A dark scent that both a man and a woman can wear, and that smells good on both, is genuinely one of the hardest briefs in perfumery, and one of the most useful. Maybe you are shopping for two, or looking for something you and your partner can share. I make one that is almost perfectly built for this, and a dark-woody alternate if you lean less sweet.
Buy Zaffran, our saffron sweet-amber. It is the most genuinely unisex dark scent I make. Start with the 10ml at ₹599, or a 50ml at ₹1,799 to share.
Why Zaffran is the unisex answer
A scent reads unisex when it avoids the notes that our culture has coded strongly male or female, no aggressive fougere or heavy leather on one side, no overtly powdery florals on the other, and instead builds around notes everyone reads simply as "rich and good". Zaffran does exactly that. Saffron and amber give warmth and glow, cedar gives a woody backbone, and a whisper of jasmine keeps it smooth without making it a floral. There is nothing in it that says "this is for men only" or "for women only".
It is also the scent I most often hear about being shared between partners, because it shifts a little on different skin, slightly warmer on one person, slightly sweeter on another, and stays lovely on both. Zaffran is SOSA's own interpretation inspired by Baccarat Rouge 540. SOSA is an independent house and is not affiliated with or endorsed by these brands.
₹599 / 10mlSOSA Zaffran — Saffron + Jasmine + Amber + Cedar. Also 50ml ₹1,799, 100ml ₹3,499.The dark-woody alternate: Nawaab
If "dark" to you and your partner means woody rather than warm-sweet, then Nawaab is your alternate. It is white royal oud, Mysore sandalwood and Kashmir saffron. It leans slightly masculine, but I have plenty of women wearing it as a modern dark-woody signature, and it is beautiful on both. Choose Nawaab if you both want depth without sweetness; choose Zaffran if you want warmth and easy compliments.
₹399 / 3mlSOSA Nawaab — the dark-woody unisex alternate. Also 6ml ₹699, 12ml ₹1,199.Which one for the two of you
| If you both... | Choose |
|---|---|
| Like warm, glowing, slightly sweet | Zaffran, ₹599 |
| Lean woody and prefer less sweetness | Nawaab, ₹399 |
| Want the safest shared crowd-pleaser | Zaffran, ₹599 |
| Want something for formal evenings | Nawaab, ₹399 |
An honest note on sharing
Nawaab is a concentrated attar oil, so it sits close to the skin, about a foot or two, which makes it intimate and personal. Zaffran is a perfume oil and projects a little more, which is part of why it works so well as a shared bottle, there is enough presence for both of you to enjoy it. Both last eight to ten hours or more, so one dab in the morning carries through a full day and into the evening.
Frequently asked questions
A portion of every SOSA order funds girl-child education through Nanhi Kali, so a fragrance you love also helps a girl stay in school.