Naomi Janumala: Feel More Accepted For Who I Am Outside of India

In 2019, she put India and herself on the global fashion map when R&B singer Rihanna cast her in one of Fenty’s makeup campaigns. Meet Naomi Janumala, all of 24, a feisty young woman who considers the world her runway.

Having started modelling at the age of 16, Naomi, who is also Indian comedian and actor Johnny Lever’s niece, has made an extraordinary leap from her Bollywood-centric family background and has forged a thriving career in the international modelling industry. Proud of her Indian roots, Naomi has been making waves on the international runway. Naomi sashayed the runway for the Burberry Summer 2024 showcase at London Fashion Week in September 2023.

Sharing her journey with News18, Naomi gets candid about her experience working in India, sashaying the international runway for Burberry, why Bollywood stars should stay off the runway, and what modelling means to her.

Excerpts from the interview:

How would you describe your modelling journey,, and how has it shaped the person you are today?

My modelling journey has pretty much been ‘Go with the Flow’ because in the last seven years I’ve been travelling wherever works at. I don’t have a base, so I just keep hopping from one country to another country every couple of months, which obviously introduced me to different cultures, people, work ethics, language barriers etc.

You never know what to expect, so this whole journey has really helped me be independent since I was 16 years old, have thick skin, which is so important to have in this industry, and also realise that rejection is never personal. If I’m not the right fit for a job, it doesn’t mean I’m not good enough; it simply means I’m not fit for that specific brand. It’s like picking an outfit; you decide what to wear, you know your palette for the day, and it serves, but that doesn’t mean that all the other clothes in your wardrobe are ugly, does it? So, if it’s not this job, it’s going to be another one. It’s really all about just gauging and finding the right market or clients. The process can be a rollercoaster, but it’s always worth it

Tell us more about blurring the runway lines between India and the west, and how did it work in your favour?

Well, I started modelling in Mumbai in 2016, and I really just worked for one year before I started my international modelling journey. In that one year, even when I was booked and busy, I wouldn’t feel the best about myself; make-up would always be the same products they would use for fairer models; in 80% of the pictures that would come out, my skin would look five shades lighter; and I had been to auditions where we were told that all dark models must leave because that’s not what they were looking for. I get it, but there are ways to go about it and that wasn’t it. Whereas currently, working in London with Burberry, they like me the best with absolutely no make-up and my natural hair the way I do it. So just that itself says more than enough. I feel way more accepted and appreciated for who I am and what I am outside of India, which is sad, but it is what it is.

Naomi would like to be known for her Bollywood side of the family (as Johnny Lever’s niece) or as the model who bagged Rihanna’s Fenty campaign.

Of course, I would want to be known as the model who bagged the Fenty campaign because Naomi Janumala bagged that campaign, not Johnny Lever’s niece! That was all me. Apart from getting all the moral and emotional support that I needed from my family, I shall take credit for the rest, thank you!! But seriously, I think this Johnny Lever’s niece narrative only exists in India, because that’s the best way for the media to catch people’s attention since Johnny Lever is such a household name.

I’m really not stressed about it because I don’t struggle with that internationally, as my job is its own industry and Bollywood is its own, and they’re really worlds apart, so logically, my uncle has nothing to do with me being in the fashion industry. Now, if I were in Bollywood acting, this would be a whole new ball game. Then it would only make sense for my family background to be linked to my name.

Apart from your family support, who else has played an integral role in contributing to your success in the industry?

Anima Creative Management! I absolutely love them. From the day I was scouted until today, they have been so supportive. They say things how they are, even if it is a tough pill to swallow, and it has only made me stronger. Like I said, I modelled for one year in India before I left to go abroad, and that one year with them was all I needed to get ready for this new journey. They prepped me well. In spite of being in different countries, nothing has changed. Even today, they are just a call away and always have my back.

The fashion industry in India, when compared to the west, prefers bringing on a Bollywood celebrity as a showstopper. What’s your opinion about celebrities taking over the runway?

Even when I wasn’t a model, I never understood the concept of [Bollywood] actors walking the runway. Today, even international shows have celebrities walking the runway. Professionally, I still don’t understand it, but I believe that in terms of social media, it catches people’s attention. All I have to say is that celebrities can do their own jobs and leave the walking to the models who train and wait for years to get on the ramp, even if it is for those 10 seconds. Modelling is our job, our bread, and our lives, and a model’s relationship with a runway is so much different and deeper than a celebrity walking the ramp like it’s a walk in a park.

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Is life as glamorous as it’s seen on social media? What’s your opinion, and what would you like to tell young, aspiring models?

Life is definitely not as glamorous as it looks on social media. The things you see [on social media] are really just the highlights of my career. People think all we do is look pretty and stand in front of the camera, but they don’t realise the casting process, the competition, the waiting, sometimes days or months, and then dropping your whole life to travel and do the job once its confirmed, which is usually a 70–30 chance, with 70% being the rejection bit. but oh, the satisfaction of that 30% working out the way you wanted to make it worth it. After seven years of modelling, I can say there’s also beauty in that 70%; that’s the part that makes you stronger and tougher, learning to take no as an answer without taking it personally, and on the other hand, learning to say no to things that make you uncomfortable.

A moment in your journey that paved the path for you in the modelling industry, and what made it special?

I think of course doing Fenty in 2019 paved the path in my modelling journey because there were two real big names linked to that news: my uncle’s [Johnny Lever] and Rihanna’s. Naomi Janumala was secondary, so on a media level, Fenty was the job that escalated things for me. But personally, it was the Dior show I did earlier this year, and it was at the Gateway of India. For me, doing such a big show in my hometown was a full-circle moment because, growing up, I’ve always been bullied for being too dark, but then I left my home and my family to start modelling at the age of 16, only to come back to my hometown seven years later and walk the runway for Dior in a lineup filled with brown women. The six- to 14-year-old Naomi was screaming and crying tears of joy; she was proud!

Take 5 with Naomi:

1. A runway show that will always be special—and why?A runway show that will always be special is Dior because it took place in Mumbai, my home.
2. What makes Naomi smile?The people I surround myself with! I say that because my circle is very tight; they’re all like family to me. I love my people! on a less deeper note: dogs.
3. A colour you dislike but had to wear it because it was part of a show.I honestly can’t think of any, I’ve loved every look I’ve had the chance to walk in.
4. Would you walk for a designer you don’t like or take a pay cut for a designer you love.100% take a pay cut for a designer I love.
5. Modelling to you is…Modelling to me, a rollercoaster, for real.