Beauty On Wheels!

Ukraine’s first wheelchair model, Alexandra Kutas, shares her story with Riddhi Vyas.

- Riddhi Vyas

When Alexandra Kutas, 23, made her debut on the runway in Ukraine in February 2017, she created fashion history. She became Ukraine’s first model to use a wheelchair on the ramp. Indeed, being paralyzed waist downward due to a spinal injury during her birth did not deter this gorgeous lady from pursuing her dreams of becoming an international model…

We catch up with Alexandra to learn more about her journey, dreams and aspirations…

WALKING THE RAMP

February 3, 2017, is a day that Alexandra will never forget. Though her modelling career had already taken off, being on the ramp for acclaimed Ukrainian fashion designer Fedor Vozianov was a dream come true! The designer was at once taken in by this spirited young lady and offered to make her the face of his upcoming collection in two runway shows.

She says, “On February 3, I felt like a warrior. I knew no matter what happens, I would behave like the professional I am. There was so much effort, and not just my own: Everyone who believed in me, everyone who I had worked with.”

At the show, there were 300 people in front of her. She was carried in a special chair by male models, which made for a stunning, dramatic entry. She reveals, “My dress was tangled for a second. I still don’t know how I fixed it, but no one noticed. What else could I do, no dress could stop me after the years I had worked so hard to reach this moment! I think that feeling, that sense of finally achieving my goal, was important! I was nervous and worried because we were making adjustments almost till the last moment, but when the time came, everything fell into place and I felt like I was where I was meant to be.”