Make way for mature models: Grey is the new sexy in the fashion world

You are never too old to model! The fashion industry has finally come of age, literally. Those in their late thirties, forties and fifties are taking to fashion modelling. Dinesh Mohan, a former government servant, struggled with obesity for years. At 57, he got rid of 40 kg and made his body athletic. He didn’t know that his new avatar would turn him into a model. He shot for a magazine on the behest of a friend, and got noticed by ad agencies that were looking for ‘unconventional models.’

“Modelling is not a short lived career anymore. The face of beauty is changing globally. Older models with greying or silver hair are in demand,” he says. Now 59, Mohan has shot several fashion ads, and has even walked the ramp.

Another model, 47-year-old Daljit Sean Singh, is a popular choice for ramp and fashion catalogues. “Fashion has least to do with age. I knew that I could pull off the trickiest of fashion looks. I started off late, but I have got a fabulous response,” says Singh.

46-year-old Nitin Mehta, an ex-army man, too, took to fashion modelling two years ago. “My salt-pepper look is a hit. Ever since I stopped colouring my grey beard, I started getting a lot of fashion work,” says Mehta.

Fashion designer Anu PD too, started modelling at 50, to take up social causes. “My friends wanted me to get into modelling but I never took it seriously. Now, having done ramp and print ads, I want to give it my best,”she says. Yet another example is Ashwin Iyer, a 38-year-old consultant. A photographer approached him because he liked his grey hair. Model coordinator Sunny Sapra says that agencies are welcoming older models who ‘come with an evolved sense of style’. “Creative directors and designers want interesting, unconventional faces,” says Sapra. Agrees Nitin Sarna, model coordinator. “Age shaming is a thing of the past. With the changing perception of beauty, mature models are having a moment in the fashion industry,” says Sarna.

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(Inputs by Akshay Kaushal)