Actor Vijay Deverakonda has stepped into the beauty and personal care space with Unhype, a functional skincare brand he has co-founded and helped build from the ground up, rather than simply fronting as a celebrity face.
Targeted at 18-30 year-olds, Unhype offers unisex products built around everyday Indian conditions – heat, humidity, sweat, sun, pollution and hard water – rather than generic global formulations. Deverakonda was involved through every stage of development, from formulation to testing and refinement, and says he personally trialled each version on his own skin for nine months before signing off on the final range.
He credited his decision to join the brand to its founding team’s own R&D and manufacturing infrastructure, and their insistence on treating him as a co-builder rather than just an endorser. His stated goal was to strip away the “unnecessary hype” around skincare and make it something people can adopt early, with products that are effective, simple and affordable.
At launch, Unhype introduces two three-step ‘VD Signature Routines’ – an Acne Safe routine for oily, acne-prone skin, and a Brightening routine targeting tan and dullness – each built around a face wash, moisturiser and sunscreen. The sunscreen uses new-generation UV filters formulated specifically for Indian skin tones. All products have gone through independent third-party lab testing alongside real-user trials.
The brand will launch as a D2C play, with pre-bookings opening September 11 and shipping starting September 21, 2026 – placing Deverakonda among a growing wave of actors building operationally-involved personal care ventures rather than pure brand endorsements.
