‘Modelling is important for me’: Myra Rampal

Of the 600 girls who auditioned, only a handful from India made it to the runway of Dior show.

Myra, who walked in a long pink silk dress by Dior, wanted to be a model since she was 13. “The other option was to become a vet (a veterinary surgeon) but that involved a lot of studying and I know I can’t do that,” she laughs. Myra’s passion to be a model comes from watching her parents work. “It’s my dad’s hard work that he puts into each thing he does and my mum’s way of staying out of all the glam that comes with the industry, and not changing who she really is, that has stayed with me,” she says.

Arjun could manage one pass for the show and the family decided that her sister Mahikaa would be the one attending it. They knew it would put Myra more at ease. Such is their bond that the sisters have each other’s date of birth tattooed on the side of their palms. However, Mehr caught a glimpse of it from a friend’s corner suite at The Taj Mahal Palace’s old wing which faces the Gateway of India. “I saw it from the window and even though she hadn’t told me what she was wearing, I could spot her the minute she walked the ramp; she is very unique,” shares the former Miss India.

Myra Rampal wanted to be a model since sha was 13 years old.

Mehr sees the coming of Dior to India as a milestone. “India is at the centre of attention for a lot of international brands because of the support that they get from our country, which is today as international as Europe, America or any other part of the world,” she says, and credits a significant part of this growth to professional talent agencies. “When I started in the mid-’80s, we would do our own make-up and hair, rehearse for about five to seven days and even take a train to commute from one state to another if the sponsors fell short of budget, but that’s not the case anymore. It is very professional and rehearsals go only as long as five to seven hours.”

“There were no favours done for her; she got it on merit,” Myra’s mother and former model Mehr Jesia. (Pic source: Dabboo Ratnani)

Many things have also changed for the better, though friendships were stronger in her time. “Designers like Tarun Tahiliani, make-up artists Mickey Contractor, choreographer Sangeeta Chopra, and my peers like Madhu Sapre are friends for life; we still meet and make holiday plans,” says Mehr.

It is this connection that made Tahiliani do a shoot with Myra earlier this year. “But for the Dior show, the universe let it happen. Since it was a French team, there was no scope for asking any favours. It is entirely her win. And that’s what makes her far more secure mentally. There were no favours done for her; she got it on merit.”

While legacy brings its own set of privileges, it also comes with the weight of expectation. “My sister and I are well aware of the family we are born into, the people we are surrounded by and the privilege that we have. But both of us are very grounded people. We want our future to be because of us and not because of who we are born to, we want to start from the bottom and not the middle,” she says.

The way forward, says Myra, who still wants to hang out with friends and finish school is maintaining a balance. “Modelling is equally important for me so, if I do get an opportunity, I will take it but would draw a balance at least until I am 19.” But is acting on cards – that’s a resounding ‘no’.

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