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This is an excerpt from MEGA’s October 2025 Women in Focus feature
Serial entrepreneur, mental health advocate, wife and mother of two Viktoria Salazar, cuts a striking figure with her close-cropped hair, bold and colorful makeup, and maximalist style. And though she is beautiful, strong, and imposing all at once, one cannot help but be drawn to her. There is more to her than her singular appearance and strong personal identity. What we see right now is a moment in a journey of self-discovery, acceptance, and healing.
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BEAUTY FOR ASHES
One of the first things you’ll learn about her is that this iteration of Viktoria has only been around for a year. The close-cropped hair is from when she shaved her hair off when chemotherapy caused it to start falling off. Yes, she has cancer and it has changed her life in a way most people don’t expect.
When Viktoria got diagnosed with Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma, she had just given birth to her second son with her husband and business partner Dhanvan. “When I found out I had cancer—yes, I was grieving—but I never asked ‘Why me, of all people?’. I just accepted that I have cancer and I just wanted to heal because I have my kids,” she reveals, tears welling up in her eyes at the mention of her children and that pivotal moment. “I just said, ‘Okay, what’s the next step? Chemotherapy?’ That’s it. Because the only time I have is the time to heal for my kids. I have small kids, super small. And my grief was not for me, I was grieving for them because they’re going to lose their mom.”
But, along with the grief and challenges, came clarity, “Surprisingly, cancer gave meaning back to my life.” Viktoria says, “I was at a place where I was stagnant and asking ‘What should I do now?’” Before her diagnosis, she had a successful design firm, but she wasn’t happy designing for other people anymore. She did not know what she wanted to do next. “Knowing you have cancer makes you realize that you only have one life. Just do whatever makes you happy.” The realization that she could die any time soon cleared her vision for what she wanted in life and to actually do it.
TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE
Though Viktoria’s style is strong and distinct—with her colorful eye makeup, big metal accessories, and uncompromising fashion that is unique to her—it all feels natural and authentic. It’s not a look put on for show or for social media content (although she is also a content creator), but it’s an extension of her personal expression, it’s for her first and not for anybody else.
Viktoria grew up in an “eccentric” house in Capiz. Her mother is an artist and she makes furniture. She has good taste, of course, Viktoria’s mother, and one would think that this is the type of household where artistry and self-expression would thrive. However, it was quite the opposite. Her need for acceptance in her own family and their harsh words kept her in a cycle of co-dependency and despair.
She hesitates before continuing, “When I went away… when I cut my family off, I realized that I can be my own person. And when I realized that I was able to explore, I was able to be open to mistakes—that making mistakes is okay. Expressing yourself is okay, and it doesn’t matter what other people think… I was able to find myself. I was able to heal my mental health. This was when I realized how brave I was.” This also led her to advocate and talk more about mental health on her platform, because she herself knew how important it is to actively seek therapy and to work on it.
When she was able to embrace the freedom to just be herself, she found that she could find clothes that fit her style—which she calls “structured maximalism.” Even her makeup—she recalls just starting out with colorful makeup and some people would say that it doesn’t look good on her. So she just stopped sending them photos and asking them what they thought. “I just started doing things that I want to do on myself, and lo and behold! I look good!” She grins. Since she is very emotional, she is in tune with her emotion and thus able to express herself through makeup and clothes.
She doesn’t deny that she doesn’t see people looking at her up and down the street, sometimes giggling and laughing behind her back. There will be whispers, but, as Viktoria says, “ It’s okay if they find it weird. It’s okay. It’s okay. It’s accepting that other people’s judgment of me is not a reflection of my worth… At the end of the day, you’re dealing with yourself and not with those people. So the only person that has to accept you is yourself.” This is why she doesn’t even need validation from her husband. If he forgets to tell her she looks good, it’s okay. “If you know that you look good, you look f—ing good. And I guess when you believe it, people feel that. They may not see your journey with mental health, but they feel the vibrations you have… By hav- ing more self-worth, I was able to attract the people I need to attract in my life. That’s what I realized: Accepting who you are, you’re attracting the people, the right kind of people in your life.
“And because of cancer, I was able to tell myself that I don’t have time for bullshit anymore. I don’t have time to please people. I don’t have time for people who don’t contribute to my happiness.”
Read and get to know more about Viktoria Salazar in MEGA’s October 2025 issue now available on Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio.
Photographed by SHEILA CATILO. Art Direction by CLARE MAGNO. Makeup by NADYNNE ESGUERRA. Styled by VIKTORIA SALAZAR . Shot on location at COSMIC MOLITO
