that hours of oiling can’t.”

Peptides, Simplified

The idea of peptides in everyday haircare isn’t a new concept. Adya recalls spotting them abroad: “I saw how international markets had embraced peptides, which rebuild broken keratin chains from within. The results were undeniable. But in India, we were stuck with either temporary fixes or importing pricey products. I wanted to make it accessible, affordable, and designed for our hair types and climate."

Among the six products in the launch range, two caught her attention most:

Peptide Hair Corrector: a pre-shampoo treatment designed to reset hair before cleansing.

Leave-In Magic Mask: a five-minute formula promising softer, shinier strands.

The Bold Leap

If K-Formula could banish one desi haircare myth forever, it would be the “more oil = more repair” gospel. “Oil nourishes, yes, but unless you rebuild broken bonds, you’re only feeding the surface,” says Adya. Hard-hitting truth, but also… fair.

Launching India’s first molecular repair haircare line wasn’t without its fears. “Shifting mindsets was the hardest,” Adya admits. “To say five minutes can change your hair is a complete departure from what people believed. But today people are ready for smarter, science-backed solutions that fit seamlessly into their routines.”

K-Formula arrives as part of a growing shift in how India approaches haircare, moving beyond tradition to explore quicker, science-led routines. For a generation that doesn’t have the patience for overnight rituals but still wants healthy, glossy, head-turning locks, this feels like the upgrade.

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