Shoulders set, back ramrod straight, balancing perfectly on a
pair of high wedges, there’s something about Amna Ilyas that makes you
swivel your head towards her and ask, “Who’s that girl?” She certainly
knows how to walk the catwalk, carrying off anything from an ornate
bridal dress to casual pret with an easy grace. She’s also a current
favourite with fashion designers, featured in a myriad different fashion
shoots, a dusky, sultry-eyed wisp of a girl who stares out at you from
absolutely every glossy in the country.
There are so many things that make Amna stand out amongst the burgeoning milieu of models that surround her. For one, she’s 5 feet 8 inches tall — not exactly statuesque by international standards but at least taller than most Pakistani models. She’s also extremely thin and is utterly at ease in high heels; thus fulfilling some of the veritable prerequisites required of models. Furthermore, in a sea of painted pink and white faces, Amna’s dark skin is her most distinguishable feature. That, and her face, which is yet to have gone under the knife for any corrective procedure. This is quite a rarity in an industry where the odd nip, tuck, injections or, as models prefer to address it, ‘accident’, has become the order of the day.
“I would probably consider cosmetic surgery if I developed premature wrinkles. For now, though, I am more comfortable without it,” she professes. “I think that an individual should be able to carry his or her natural features confidently rather than have them rectified to the point of risking skin damage and looking disfigured.”
It’s no wonder then that she admires Iraj Manzoor, Pakistan’s original catwalk siren, who has always vocally spoken against cosmetic surgery. “That’s the kind of attitude a model should have,” points out Amna. “Iraj eats healthy and works out which is why she can still walk the catwalk at the age of 40.”
But like Iraj, does Amna also want to be a model till a ripe old age? “No, I think I’d like to retire by my late 20s,” she says. “That’s how it’s done internationally and besides, there are so many other things than a woman can do.”
For now, though, she’s more than happy with her skyrocketing career. “It was easy for me to step into modeling,” she recalls. “I was 16 years old when family friend, photographer and stylist Akif Ilyas photographed me and introduced me to the field. My two elder sisters had already been models so my family was open to the idea. For the first six months, I just learnt the ropes with Akif and then, I began to take up more work.”
Modeling 101
However, while stepping into the field may have been easy, life as a new model couldn’t possibly have been a walk in the park. The business of beauty, bright lights and high fashion is rife with a backlog of manipulation and favoritism. And all a young model can do is bide her time by the sharks — until she becomes one herself.
“I remember how older, experienced models would gossip about me right in front of me. They didn’t care that I was right there. I have never let such things bother me. Nor have I ever tried to be part of the usual fights to wear the showstopper outfit or for the finale of the show.”
“Most young models aren’t initially manipulative at all. It’s just that they are put under so much stress by the older models that they decide that there’s no other way to survive in this field,” points out Amna.
Did this pressure also metamorphose her into a ‘mean girl’? “No and it’s probably because I kept to myself,” she says. “I was busy balancing my studies with modeling during the early years. I’d sit in a corner with my books while waiting backstage. I was too busy studying to have the time for petty politics and catfights.”
Still, she remembers the painfully long hours she’d have to wait backstage as a fledgling model. “We’d be asked to come in at 10am for a show that would begin at 9pm. They wanted to get done with our hair and make-up beforehand. The veteran models were allowed the luxury to come by late evening. It was such an unnecessary waste of time especially since make-up teams could have simply been divided and have us all ready in the evening. It was just an exhausting ordeal that all new models had to — and still have to — endure.”
And yet, Amna persisted along the arduous path to super model-dom. “No matter what, it’s fun,” she smiles. “It also comes naturally to me. Back when I was in college it was a great way to earn some extra money and everybody just thought I was ‘cool’. Later on, it just became an inevitable career choice.”
