Bold, focused and fun, Calcutta’s top ramp scorchers then and now take t2 through the world of modelling 

THE GEN-EX

Pinky Kenworthy: Such a long story! I started modelling when I was in Class XI. I met Ashish (Banerjee) and Happy, they said they were starting this company called Rampage and asked me whether I would be interested in modelling. Even they themselves did not know anything about the business. Ashish was the choreographer and Happy was the event manager. We did one show. It was at Netaji Indoor Stadium and there were 40 models... my first show. I was like the baby of the group. I was doing what I was taught for a month. And I felt completely lost as the space was big and it was a full house! I just remembered my ‘exit’ and ‘entrance’... I told my mum and dad that I wanted to be a model. They said, go for it, but make sure you pass your Class XII. 

Jessica Gomes Surana: It happened because of all these people (looks at Pinky). My elder sister Nicola was a part of this batch and I’d go watch them from the sidelines. I still remember the very innovative Ashish Banerjee. I don’t think we can have another choreographer like him. 

Pinky: We have learnt a lot from him and most importantly, we learnt everything ourselves. There was no one else to look up to. We were the first batch of professional Calcutta models. 

Jessica: I would come in after school to see the rehearsals and would be sitting there in my green uniform with two chotis, awestruck. There was Pinky, Koena (Mitra), Celina (Jaitly), my sister (Nicola)…. My first contest was the May Queen Ball at The Lake Club. I was super-confident because I had all these professional models of the city supporting me and cheering me on. I won the crown and I won a 14-inch TV set! That was big, man! 

Pinky: It was a group where we all looked out for each other. There was no wild competition or b****ing. Only when we went on the ramp did we try to outdo each other! Even when we did our make-up, we’d help each other out. 

Jessica: Pinky was excellent with eye make-up. I have small eyes and I would wait for her to finish her eye make-up. We did not have so many professional make-up artists. 

Pinky: Koena (Mitra) would do hair and I would do eye make-up. 

Jessica: We never asked Happyda how much he would pay us. That was how we grew up. I also always balanced the studies part.

Pinky: We hung out together.... Jessica: And partied together. Pinky: On the dance floor, if a man tried to misbehave, all the girls would jump on him. If we were out, we would drop every one home. 

Jessica: Each Saturday we had a show and then we would party. And there was always a dress code. Pinky was known for her shoes. 

Pinky: We were interested. We wanted to know how to do make-up, how things paired together look. It wasn’t factory-made. We saw the show as something that we were a part of. 

Jessica: We were ready to learn, which was important. 

Pinky: I feel really fortunate that I was there at that time. 

THE GEN-X

Madhabilata Mitra: I won Sananda Tilottama in 2006. My first fashion show was with Nicola Gomes as choreographer and I was in awe of her. On the day of the show, I met Jessica. She smiled at me. I went mad! I remember I had braved rain and waterlogging…. And when the Pinky Kenworthy called, I started shaking! It was almost like meeting Shah Rukh Khan. I have picked up so much from them. 

Lisha Sharma: I started with Sananda Tilottama. I remember winning all the sub-contests but couldn’t make it to the Top

3. I was crying and Nayanika Chatterjee (Tilottama mentor) asked me to work harder and forget that night. I was from Jamshedpur… very seedha sadha, small-town girl… 

t2: So, you are not very seedha sadha now?
Jessica: I was going to say the same thing! 

Lisha: I am seedha sadha from my heart but I have worked on myself a lot. I was quite young during Tilottama and also a bit immature. Convincing my parents that I would be a model was a big challenge. Being an outsider and making a place for yourself in Calcutta was challenging. Madhabidi (Madhabilata) was the top model then. It is not easy to make your space. When I was a newcomer, I was awestruck by people like Madhabidi, Jessicadi and Pinkydi… they have always guided me. 

Pinky: I feel I can tell them because they have worked with me. And you know they will not take it personally. When I was new in the industry, there wasn’t anyone to tell me that. I had to figure out everything by myself. 

Sneha Ghosh: I never wanted to be a model and never thought I’d be one. I was studying in St. Xavier’s College. I come from a very conservative Bengali family. I did really well in college and got the permission to take part in a national beauty pageant in 2013. I have been modelling properly for two years. I applied for Asia’s Next Top Model in 2014. Once I went there, my life changed. And I have been fortunate enough to work with them (the group at the adda) later on. They saw the zeal in me. One thing I learnt — you really need to be able to appreciate someone to learn. 
When I walk the ramp, I am a very different person. When I walk back, it’s like my soul enters my body in the greenroom again. 

PAST TO PRESENT

Pinky: We partied like crazy. We would go to work straight after partying, then go from rehearsals from the shoot, then do the show and then go party again. Till 5am! There were many wild parties. I have to scratch my head to figure which was the wildest. Once we all got drunk on cherry liqueur. While doing the show we were all high! 

Madhabilata: When I hear these stories, I so wish I belonged in their era! 

Pinky: When we meet, it’s just like old times. The foundation is so strong that we can instantly bond. Sometimes we look at the new crop of models and wonder what are they up to! (Laughs)

Sneha: Be brutally honest!

Jessica: Today, the options are much more for the new girls. 

Pinky: The fellow feeling… compared to us? NO! Never can be! (Smiles)

Jessica: The number of us was smaller. Ten or 12 of us did all the shows. 

Pinky: We didn’t have friends outside that circle.   

