‘Modeling is my form of expression’, Suchishree Sinha

Meet, Suchishree Sinha, a fashion model with a strong-headed personality, and informed opinions. Her vision and perceptions separate her from the crowd and she outshines others. She has faced rejections and discrimination throughout her life for her complexion, which has made her a confident person now. We interviewed her to know her perception of implied nudity in the modeling industry. Sharing her views and ideas Suchishree said,

"Actually, there are many forms of nudity shoots. I have done one of the kinds, called the fine arts. Modeling is the art of expressing many things. We portray some moods, we portray celebs, we paint our body to express some feeling and emotions."

When asked about the boundaries she has set for herself, during such shoots, that she portrays as much as she is comfortable in. Suchishree told that she was not into totally nude shoots. She is only involved in fine arts and works on it passionately. Suchishree specifically mentioned that she is not at all comfortable in doing nude shoots at this stage of her career. But maybe in the future, she will try. Elaborating on what is stopping her right now, she said,

"It is actually that we are from middle-class families. In our families, we are not raised in such a way that we are so open-minded or so broad to be nude in front of someone just to portray ourselves."

Coming to the topic of women, she believes that many women's exposure to this, will lead to equal empowerment. Adding to which she says,

"Modeling makes me feel stronger and confident. I feel very powerful and liberated through modeling as it’s the best way to express myself. I have already set a limit and when I do it I feel empowered. Many of my friends also do totally nude shoots and I appreciate them. They have the courage to choose and portray art. So, I respect them a lot. "

On asking about how she deals with pressure on the shoots, Suchishree replied by saying that if she is shooting she never feels conscious or pressured. As in the fine arts shoot, it is done with her own consent.

"There were times when the photographer showed me some pictures, and I felt more confident that, this is me. I get the motivation, that I have to do more."

We all idolize different personalities from our own professional backgrounds. So does Suschishree. She is inspired by Winnie Harlow,  who is a Jamaican-Canadian fashion model and public spokesperson on the skin condition vitiligo.

"She portrays herself in such a beautiful way with vitiligo. It feels like it is the art on her body. Her confidence and personality are something I really adore."

Talking about facing sexual harassment and assault at the hand of photographers, Suschishree mentioned that she has worked with a lot of photographers. And, those photographers have been really respectful.

"They never made me feel uncomfortable at any point in time. I have never dealt with any such situation. Though at times, when I have been informed prior that I have to spend a night or to do something. I have always declined such offers. I have never entertained such people in my life, and I am professional and love professionalism."

Suchishree has had faced discrimination and rejections due to her skin color. That has affected her mental peace quite a lot. But now she does not let it affect her because of her confidence and self-motivation. Suchishree describing her initial days’ rejections says,

“After struggling for a year to get photographs, I finally got in contact with a photographer who was looking for freshers. Seeing my poses, he was totally impressed by me and appreciated my work a lot. Although, I didn’t look the conventional “model type”, as my height is short and because of my dark skin. Still, I was the best model that he photographed me. This totally boosted my confidence.”

Her advice to the model who is willing to imply nudity shoots is to try everything in which they are comfortable.

"If you are afraid of doing something then do that. One suggestion would be to maintain certain limits and only if we will have some boundaries nobody will have the audacity to make you feel uncomfortable."

During the Priyanka Reddy rape case, Suchishree did a photo shoot portraying the trauma and assault that a woman goes through. Following that, she aims to work for acid attack survivors in the future.

Recalling her favorite shoot so far, Suchishree told how she had once camouflaged vitiligo just like Winnie Harlow and portrayed her personality. When asked about what she loves the most about her body, she said her eyes. As those help her convey so much, without words.

The article was originally in the September Edition of the WMH India magazine.