Hotstepper for fashion
Five years later, Amna’s one of the ‘veterans’ now with a Lux Style Award (LSA) nomination for emerging talent from 2011 to her credit. Had she expected to win — and did it feel bad when she didn’t? “I had a feeling I wouldn’t win,” she confesses. “That doesn’t mean that I didn’t feel bad when I didn’t. Of course, I’d love to win an LSA but for now, it isn’t my one and only goal. There are so many other things that I’m looking forward to.”
There are so many things that make Amna stand out amongst the burgeoning milieu of models that surround her. For one, she’s 5 feet 8 inches tall — not exactly statuesque by international standards but at least taller than most Pakistani models. She’s also extremely thin and is utterly at ease in high heels; thus fulfilling some of the veritable prerequisites required of models. Furthermore, in a sea of painted pink and white faces, Amna’s dark skin is her most distinguishable feature. That, and her face, which is yet to have gone under the knife for any corrective procedure. This is quite a rarity in an industry where the odd nip, tuck, injections or, as models prefer to address it, ‘accident’, has become the order of the day.
“I would probably consider cosmetic surgery if I developed premature wrinkles. For now, though, I am more comfortable without it,” she professes. “I think that an individual should be able to carry his or her natural features confidently rather than have them rectified to the point of risking skin damage and looking disfigured.”
It’s no wonder then that she admires Iraj Manzoor, Pakistan’s original catwalk siren, who has always vocally spoken against cosmetic surgery. “That’s the kind of attitude a model should have,” points out Amna. “Iraj eats healthy and works out which is why she can still walk the catwalk at the age of 40.”
But like Iraj, does Amna also want to be a model till a ripe old age? “No, I think I’d like to retire by my late 20s,” she says. “That’s how it’s done internationally and besides, there are so many other things than a woman can do.”
For now, though, she’s more than happy with her skyrocketing career. “It was easy for me to step into modeling,” she recalls. “I was 16 years old when family friend, photographer and stylist Akif Ilyas photographed me and introduced me to the field. My two elder sisters had already been models so my family was open to the idea. For the first six months, I just learnt the ropes with Akif and then, I began to take up more work.”
Modeling 101
However, while stepping into the field may have been easy, life as a new model couldn’t possibly have been a walk in the park. The business of beauty, bright lights and high fashion is rife with a backlog of manipulation and favoritism. And all a young model can do is bide her time by the sharks — until she becomes one herself.
“I remember how older, experienced models would gossip about me right in front of me. They didn’t care that I was right there. I have never let such things bother me. Nor have I ever tried to be part of the usual fights to wear the showstopper outfit or for the finale of the show.”
“Most young models aren’t initially manipulative at all. It’s just that they are put under so much stress by the older models that they decide that there’s no other way to survive in this field,” points out Amna.
Did this pressure also metamorphose her into a ‘mean girl’? “No and it’s probably because I kept to myself,” she says. “I was busy balancing my studies with modeling during the early years. I’d sit in a corner with my books while waiting backstage. I was too busy studying to have the time for petty politics and catfights.”
Still, she remembers the painfully long hours she’d have to wait backstage as a fledgling model. “We’d be asked to come in at 10am for a show that would begin at 9pm. They wanted to get done with our hair and make-up beforehand. The veteran models were allowed the luxury to come by late evening. It was such an unnecessary waste of time especially since make-up teams could have simply been divided and have us all ready in the evening. It was just an exhausting ordeal that all new models had to — and still have to — endure.”
And yet, Amna persisted along the arduous path to super model-dom. “No matter what, it’s fun,” she smiles. “It also comes naturally to me. Back when I was in college it was a great way to earn some extra money and everybody just thought I was ‘cool’. Later on, it just became an inevitable career choice.”
Hotstepper for fashion
Five years later, Amna’s one of the ‘veterans’ now with a Lux Style Award (LSA) nomination for emerging talent from 2011 to her credit. Had she expected to win — and did it feel bad when she didn’t? “I had a feeling I wouldn’t win,” she confesses. “That doesn’t mean that I didn’t feel bad when I didn’t. Of course, I’d love to win an LSA but for now, it isn’t my one and only goal. There are so many other things that I’m looking forward to.”
