From being a successful model Keren Kavi has also added successful entrepreneur to her impressive résumé. Passionate about her ability and hungry to experience life, she has made Mumbai her second home and runs an Image Consultancy Institute nurturing young talents. Keren has all it takes to inspire anybody.
EASTERN MIRROR: What drew you to the showbiz industry?
Keren Kavi Sumi: The idea of looking at a career in the future to set up my own agency prompted me to experience the trials and tribulations of the showbiz world, it was like starting from the lowest rung of the ladder, I had to experience it all to be successful…..Yes the glitz and glamour with the fame were drawing factors, but seriously I am heading in that direction…a career ahead.EASTERN MIRROR: Tell us about your career in modeling. What was the biggest opportunity in your career?
Keren Kavi Sumi: Like I said I wanted to experience it first hand, there have been some great experiences and some not so great but none bad. It has been a decade now that I have won beauty pageants and done modeling on ramps and commercial ads on TV and print. This is a career which is associated with glamour and a glamorous life style, but most of us are just doing a job like anyone else. There are long hours while shooting for an ad or rehearsing for a live show, you have to stay trim and healthy, so hence you have to exercise and try your best to maintain a routine, which is real hard due to the working hours and a lot of travelling, importantly get a lot of sleep. But the up side to this is getting a chance to meet many interesting people, you can be famous, if you work hard you can earn well, you can be the first to wear fabulous designer clothes, shoes and accessories, it’s also great to see results of shoots on TV, magazines and posters it seems unreal. Importantly you are doing something that you love and with me I’m moving towards a career in the Industry.
There have been many opportunities for casting in South Indian movies and modeling abroad, but I’m more grounded to achieve my goals towards my future.
EASTERN MIRROR: Northeasterners have distinct features compared with the mainland Indians. Do you think this acts as a snag for Northeast people to fit in the showbiz world?
Keren Kavi Sumi: This is a repetitive question that is making the rounds more so in the recent past, but I will answer it with utmost honesty.
Every single human being has his/hers distinctive features, we as a people from the Northeast as a whole have distinct features from others. People from down South of India are dark skin, people from the North are fairer and built taller and so on. I am an Indian first and I should be given equal opportunity as per the Constitution, I respect the Indian Flag, sing the National Anthem with honor and proudly call myself Indian.
I say that it is more of playing to the gallery, wherein portraying a common good looking Indian face would sell more than one with a complete different look and features, but it’s sad that no one wants to even experiment and see the results. Today on the covers of Vogue, Numero, Harpers and many more fashion and glamour magazines are Asian models, Sui He China, Liu Wen China, Tao Okamoto Japan, and Liu Wen also features in the world top ten models , a prime example is Naomi Campbell as a dark skin model. It’s not a snag it’s a state of mind that has to be changed, people should be educated about the Northeast, all they know is Cherapunjee as the place in India receiving the highest rainfall, the Northeast should be included in the education system with its History, Geography, and Anthropology, the ignorance of the cultures and traditions are major reasons for misunderstandings and discrimination.
EASTERN MIRROR: What differences have you experienced from your involvement with the home state and at the mainland in the showbiz industry? Which areas do we need to grow?
Keren Kavi Sumi: Acceptance…..back home you experience that oneness and the euphoria of winning or performing well, shows through the joy and applause of the people. The mere satisfaction from that charges you to seek higher goals and forge forward.
It’s a sheer struggle to prove yourself in the mainland and still we have the great Mary Kom, Baichung Bhutia, Somdev Devvarman, Dipannita Sharma, Panchi Bora, Iron Lady of Manipur-Irom Sharmila, and many more Musicians and Personalities in several walks of life.
We the people of the northeast need to take our culture and traditions to the mainland, we need to integrate and be part of an inclusive growth of the nation as a whole, for us to grow and enjoy all the benefits equally as Indians we must make this effort
EASTERN MIRROR: What do you find the most challenging part about working in the fashion industry?
Keren Kavi Sumi: Like all jobs have their strengths and weaknesses, highs and lows so also being a fashion model is no exception. There is a lot of travelling so its tiring, you’re exposed to certain situations that would need you to use tact and clever to get out of, it sometimes gets boring depending on the assignment you are doing and the people working around you, you sometimes get rejected for various reasons but that should never make you insecure, you get pushed too hard sometimes by the agency and that’s upsetting, well all this put together are challenging, there’s not one particular challenge.
EASTERN MIRROR: What’s next for you professionally?
Keren Kavi Sumi: Setting up my Image Consultancy Institute, I always wanted this ride of mine to culminate into a worthwhile career. It can be lucrative but I understand that it is also highly competitive. It’s all about scouting for models, brushing them up, training them and repackaging them to be confident of their abilities as a person, in order that they land great assignments and will be hired by companies or for any modeling jobs. We counsel individuals and cooperate clients on grooming, dressing, communications and behavioral skills, public speaking through individuals, consultations, presentation, workshops and seminars. The fact is that the training is designed to foster more self-esteem into each and every client. The training will make our clients master grace and self-assurance then these skills will transpose into their everyday life. Yes, this confidence will stay with them when looking for employment or maneuvering through life’s challenges.
