We asked 10 perfumers, founders and fragrance connoisseurs a simple question- what their childhood smelled like. All their answers felt like home and will take you back to those memories you would never want to grow out of.
1. Shehzad Mulla, Perfumist, Parfumerie Maison
If I could bottle the scent of my childhood, it would smell like a room full of mangoes in the peak of summer. Every May, during our summer vacations, we would travel to our village in Ratnagiri. My grandfather, a retired navy man and a generational mango farmer, lived there after his retirement. The house had a large old storage room on the right side of the entrance, closed with a heavy wooden door. As children, that door felt almost mysterious to us. We would keep pestering our grandfather to open it. The moment the door creaked open, a rush of aroma would escape the smell of hundreds of alphonso mangoes stored inside. Some raw, some perfectly ripe. The air was thick with that sweet, slightly green, sun-warmed fragrance. It was the smell of summer, of family, of carefree holidays. That’s the feeling I would love to bottle.
I would call it “Mango May.” A scent where nostalgia rushes out the moment the door opens — just like those mangoes did.
2. Isha Tiwari, Founder of Kastoor
If I could bottle a scent of childhood , it will be a scent of Harsingar (Parijat). I lived on university campuses while growing up, and like all university campuses homes you have gardens which are bigger than your house. I had a massive Haringar tree in front of my house, and in winter it would flower in the night and cover the entrance of my home completely – on gates, on stones, on land. I would take a handful, step on my school bus, sniff them throughout and abandon them on the gates of my school when I reached. And I did this for years.
The scent is intoxicating. Sweet, fresh, crisp and immediately transports you in a different world.
Till today, I find and love traces of Harsingar in various other visual mediums. I have a pair of Harsingar design pants, I have a Harsingar flower motif Bedsheet, I have a crocheted Harsingar purse.
3. Ishita Misra, Founder of Fonzie
If I could bottle up my childhood, it would smell exactly like “5 AM Nostalgia“. Growing up, the Harsingar tree in my Nani’s garden wasn’t just a tree; it was a silent witness to my holidays. I remember waiting with bated breath for the sun to go down so it could begin its midnight magic.
Every morning there was a ritual: cold dew on my feet, gathering the fallen white stars with their bright orange hearts in my little basket, and threading them into tiny, fragile garlands.
To bottle that peace, I would layer the ethereal floral notes with the golden warmth of wild honey and the creamy, meditative pull of Sandalwood. It’s more than a fragrance; it’s a trip back to the garden where time stood still.
4. Ankita Gil, Founder of Param Sara Official
As we approach summer, the scent that instantly takes me back to childhood is sweet, tangy, vibrant ripe mangoes. It filled the house every summer growing up in India. I think I would call that scent “Golden Daydream.”
5. Vidhushi Vijayvergiya, Founder of Isak
I actually have a bottle- one of my most beautiful memories. Inspired by the times when my mother and us 3 sisters used to run to the terrace when it rained. We used to take a tape recorder, play some music and dance in the rain. It is one of my most cherished childhood memory and I bottled the scent as First Rain – the smell of earth when it rains.
6. Amandine Nikuze, Vice-President Perfumery at Ajmal Perfumes
If I could bottle the scent of my childhood, it would begin at my mother’s Sunday lunch table: “a simple wooden garden table set outdoors, always brightened by a bouquet of tuberoses we called Saint Joseph. Their creamy sweetness drifted lazily through the air, blending with the gentle woody warmth of the table and the clean softness of our white tablecloths. Nothing dramatic, just the scents that lived with us.”
I’d call it La Tubéreuse du Dimanche (Tuberose Sunday) ; the kind of name you’d find in alternative perfumery, a tender echo of those simple, fragrant Sundays.
7. Aparna Gupta, Perfume Collector & blogger
If I could bottle my childhood, it would smell like roses from long walks to the botanical gardens with my grandfather. We wandered quiet paths, pausing to admire blooms and lotus ponds floating gently on still water. After the rain, the air carried the comforting scent of geeli mitti, mingling with the freshness of trees and wood bark. Those afternoons felt slow and full of wonder—my childhood captured in roses, lotus, wet earth, and the quiet joy of walking beside my grandfather. I would call it ‘Walk with Me’
8. Amal, 4th Gen Perfumer
I would name the fragrance ‘roots & rose’ because when I was growing up I could distinctly remember the smell of nagarmotha and roses and the freshness of the morning dew mixing with the freshness of rose.
9. Zoran Saher, Actor
If I had to recollect the fragrance of my childhood, it would smell like the originality of innocence, which would seamlessly blend into a strong note of fresh amber & patchouli — signifying a new start.
I would call it Realistically Vogue.
10. Astha Suri Malhotra, Founder of Naso
If I had to bottle my childhood into a scent, it would open with soft magnolia and tuberose, bright and delicate like early memories. The heart would carry playful notes of cotton candy and bubblegum—sweet, joyful, and full of innocence. At the base, I imagine jasmine blended with caramel, warm and comforting, with just a tinge of blackcurrant to give it a gentle spark.
For me, childhood was always about the safety of family and home—the feeling of being cradled in spaces where you belong. It was vibrant, energetic, and full of life, never missing a moment to share laughter and energy with friends, family, and community. The fragrance would feel super vibrant yet soft, nostalgic and comforting, reminding you of those safe spaces that shape who you are. That, to me, would be the scent of my childhood.
Also Read:
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Let’s Explore Kannauj Through The Eyes Of A Young Perfumer, Esha Tiwari
