About
Pritika Swarup is an American fashion model, beauty entrepreneur, and philanthropist who aims to “put power and play back into self-care.” As the founder and CEO of Prakti Beauty, she blends Ayurvedic rituals from her Indian heritage with modern laboratory science to create globally inclusive skin-care. Signed to IMG and represented in every major fashion capital, she has starred in campaigns for Fenty Beauty, Bobbi Brown, Tom Ford, and more, while opening and closing shows from New York to Paris. Her dual life on catwalks and in boardrooms earned her the Fashion Group International Rising Star Award for Beauty in 2024 and a spot on the Milken Institute’s 2025 list of “Global Innovators to Watch.”
Away from fashion, Pritika dedicates time to Operation Smile, where she serves as a global ambassador, funding surgeries and traveling on medical missions to give children born with cleft conditions a fresh start. She often links product launches with charitable drives, proving that beauty and social impact can share the same stage.
Before Fame
Born on November 25, 1997, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, to Indian parents Aruna and Jitendra Swarup, Pritika was raised on turmeric face masks and bedtime stories about Rajasthan—early influences that would later shape her brand philosophy. A chance encounter with a model scout at Disney World set her career in motion; by fifteen she was test-shooting, and within a year she had signed her first agency contract.
Balancing runways with textbooks, she enrolled at Columbia University in 2015 and graduated with honors in Financial Economics. While there, she co-founded the school’s largest student-run investment fund and interned at a New York investment firm—experiences that helped her write the first business plan for Prakti Beauty long before the brand reached shelves.
Trivia
- Columbia’s student newspaper once profiled her as the “most fabulous financier on campus,” a nickname the New York Post later amplified nationwide.
- Her debut Prakti product—a turmeric-and-niacinamide exfoliant—sold out online in under 48 hours, funding an Operation Smile mission in Peru the same month.
- Harvard University presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award for social impact in 2023, making her one of the youngest honorees in the award’s history.
- She practices pranayama breathing every morning and credits journal writing with keeping her calm during fashion month’s constant flights.
- The recipe for Prakti’s bestselling glow mask traces back to her grandmother’s kitchen notebook.
Family Life
Pritika keeps her tight-knit family close despite an international schedule. Her mother, Aruna, still reminds her to “oil your hair, even on set,” while her father, Dr. Jitendra Swarup, occasionally volunteers on Operation Smile missions—turning charity trips into family reunions. She has an elder brother, Nik, who prefers life outside the spotlight but often appears in her social-media stories enjoying home-cooked dosas. When asked about romance, she usually smiles and pivots to business updates, choosing to protect her private life while keeping professional channels transparent.
Associated With
Runway veterans Vivienne Westwood, Prabal Gurung, and Cushnie have all tapped Pritika to open or close their shows, praising her confident walk and effortless poise. In beauty, she shares campaign credits with Rihanna’s Fenty crew and once filmed a holiday tutorial alongside Bobbi Brown’s Hannah Murray. Behind every Prakti formula is Estée Lauder legend Daria Myers, Pritika’s mentor and product-development partner. Her philanthropic circle includes Operation Smile co-founder Dr. William Magee and model-activist Winnie Harlow, with whom she co-hosts annual fund-raisers. As a business voice, she frequently appears on panels with Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd and Spanx creator Sara Blakely, championing women-led ventures and reminding young entrepreneurs that cultural heritage can be a strategic asset rather than a footnote.
