Are Clean Shaven Men Back In Style?

Updated on: 22 Aug 2026, 2:30 am
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AS SOMEONE WHO HAS KEPT A CLEAN-SHAVEN LOOK FOR most of my adult life, only veering towards a minor stubble at best, it’s been a ‘difficult’ last few years. Beard, beard, everywhere, not a jawline in sight. Pop culture has spent the better part of the last decade telling us that the grizzlier a man looks, the more attractive he becomes. And being someone who has remained stubbornly clean-shaven for the longest time, I’ve often wondered if I missed the memo. Fortunately, if recent pop culture is anything to go by, the clean-shaven man has made a comeback.

Ranveer Singh may have made everyone gasp with Dhurandhar, but the new generation of male icons don’t quite seem to care for growing their mane or whiskers. Take Abhishek Sharma, for instance. Or Shubman Gill, who rarely strays beyond a hint of stubble. Virat Kohli was long seen as the poster boy of cricket, but the sport’s next generation doesn’t seem in a hurry to follow suit.

Even our Bollywood heroes are going back to chocolate-boy charm. Ibrahim Ali Khan, Vedang Raina, Ahaan Panday and Agastya Nanda are all embracing cleaner-shaven profiles, signalling a shift that feels closer to the K-pop stars who have captured this generation’s imagination. Smooth, polished and groomed to a fault, they’re redefining what makes a man desirable.

The beard isn’t disappearing anytime soon—you’re free to keep it, if you like. But the next time a clean-shaven man steals the room, don’t sulk about it. Consider borrowing his razor instead.

To read more stories from Esquire India’s August 2026 issue, pick up a copy of the magazine from your nearest newspaper stand or bookstore. Or click here to subscribe to the magazine.