Models in India are very impatient, says Diana Penty

As someone who was appointed as an official model at the New York Fashion Week, Diana Penty may have come back from a successful stint in the Big Apple but if she’s to be believed, it’s just the beginning of her love affair with the city. “NY is known for its fashion and style statements, and that’s where the best campaigns in the world are conceived and constructed. So it is the place where every model dreams of being successful,” enthuses Diana, who also dispels any notions of racism in the modelling industry in the West. “I have worked two seasons in Paris and one in NY and not once have I experienced any racism. In fact, the people I have met and worked with in both places seemed very enamoured by India and the Indian culture. I’d say India is hot property at the moment,” she says, adding that as opposed to India’s ‘relatively new’ modelling industry, NY has a highly competitive market. “Of course India has a huge potential to make its presence felt,” she quickly points out.

And while she’s got high-fashion website Bluefly, luxury store Neiman Marcus and brands such as Forever 21 and Nordstrom on her repertoire, she notes that the first season you spend in NY is not about what work you do but the people you meet and their reaction to you. “Honestly, we as models in India are very impatient. We want things to work for us the day we sign up with an agency. In NY, I had many meetings and from what I am told, the reaction was very positive which even explains why my agency (Elite Model Management) and I have taken the decision for me to go back there,” she says.

But, let’s be honest, like her many other predecessors isn’t she also eyeing Bollywood? “Oh well, as of now I am going to NY. The Bollywood decision will be made at a later stage,” comes the non-committal reply.