Technological Neanderthal that I am, I have no idea how to post them elsewhere, but she has forty five lovely shots up on the Sports Illustrated site, which you can view here.
Harvard Student Sonia Dara Is SI’s First Indian-American Swimsuit Model
By Piyali Bhattacharya
At five feet eleven inches, Indian-American model Sonia Dara takes charge of any room she walks in to, whether that room is the site of her photo shoot with Sports Illustrated or a conference room at Elite Model Management in New York for an interview with a reporter or at Harvard, where she’s a sophomore.
Dara, 20, is the first model of South Asian decent ever to be featured in the SI Swimsuit Issue. She signed with Elite Atlanta in her early teens, and since then her star has been rising. She’s been featured in Seventeen and Vogue India, but after the Sports Illustrated shoot, her career is about to go global. Dara talked to Speakeasy about juggling the demands of being a world-class model and an Ivy League student, and shouldering the responsibility of representing the Indian-American community in the modeling world.
The Wall Street Journal: How do you feel about representing the Indian community as a high-profile model?
I realize that being the first Indian-American to pose for SI is somewhat of a responsibility and I do have to be mindful of the way I present myself. Fortunately, the way that I needed to present myself coincides with who I am and with my personality. I posed for these shots as elegantly and as tastefully as possible, and I hope that i made not only my loved ones and friends proud, but also the Indian-Americans who have seen the SI spread.
Did doing your SI shoot in Rajasthan, India make a difference to you?
From both sides of my family, my ancestors are from Rajasthan. Although my extended family is now in Southern India, in Bangalore, and my immediate family is in Atlanta, it was very nice to go back to my roots and to have the opportunity to show off the beauty of Rajasthan — albeit indirectly through the SI Swimsuit shoot.
During your shoot in Rajasthan, you posed with some local women who cover their heads, as is local tradition. Did you feel it made them uncomfortable to pose with you in a bikini?
To be completely honest, I was the one who felt the most uneasy because I thought I was putting the women in a potentially uncomfortable situation. At first glance, the concept of a Hindu girl in Sports Illustrated might seem contradictory. With that in mind, I posed as elegantly as possible, in order to never undermine my Hindu upbringing. I really hope this is made clear in my photos.
If we’re not mistaken, you recently switched from Pre-Med to being an Economics major at Harvard. Have you felt familial or other pressure to choose a career other than modeling?
After a few internships, I realized that Pre Med wasn’t for me. I think economics is a field that teaches very easily transferable skills. I hope an economics degree will allow me to combine elements of business with fashion in my career.
Are you ready for the name recognition that comes with being in the SI Swimsuit Issue?
Undoubtedly, name recognition is key in making an impact on the lives of others outside the world of fashion. I hope to someday be able to this sort of name recognition for good and to raise awareness about the causes that I care about. As to whether my name is recognizable at this point, I doubt it.
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