Nirmala 
Molinard (1955)

Yes, I get the mango in each sweaty armpit. I mustn't forget to mention, a RIPE mango bathed in cuminesque sweat. Yet, I cannot give a full thumbs down. You know that bit in American Hustle, where she talks about how you just can't stop smelling something with that little bit of rotten in it? That's this! I can't quite figure out why I can't just give this one away. I don't want to wear it. But then I do. The mango is very realistic. Everything that's not dirty and rank is actually very nice, and I want to smell that. But then there's the sweat, and the hot, overripe tropical mango and the dankness.

I don't know what to say. At least it's interesting?

Genre: Fruity Floral

Whatever Nirmala was in 1955, this isn't it. Molinard apparently recycled the name for this Angel imitator, circa 1993. In its third incarnation (since 2000,) Nirmala is a leaner, brighter Angel, both less provocative than the original and less distinctive.

Nirmala's lighter touch is evident from the start: the top notes are more tart than Angel's and suggest citrus rather than lush berries. The two converge after a half an hour or so, as the familiar sweet, foody notes of chocolate and vanilla wrap themselves around the fruit and the patchouli asserts itself in the foundation. Nirmala remains more acidic than Angel, with a touch of chemical abrasiveness at its center. The attempt to lighten an inherently baroque structure leaves Nirmala smelling unfinished – even skeletal – next to its progenitor.

Divergence occurs as Angel's notoriously animalic patchouli intensifies, while Nirmala's stays further in the background. Where Angel is propelled by the discord between its woody oriental base notes and its overwhelmingly sweet fruity floral accord, Nirmala remains more of a straightforward tropical fruit cocktail. This kind of beach vacation twist on Angel has been done better in Profumi di Pantelleria's Jailia, though admittedly at much greater cost. You can also have the same kind of fun-in-the-sun with the more readily available Fresh Sugar Lychee or Nicolaï's Eau Turquoise, with less obvious resemblance to Angel.