This Southeast Asian Content Creator Keeps Coming Back to the Philippines—and To F-Beauty

Singaporean content creator Darshen is ranting into the Allure Philippines camera—for laughs—about the impossibility of navigating the labyrinth of Metro Manila malls.

“Mall of Asia—horrendous,” he quips. “It’s bigger than Optimus Prime. That mall terrifies me. Sometimes I get nightmares about that mall.” He continues, ticking malls off his fingers. “Glorietta, a maze. Greenbelt—I also have gotten lost in Greenbelt before, so it’s not that safe. Landmark, I think it’s more straightforward, but not really my vibe yet. I think Filipino people don’t deserve to be lost all the time, you know? I think we are already lost in life and then you put us in a mall, and we feel even more lost. Like, come on,” he jokes, sounding very much like he does in the content he posts online.

In his own words, it’s a love-hate relationship that Darshen has with our malls, which he always ends up getting lost in. But when it comes to our country in general, there isn’t any back and forth. Darshen, it seems, is smitten.  

Kim Santos

Finding common ground

Ever since a Filipino friend based in Singapore offered to show him around Manila back in 2024, Darshen has been to the Philippines a total of six times, waxing enthusiastic about the “great beaches” in Cebu, Palawan, and Boracay, but even more so about the people.

“Really, I was very shocked by how hospitable Filipino people are. The airlines, maybe not so,” he jokes, before conceding, “but I think they are a work in progress.” Beyond the airplanes, in the restaurants, hotels, in the streets in general, and even online, he raves about “the good vibes of the people. I think Filipino hospitality is something to come for,” he says.

Even when he’s getting the laughs online for his comedic content, Darshen personally finds that Pinoys resonate with his brand of humor. “You know what they say, it’s more fun in the Philippines,” he banters, continuing, “so I feel like the people [here] are more open to humor. I think you guys just get humor as it is, you guys don’t read too much into that, and I think it’s so easy to just create funny content for you.” Darshen indeed has his Filipino audience in stitches—especially when he goes the distance to learn Filipino curse words and shrieks them out into the camera.

Kim Santos

It’s an interesting affinity for someone born and raised in Singapore, who was a former Singapore Airlines cabin crew member, until, with flights grounded during the Covid-19 pandemic, he turned to content creation upon the prodding of his friends. “I started off doing skits, but I wanted to be about more than skits. I wanted people to know me for me as a person, so then I transitioned [into content] a bit more personality-based. And now, it’s become, ‘My name is Darshen,’” he shares, referring to his famous line in his videos that has kicked off many a viral trend.

But aside from successfully hitting the Filipino funny bone, Darshen has another thing in common with Pinoys: a deep interest in F-beauty, or the Filipino beauty industry.

Down the rabbit hole of beauty

Beauty has made its way into Darshen’s content, slowly popping up in between the travel, lifestyle, and full-on comedy posts, rearing its head when he comically showcases his budol or hauls from Philippine beauty events. Although, it turns out, beauty was not something Darshen was inclined to from the very beginning. “I used to not care so much about what I used on my face,” he shares. “But as I grew older, I realized that it’s a form of self-care—taking care of your skin. So now, I embrace that.”

Kim Santos

He shares that he’s progressed from using a plain bar of soap to wash his face, to being more aware of the changes wrought in his skin from his frequent travel, to being more open to experimenting with different makeup looks. “I always love a natural, no-makeup look. I think that’s more my vibe, but then sometimes we can make a twist, maybe a bit dramatic depending on the event,” he says, sharing that he is trying a smoky eye look for the very first time at the shoot. “I might look like a raccoon,” he jests. “Who knows? But we will see. I always love experimenting with new looks and trying new things as well.”

Something else he loves is the sheer variety today of local Filipino beauty brands, many of which have already found their way into his beauty arsenal.

F-beauty holds it own

“I think that in Singapore, we love Korean makeup, and Korean skin care,” Darshen shares, explaining the difference between the Singaporean beauty scene, and the booming F-beauty industry. “But I think in the Philippines, you love your own local products, and your own local brands. I think that’s the vast difference.”

In Darshen’s personal beauty kit, you’ll find some of his favorite Filipino brands, such as Sunnies Face, Issy, and RSG Cosmetics, which has also supported him in his role as global ambassador for Filipino non-profit organization Project Pearls by making the day of makeup-loving children in Tondo whom he works with, sending them cosmetics.

Kim Santos

The Philippines, he says, has its own booming and ever-evolving beauty culture. “I think every country is different, but I think [in the beauty scene], what stands out in Southeast Asia is the Philippines, because you guys have your own unique look, and then Thailand, which also has its own unique look as well.”

F-beauty, he shares, is also not just about products or innovations, but about viral trends that take root in the Philippine islands and ricochet all over the world. “Singapore’s beauty trends are, like, we follow the Koreans, and we follow Americans a bit, and we follow a bit of China as well,” he shares. “But I think in the Philippines, you guys set the trends here. That’s why you guys even have your own bebot trend! And after bebot, you guys went to the other one, which is kikay,” he adds, laughing, naming two recent viral Filipino makeup trends that went supernova on Tiktok. “So you know,” he continues, “you guys are the ones that are setting your trends in your own local country.”

Back to the Philippines…again…and again…and again

To anyone who follows him, Darshen is, quite obviously, a seasoned world traveler. And these treks around the globe have become a gateway to great insights—the kinds that come out in calmer moments, when he’s not spewing another punch line, or yelling foreign cuss words in between peals of laughter, but is quietly sharing wisdom that he’s gathered throughout his travels. And when it comes to beauty—its definitions, standards, culture, and customs—Darshen has arrived at more than a few realizations.

Kim Santos

“I think every country that I travel to has different beauty standards and trends that they follow. But one thing I’ve observed in common is that everyone in today’s world is trying to be as inclusive as possible,” he muses. “Now, I’m in the Philippines. I see that there are more makeup brands that are being more inclusive, having more shades, which is awesome. And I think as a brown person myself, I feel there’s so much joy in being able to shop Filipino makeup brands because they are a lot more inclusive in their foundation shades.”

But it’s not just the foundation shades that will have him returning again and again to these 7,641 islands. “I really, honestly come back for just the people,” he shares. “I think the vibes are always great. And every time I come back, every single visit is just different. I find out new things, discover new things. There are always new cafes I’m going to or discovering. I’m always excited to come back to Manila and to explore the whole Philippines. There’s always so much to see.” And, apparently, many more budols to be had.

Photography by Kim Santos. Makeup and hair by Anika Francesca Lacson, assisted by Mandy Liao – Yu. Art direction by Nicole Almero.