Have you faced any disappointments or struggles in your career so far in modelling? Was it a struggle during 'Get Gorgeous'?
No, GG was quite smooth sailing actually, for the particular reason that everyone was really helpful. It was a reality show at the end of the day, you know, so people got really close to each other, people were there to help you throughout the competition. The judges may have been very critical initially but later on they really helped boost the self-confidence of all the girls there and we came out of it as very different people. I never thought that I would be a good model and the fact that I won the competition has boosted my self-esteem about the fact that I can get up in the morning, look at myself in the mirror and say, "Okay, I'm not that bad-looking!" As girls, we always tend to find some kind of flaw in our faces -- "Oh my God, my nose is too big!" or "my mouth isn't the right size". After you win a competition like this, it makes you tend to appreciate what you have, because you know other people appreciate it also.
And yes, it is a struggle. For me, after winning GG, it's definitely going to be a tough climb, because making a name for yourself in an industry like ours is very, very difficult. And you have to be very humble -- you can't be too emotional, cant get too perturbed by things people say to you, because it's an industry that feeds off of its people. A lot of criticism goes around, which does lead to a certain amount of disappointments, but you have to learn to get used to that.
Do you believe in the lucky break factor? Or do you believe that those working in fashion have to make their own opportunities if they want to forge ahead?
Yeah, definitely -- I don't believe in the lucky break. Maybe if you land a Lakme contract, or work with some other really big name, then you've automatically gotten yourself there. But even after that, you can't just do a big campaign and disappear. You can never be out of the media eye, as a model that doesn't really work in your favour.
Generally, I feel that you have to work hard, you have to push. You have to believe that you can make it -- and I'm not talking specifically about myself. There are so many people in this industry who may have been shunned initially, but because of their hard work and zeal they have made a name for themselves.
Do you think that youngsters looking to make a foray into the industry have it easy today or not? What is your opinion of the current scenario?
No, they don't have it easy. Definitely not. You have to work hard -- it's said and done in any kind of profession or career. In order for you to get what you want you have to work hard towards it -- nothing just comes and falls in your lap. Maybe the opportunity will fall, but even after that you have to work towards what you want out of the opportunity.
Entry into the fashion field is difficult, because I have been doing small-time modelling assignments since I was in my first year of college. I never had an ambition to become 'the best model' or anything like that, which is why I never pushed myself to do anything. Definitely, it does take time -- it's not as easy to get into modelling as people think it is, you know. For a model, if you're brilliantly good-looking, if you have everything going for you that is commercially viable, like the looks, the height, everything is working in your favour, then maybe it'll be easier. It's not about a lucky break so much as being lucky also -- being at the right place at the right time, doing the right things, saying the right things. Everything together works in your favour, at the end of the day.
Also read: From obscurity to Bollywood: Nauheed Cyrusi
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