Jessica: Today, the competition is very steep. See, it is a positive… we were not competitive. Koena had told me once that when you are on that ramp, you might be walking with an Aishwarya Rai, which I have, but you have to believe that you are better than her! You have to develop that feeling. This new generation is more professional, which is a good thing. 

THE GOLDEN PERIOD

Pinky: 1999-mid 2,000. 

Jessica: The best shows were coming into the city then. 

Madhabilata: Till 2010, I did really good work. 

AND THE SLUMP

Madhabilata: Yes, good shows don’t happen now. And even if the shows are happening, they all get models from Bombay.  

Sneha: That has always been there. 

Jessica: Because people are tired of seeing the same faces. That is the reason I feel, but yes, the number of shows has reduced. 

Pinky: Back then, the city people would get a lot of shows from outside and those would include the city models. We also did way too much work. We had to grow with the pace the profession was growing. 

Sneha: I think they (the senior batch) were so prominent because of their personalities. Girls who are trying to be models today really need to develop a personality. And that is where the attitude lacks. There is no concept of what a model should be.

Pinky: I believe they come for the wrong reasons. 

Sneha: Not everybody can be a Sushmita Sen. I cannot be tall, have thick lips.... I know she is prettier than me (points at Lisha) but I know that I have other USPs. 

Pinky: I was always the shortest, but I was always taken. Why? I made my performance so amazing! 

WHAT’S MISSING

Sneha: Unity! It’s just work and then back home. 

Pinky: Most of the time I find that the models are not prepared. They are lacking in basic skincare. Basic shoes. I find they are not interested. The back is full of pimples, mosquito bites… we were never like that. We were always body-ready. They want to be here because they want to be famous. 

Jessica: They come thinking they know it all. 

Sneha: If your Facebook DP gets 800 likes, you are a model! 

Pinky: Because we grew in the job, we could handle multiple things. If the make-up artist wasn’t coming, we could do our hair, make-up, handle backstage, walk the ramp, maybe go and handle the DJ also. Today if I ask them to start their base, they’ll all stare at me blankly. I am asking these girls basic questions: Why are your nails dirty? Why is your polish chipped? Why are your shoes broken and have mud marks on them? We have got calls where we were asked to rush for swimsuit shoots in half an hour. We were ready!

‘D’ FOR DOSTI…

Sneha: Pinky and I share a very effortless relationship...

Pinky: We usually end up agreeing with each other a lot. 

Madhabilata: I work and go home. 

Pinky: She has loads of friends!

Madhabilata: Every one is a colleague. No one is my friend. 

Pinky: But you hang out with them a lot!

Jessica: I have one friend… Neeraj (Surana, model and husband). My best friend. We have grown up together. 
Sneha: All the make-up artists are my friends. Of late I have grown close to Pooja (Gupta) and Tina (Mukherjee). 
Madhabilata: Bidita (Bag) had told me long back that no one in the industry is a friend. Then you wouldn’t end up getting hurt.   

Pinky: I know everyone, but I am a recluse. I was very close to Koena at one point, very close to Celina… we were both army brats. We laughed at things which no one else understood. I also went through a phase of being very good friends with Pooja and Tina. I went through phases, but I cannot say that one has remained. Most of the time if I had an option to hang out, I would rather not. I enjoy my own company more than anyone else’s.

SWIMSUIT, OR NOT

Pinky: I had no inhibitions. I did plenty of swimsuit shoots. And no matter what I wore, no one could point a finger at me. 

Sneha: I will not be allowed to do a swimsuit shoot… family reasons... but my dream is to walk for Victoria’s Secret. My mother has said if that happens, she will put a rock on her heart and watch me! 

Madhabilata: During Sananda Tilottama, I wore a one-piece swimsuit but a day before my marriage, a newspaper carried a picture of me in a two-piece! My husband appreciated and said I should take care of my body more to look even more stunning! 

Jessica: We have all established ourselves not by doing swimwear, but there is a parallel line that runs in the industry where the first things they are asked to do is swimwear. That’s where you need to know what’s right and what you want in life. So that’s a myth that to be in this profession, you have to wear a swimsuit. 

Pinky: I am not aware of this. 

Sneha: I am.   

Jessica: We have worn the shortest of clothes and the tiniest of tops, but we have been very clear that we are not doing it for the sake of skin show. 

WHY BE A MODEL

Pinky: I was on the ramp because I loved creativity. And I also felt I was transported to some to other world. And I met some amazing people. I came to know Pepsi (Sabyasachi Mukherjee) when he was in college. I did Anamika Khanna’s first show in a store called Kali. I was Aki Narula’s first model.... From 16 to 31, when I modelled, it was like, let’s test what am I capable of doing. One morning I woke up and I didn’t go back again. 

Jessica: I don’t regret staying back. I asked myself, I am 5’ 8-and-a-half… will I qualify? There are more important things to be done. That was the great decision. My education has gone up in leaps and bounds. I have created a name. 
Lisha: I have made a name nationally. I started from zero. 

Madhabilata: I am Madhabilata Mitra because of ABP! 

Sneha: There is so much more to achieve. If you are talented, it’s not enough. Someone needs to give you that opportunity to showcase your talent, which Calcutta did. I hope I can make the others believe that Calcutta is not just a hollow place.   

Saionee Chakraborty
Who’s your fave Calcutta model? Tell t2@abp.in
Cover picture location courtesy: Shisha Bar Stock Exchange