HYDERABAD: “What I missed out when I was going for the pageant is now in Hyderabad,” says Shreya Rao, Miss India 2018 runner up as she hands over the certificates to three young girls she mentored as part of Enchante, a pageant grooming academy in Jubilee Hills. “Pageants are no longer just about height, weight, complexion or hair.
Girls and boys who contest in these pageants need to be holistically trained - to be confident, walk right, display the right body language, manage their social media presence, display their special talents the right way. I had to spend a fortune and a month in Mumbai to prep from my pageant. Now, we are trying to hand-hold and give the same in a short and comprehensive course in the city,” she says.
A casual conversation with Samaira Wallani, founder and director of Stylicious by Sam, a celebrity and bridal makeup venture in Jubilee Hills, paved way for this academy. “Samaira has a studio and of course, her knowledge. I have the experience of attending a pageant and emerged successfully. We put our knowledge together to set up this academy, she says. The first batch was a five-day course for three youngsters - Gayatri Chillara, a student, Sadhana Nandanavanam, a medico from Vikarabad and Shirley Modi who is pursuing her bachelors in the city. “All three of us aspire to prove ourselves in this arena, but we want to be prepared and confident. From learning to put on our own make up to how to place our hands while posing for a picture, we learnt so much in these five days,” they say.
“When I was in Mumbai, at the last minute I was told, “What is wrong with your nails.” I also had no clue of what nude makeup is. Now I know that it basically means makeup that is not in your face. But it would have been great if I had known it earlier,” she says. The duo also have dentist Dr Amrita Gandhi, Da Salon and others on board to partner with them for the course. They plan to have both weekday and weekend courses for aspiring models. The course, says Samaira, will also serve those who are keen to look more polished, understand the photo etiquette and have to frequently pose in front of the camera as part of their profession. “Social media is a great place for models and we will announce our next course there, watch out,” says Shreya.