The Age of Aesthetic Calm
The world has become noisier, busier and much more overwhelming. And yet, we see on our screens something gentler- the morning sunshine on linen, hot cups of coffee and warm lamps in the window. It can be found everywhere, on the boards of Pinterest, in influencer reels, and even in the way we decorate our homes. This is the comfort aesthetic - the visual culture of slowing down.
These small rituals have become a rebellion for a generation weary of the productivity culture. We capture ourselves reading, lighting candles, journaling, or drinking tea and call it self-care. Yet somewhere between these quiet frames lies a question: are we really peaceful, or are we only doing it to the camera?
The Psychology of Calm – Why We Need to Romanticise Life
According to psychologists, romanticising your everyday life, finding beauty in the mundane, is a self-meditative process. It helps in regulating anxiety and gives a sense of meaning to life. The American Psychological Association (2023) notes that small daily habits such as morning journaling, cleaning, or conscious coffee breaks can help in reducing stress by 35 %.
We capture these moments on camera and post them not because we want others to notice us, but because we are seeking affirmation-reminding ourselves that our unglamorous lives still hold meaning. The world is chaotic, and after years of trying to be in control, people are craving stability. Nothing feels easier to control than placing your morning cup beside a flower when the light falls just right.
This is not a style that glorifies luxury but simplicity, the sense of being safe in your own home, despite what the outside world makes you feel.
The Instagram Era – How Cosy Became Content
Instagram and TikTok did not simply reflect this aesthetic — they created it. Different variations of the comfort aesthetic appear as trends like That Girl routines, the Clean Girl look, and the Soft Life movement. Influencers such as Komal Pandey, Kritika Khurana, and Masoom Minawala now post about calm mornings and gentle routines, shaping a new ideal where peace itself has become a form of luxury.
But this peace is highly manufactured. The mugs are Zara Home mugs, the pyjamas are satin, and the coffee machine shines in the golden light. The point is made - calmness is now a brand. Pew Research (2024) states that 62 per cent of Gen Z Indians acknowledge that their self-care practices are driven by social media trends.
The irony? The apps that overstimulate us are now selling us calmness through filters. The comfort aesthetic began as an act of mindfulness but has turned into a currency of content, in which peace is performative and yet greatly desired.
The Indian Lens – The Modern Ritual of Old Traditions
India has never needed hashtags to understand the comfort aesthetic; we have always lived it just without the hashtags. Mornings, beginning with chai and newspapers, the smell of agarbatti, evening temple bells, all these are rituals of grounding. These traditions are coming back nowadays in a new package of modernity.
Urban young people now pair brass kettles with glass mugs, cotton sarees with minimalist furniture, and terracotta planters with neutral palettes. Even digital creators such as Sukriti Grover and Sejal Kumar share their cosy corners and “Sunday resets,” bringing Indian warmth to global wellness trends.
It is cultural nostalgia repackaged. We are romanticising what we once overlooked. The contemporary comfort aesthetic is, in truth, our grandparents’ slow life reimagined for the digital eye.
The Psychology of Rebellion – Rest as Resistance
Rest has become a radical act in a culture of optimisation. According to Harvard Health Review (2022), intentionally slowing down, reading, cooking, or journaling without any distractions leads to the activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, which decreases heart rate and enhances concentration.
The slow living trend is not laziness. It’s defiance. It means: I do not have to hustle to survive. Rest is productive too.
The aesthetic relates to a broader emotional change among Indian youth- burnout recovery, emotional awareness, and digital minimalism. As one creator captioned her video: “Softness is strength. Stillness is power.”
Beauty Beyond the Screen
The comfort aesthetic does not concern ideal light or staged corners; it is more about learning to see the meaning in the banal. It is not about not romanticising life, but to stop needing online proof that it exists.
The good life lies in those times when we do not take notes - when we are in our untidy rooms, reading half a book, and washing ourselves before a mirror. It’s not a brand; it’s a boundary. Because perhaps the greatest luxury of our time is peace — quiet, real, and unpublicized.