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  Models for perfection

Models for perfection

Published : Nov 25, 2015, 8:37 pm IST
Updated : Nov 25, 2015, 8:37 pm IST

kendall jenner’s recent statement about models facing pressure to be perfect on and off the ramp finds echoes back home in india

Kendall Jenner
 Kendall Jenner

kendall jenner’s recent statement about models facing pressure to be perfect on and off the ramp finds echoes back home in india

Just when Kendall Jenner’s comments about the pressure on models to be perfect both on and off camera have been generating discussions in various quarters, UK-based model Stina Sanders has given everyone a new talking point: she took up a challenge to post unfiltered images of her non-glamorous side on Instagram, and lost thousands of followers for it. Talking to People magazine about it, she was quoted as saying, “I thought that my followers would remain the same but I would get no likes, but the total opposite happened — I had an influx of likes, but I had a massive decrease of followers!” In an age where a number of voices have been raised all over the world against issues like body-shaming, are models still fettered by ideals of beauty that have little or no space to accommodate their reality

“Oh, I’ve had lots of such moments in my own life. Every time I go to my daughter’s school, people look at me and say — oh, so this is what you really look like ” shares model and fashion choreographer Nayanika Chatterjee, affirming that there is still a section of people whose expectation remains that models look as perfect off the ramp as they do on it. “They tend to expect me to have a kilo of make-up on and look like I look on the runway but I’m not always going to look like that na People look so disappointed sometimes, and it’s really quite hilarious,” she adds. Ask her how she deals with such an approach and she responds promptly, “The point is, I’m sensible enough to know that yes, make-up does make a difference to how you look — today’s kids are even going for all kinds of software that can sometimes change your face entirely — but there are some basics you need to have already, to look like that. You need certain basic features that you can only enhance with a certain amount of make-up or editing, and they are the reason why your face is chosen for a shoot and not someone else’s. You can use as much make-up as you want and change whatever you want on the computer, but there must be something more to you than just that.”

She goes on, “Sure, people have their expectations, jealousies and insecurities but you are who you are, and you are what you’ve achieved — no one can take that away from you. Whenever someone gives me a particularly hostile reaction, I know for a fact that in the next show, there’s a reason why I will be called and not him/her. So there.”

Model Amit Ranjan, on the other hand, has a different perspective and opines that as a model, projecting an image of perfection is a part of his profession and clearly demarcating personal and professional spaces helps deal with every kind of reaction. “We are models because we look a certain way. Period. We manifest a designer’s vision of how he/she wants the clothes to look and feel — the ramp is the poetry of their vision. On it, or at photo shoots, we look glamorous because we are made to by the make-up artists, photographers and the entire team, really.

I believe that no actor, model or anybody can look stunning at all times, but having said that, I also believe that as models we sell aspirations — that’s our job. Personally, I clearly separate the person I am and the life I lead from my professional zone — whether it is on social media or any other public platform. People who like me or follow me are there because I am a model and I understand that. For me, then, that is a space to interact with my fans and get constructive inputs on my work.”Activist Khushboo Malik, from the point of view of an outsider observing the reactions Sanders has received after her Instagram challenge, points out that there is both heartening and saddening insight to be gained from the entire controversy. “If you read some of the more recent coverage, you’ll see that in place of the thousands of followers that she lost, Sanders has gained thousands more after her story got out.

So, while it is sad that there were those who just didn’t want to see the real her, there are evidently also those who came forward to stand by the real her in this scenario. From where I’m looking, this just goes to show that the waves of change begun by all the movements against rigid body ideals across the globe are continuing to forge ahead. Things are not going to change overnight, we’ve always known that and accepted it as a fact of life. But the very fact that some people are adopting different ways of thinking and actually acting upon them, on social media and otherwise, is a really positive development,” she concludes.