One of these is the release of her film, the Sabiha Sumar-directed
Good Morning Karachi (earlier titled Rafina) and Zinda Bhaag. “Acting
was an interesting experience and I wouldn’t mind pursuing a career in
it,” she says. “With modeling, the most I can do is strike a dramatic
pose. With acting, I can emote and speak rather than just strike a
pose.”
With modeling, a career high is working with a range of talented stylists and photographers. Some of her favorites include the duos of Nadir Firoz-Maha Burney and Ayaz Anis-Rana Khan. Getting to wear gorgeous designer wear is another plus. Some of her recent work has been for designers Shehla Chatoor, Sonya Battla and Sanam Chaudhri for Bonanza and Daaman.“It was such fun being part of the PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week (PSFW),” she speaks of her recent fashion week experience. “The designer line-up was fabulous and HSY as a choreographer has a positive energy that is infectious. He’d always be joking around, giving us pep talks and making sure he put out a grand show.”
It’s the growing chasm between the fashion weeks of Karachi and Lahore that is new becoming all too pronounced. Amna was also part of Karachi’s Fashion Pakistan Week (FPW) which she describes as ‘exhausting’. “There were 14 shows packed in each day when normally there are four to five,” she explains. “Also, usually models get divided between alternate shows but at FPW, there were too few of us. We had to be in every showcase.”
However, she compensates that the good thing about fashion weeks by credible councils is that models always get paid — as opposed to dicey events where models have famously had to fight for their dues, which magically get ignored once the show is over. “It’s not easy being a model,” she reveals. “There are so many society taboos attached to the field and plenty of seedy characters trying to cheat you out of your money. Fortunately, I’ve always been very forthright about being treated fairly. I once had to fight with a certain organiser, even threaten him, until he accepted that he owed me money.
“I’ve never fought, though, over what outfit I have to wear at a show. I wear whatever the designer has set aside for me and somehow it always gets noticed,” she laughs.
And it’s all because whatever Amna wears, she makes sure she wears it well. That’s the true mark of a great model.
With modeling, a career high is working with a range of talented stylists and photographers. Some of her favorites include the duos of Nadir Firoz-Maha Burney and Ayaz Anis-Rana Khan. Getting to wear gorgeous designer wear is another plus. Some of her recent work has been for designers Shehla Chatoor, Sonya Battla and Sanam Chaudhri for Bonanza and Daaman.“It was such fun being part of the PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week (PSFW),” she speaks of her recent fashion week experience. “The designer line-up was fabulous and HSY as a choreographer has a positive energy that is infectious. He’d always be joking around, giving us pep talks and making sure he put out a grand show.”
It’s the growing chasm between the fashion weeks of Karachi and Lahore that is new becoming all too pronounced. Amna was also part of Karachi’s Fashion Pakistan Week (FPW) which she describes as ‘exhausting’. “There were 14 shows packed in each day when normally there are four to five,” she explains. “Also, usually models get divided between alternate shows but at FPW, there were too few of us. We had to be in every showcase.”
However, she compensates that the good thing about fashion weeks by credible councils is that models always get paid — as opposed to dicey events where models have famously had to fight for their dues, which magically get ignored once the show is over. “It’s not easy being a model,” she reveals. “There are so many society taboos attached to the field and plenty of seedy characters trying to cheat you out of your money. Fortunately, I’ve always been very forthright about being treated fairly. I once had to fight with a certain organiser, even threaten him, until he accepted that he owed me money.
“I’ve never fought, though, over what outfit I have to wear at a show. I wear whatever the designer has set aside for me and somehow it always gets noticed,” she laughs.
And it’s all because whatever Amna wears, she makes sure she wears it well. That’s the true mark of a great model.
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