Every anti dandruff shampoo on this page is from an Indian brand, and every one is in stock with us and ready to ship.

Indian anti dandruff shampoos come in two very different types, and the labels do not always make that obvious. Some are herbal cleansers built on neem, curd, lemon or tea tree, made for washing two or three times a week. Others are medicated, built on a drug ingredient such as ketoconazole or zinc pyrithione, and used on a set course rather than forever. Each shampoo below is marked herbal or medicated, because picking from the wrong group is the most common mistake in this aisle.

Numbers 7, 8 and 9 are the medicated ones. In many countries these are regulated as medicines rather than cosmetics, and some need a prescription. We can tell you what is in each bottle. We cannot tell you whether one is right for you, so speak to a pharmacist or a doctor before starting any of them.

This list is for you if you want an Indian anti dandruff shampoo and cannot find one where you live. Supermarkets abroad carry Western brands. Indian grocery shops stock one or two bottles at most, whatever the supplier happened to send that month.

Nine shampoos below. Six herbal, three medicated.

1. Himalaya Anti-Dandruff Shampoo

Herbal. Tea tree in a herbal base, and the most widely known

Himalaya is the name most people already recognise, and this is the bottle most likely to have been in your bathroom at home. Tea tree oil sits alongside aloe vera and the wheat and soy protein blend that runs through the Himalaya hair range.

It foams the normal amount, which matters more than it sounds. Many of the newer herbal shampoos are sulfate free and produce very little lather, and people find that hard to adjust to. This one behaves like an ordinary shampoo, so switching to it does not change your routine.

There is a matching conditioner in the same range, which is worth adding if your lengths run dry.

Worth knowing: this is the easiest bottle here to buy for a household where several people will use it.

If tea tree specifically is what you are after, we compare all the Indian tea tree options in our tea tree shampoo guide.

2. Kesh King Anti-Dandruff Shampoo

Herbal. Curd, lemon and neem, with a long Ayurvedic herb list

Curd, lemon and neem is about as traditional as this category gets, and Kesh King builds the rest of the formula out with 21 Ayurvedic herbs. It is sold as a daily cleanser rather than a treatment.

The reason to look at this one is what it is not. Medicated dandruff shampoos are drying by design, and a lot of people abroad end up alternating between a harsh medicated bottle and a moisturising one. This sits in the middle: a mild everyday wash aimed at flakes, with a light lemon scent rather than a medicinal one.

Worth knowing: if the drugstore dandruff shampoo you have been using leaves your hair feeling like straw, this is the sort of formula people move to.

3. Indulekha Dandruff Treatment Shampoo

Ayurvedic medicine. A proprietary preparation built on eight herbs

Indulekha sits in a slightly different category from the rest of this group. It is sold as a proprietary Ayurvedic medicine rather than as a cosmetic, built on eight herbs including neem, amla and pudina, with rosemary oil, and made by a slow-cooking process over three days.

It is free from parabens, synthetic dye and synthetic perfume, so the smell is herbal and unperfumed. People who like Ayurvedic products usually like it. People expecting a shampoo that smells like shampoo sometimes do not.

Worth knowing: because it is registered as an Ayurvedic medicine rather than a cosmetic, the label carries different information from the others here. Read it.

4. Mamaearth Tea Tree Shampoo for Dandruff Free Hair

Herbal. Tea tree led, sulfate free, for sensitive scalps

Tea tree oil as the lead ingredient with ginger oil alongside, in a base built without sulfates, parabens, silicones or added colour.

Expect much less foam than you are used to. That is the sulfate free base, not a fault, and if you oil your hair before washing you will need two rounds. In return it is one of the gentler options here, which suits people whose scalp reacts to strong shampoos.

It comes in more than one size, and the smaller bottle is the sensible way to test the smell before committing.

Worth knowing: tea tree has a sharp medicinal smell that people either like or really do not. Start small.

5. WOW Skin Science Green Tea and Tea Tree Anti-Dandruff Shampoo

Herbal. Aimed squarely at oily, greasy roots

Tea tree oil paired with green tea extract, in a sulfate free and paraben free base. The whole bottle is pointed at greasy scalps rather than dry ones.

Pick it if your hair goes flat and oily by day two and the flakes come with that. Skip it if your scalp is already dry and tight, because it has a deep cleaning character and will make that worse.

Worth knowing: do not use a deep cleaning shampoo every single wash. Alternate it with something milder and keep a conditioner in the routine.

6. Patanjali Kesh Kanti Anti Dandruff Hair Cleanser

Herbal. The value option, in the largest bottles

Patanjali's anti dandruff entry in the Kesh Kanti hair range, sold as a herbal cleanser rather than a shampoo, which is how the brand labels most of its hair washes.

The case for it is simple. It is the cheapest way here to buy an Indian anti dandruff wash in a size that lasts, which matters if several people in the house use it or if you would rather not reorder every six weeks. The formula is plainer than Indulekha or Kesh King, and it is priced accordingly.

Worth knowing: buy this one if price per wash is your main concern. Buy one of the others if the ingredient list is.

7. Scalpe Plus Expert Total Anti-Dandruff Shampoo

Medicated. Ketoconazole plus zinc pyrithione, the two-active one

The distinguishing feature is that it carries two actives rather than one: ketoconazole and zinc pyrithione, which is often shortened to ZPTO on Indian packaging.

Scalpe Plus is a familiar pharmacy name in India, and this is the version that also conditions, so hair comes out less stripped than with a plain medicated wash. The label sets out a course rather than open-ended use, which is normal for this category and worth following rather than improvising.

Worth knowing: medicated shampoos are used on a course, then stopped. They are not meant to become your permanent shampoo.

8. Torque Ketomac Shampoo

Medicated. Ketoconazole on its own, the plainest of the three

Ketomac is the straightforward one. Ketoconazole, no second active, no conditioning claims, sold as a pharmacy product rather than a beauty product.

That plainness is the reason people ask for it by name. It is a familiar Indian pharmacy bottle, and someone who was prescribed it at home often wants exactly that bottle rather than a local equivalent with a different name and strength.

Worth knowing: strengths and rules for ketoconazole shampoo vary from country to country. Check what applies where you live before ordering.

9. Man Matters 2% Ketoconazole Anti Dandruff Shampoo

Medicated. Ketoconazole with salicylic acid, free of sulfates and parabens

Man Matters is an Indian men's health brand, and this is the newest formulation of the three. Ketoconazole at 2%, with salicylic acid alongside it, in a base built without sulfates or parabens.

The salicylic acid is the point of difference. It works on scalp buildup, which is a different problem from the one ketoconazole addresses, so this bottle is aimed at people dealing with both at once. The sulfate free base also makes it less stripping than an older pharmacy formula.

Man Matters make a non-medicated version too, without ketoconazole, if you want the brand without the drug active.

Worth knowing: despite the men's branding, nothing in the formula is specific to men.

Best Anti Dandruff Shampoo Comparison

Dandruff is not the only reason to change shampoo. If you are also dealing with hair fall, dryness or colour-treated hair, our full shampoo collection carries Indian brands for those too. 

Where to buy

Everything on this page is in stock with us.

The Desi Food ships genuine Indian haircare and pharmacy products to the USA and 80+ countries, with no extra duties. It is also an easy way to send a bottle to someone who cannot get it where they are. Browse the full range in our haircare collection.