Tsunaina is done with making 'beautiful images'. Although it's what the Nepali model turned musician is best known for, she wants to take back agency, to reveal her authentic persona, instead of surrendering to what other people project on her. “I want my images to feel emotional and sincere," she says, referring to narratives that fashion her into a mythical being, rarely opening the channel to show her vulnerable nature. "I intend for the image to feel like a story, as opposed to something that just looks nice," she confesses.
You may recognise her unmistakable features as the canvas for Pat McGrath's Mothership campaign in 2018. To hear Tsunaina tell it, the musician in her was crafted by choice, but the model was discovered by chance. After McGrath's team found her selfies on Instagram, her calendar filled up, despite being all of 5ft 5in, noticeably shorter than the leggy women who dominate the modelling business. She was quickly granted prized real estate in the portfolios of photographers Tim Walker and Paolo Roversi, not to mention about a dozen fashion titles across the globe.
What Tsunaina lacked in height, she made up for with her unique features which became the focus of photographers' and editors' vivid imaginations. On camera, she embodied fantasy...and that eventually became a gilded trap. Chasing financial security to survive in London, one of the most expensive cities in the world, she said yes to practically every project that came her way. "I'm grateful for modelling, it has given me so much. But from the beginning, it was a means to an end. I knew that it would have been stupid to say no to work, but I felt really stifled to be a canvas for other people's ideas constantly."
"People ask me about the political scene back home, but why do I have to answer for that? No one's asking Adele about Brexit"
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Denne historien er fra May - June 2024-utgaven av VOGUE India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Breathe In, Breathe Out
A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork
Red Pill, Blue Pill
India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum
Sign of the times
No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily
Return to form
Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports
Dimple, All Day
YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone
Let it grow
When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.
Beauty and the feast
The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.
Sweet serendipity
From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.
