A smoky eye is right up there with a red lip as classic special occasion makeup. But while it's certain to make an impact, many of us shy away from trying smoky eye looks for fear of it looking and feeling heavy, or overdone.
Enter: Anita Rani. The broadcaster and author stepped out on the 2026 TV BAFTAs red carpet with a glamorous eye look that felt like a departure from her signature pared-back winged eyeliner.
The smoky eye makeup perfectly complemented Rani's embellished Bora Aksu gown and slicked back hairstyle - and, crucially, had a modern finish that felt anything but 'too much'. So, how was it achieved? After investigating, we've spotted a classic makeup artist's trick at play that anyone who wants to try a smoky eye should know about.
Why Anita Rani's smoky eye looks so chic and effortless
Let's cut straight to the chase: On close inspection of Rani's stunning TV BAFTA eye makeup, created by makeup artist Sarah Jane Wai, we spotted one key element that changed everything. Alongside sooty black liner and lashings of mascara the eyeshadow shade used to create the look appeared to be a muted, deep, dusky rose that reflected the shade of Rani's lipstick.
The shadow was washed over the lid, subtly winged out alongside Rani's eyeliner and smudged ever so slightly under the eye too. This clever trick essentially creates a 'frame' for the eyes that enhances warm tones, particularly when used as an eyeshadow for brown eyes, and ties the whole makeup look together so perfectly. It also feels far more modern than a classic smoky black or grey.
And while we wait in hope of either Anita or her longtime makeup artist revealing the exact products behind this look, we put our detective skills to use once more and spotted that Wai is a former Global Lead Pro artist for Charlotte Tilbury - a brand that popularised this style of dusky eye makeup with the Pillow Talk collection. So we'd put money on her having a few of those quads in her kit.
For those wanting to recreate any other elements of Rani's beautiful makeup look here, we'd steer you towards another tonal Tilbury buy, the brand's new blush balm lip tints, which come in various Pillow Talk hues, slick on like a balm but have an adaptable PH-sensitive formula that shifts to suit your specific lip shade.
Additionally on the eye, there's no doubt Anita's lashes have been painted in a lengthening mascara formula (with a few strategically placed individual lashes for grown-up flutter) Wands with comb-like strictures and lengthening formulas are the best mascaras for creating this elegant and fresh look.
Another makeup artist's trick, when applying mascara, is to tilt your chin right down then look up into a mirror - this helps the mascara wand get right into the base of the lashes for maximum flutter as you pull it through. For length without clumping or OTT Volume, our beauty editor advises L'Oreal Extensionist Mascara is one of the best on the market, creating elegant, grown up flutter at a pleasingly affordable price.
The very best thing about this colour-matching trick is that you can use it for a dramatic smoky eye like this, but also to bring a polished, tonal finish to any eye makeup look. Think of it as matching your handbag to your shoes - but a little bit more modern than it's fashion equivalent. Now all we need is a red carpet event to attend...
