‘I go into work really understated and then I have hair and make up and styling, clothes can really transform you. I almost become a character,’ Neelam Gill tells The Debrief. She says that before she became a model she ‘wouldn’t leave the house without make up and heels to go shopping’, but now that she dresses up for a living, she prefers to be understated day to day. ‘Comfort is my main priority’ she says, ‘when I’m not working I just want to give my skin a break, my hair a break, and be in something baggy. I actually don’t want people to notice me.’
Watch the full interview here:
Gill was 14 when she was scouted in Birmingham by a model scout from Models 1, the current agency she's signed to. Since then she has walked catwalks and starred in global ad campaigns for some of the biggest designers. She has been described as the ‘model of the moment’ on more than one occasion, and there’s no doubt that she has made waves in an industry that is often criticised for its lack of diversity.
In 2014, Gill became the first ever British Indian model to star in a Burberry beauty campaign. And then, in 2017, she became the first British Indian model to become the face of L'Oreal. At the time she made the importance of her role clear and took to her Instagram to write ‘growing up, I felt left out and unrepresented knowing that nobody in mainstream media looked like me, and now I hope to change that.’
*Shop Neelam's shoes here, shorts here and her hoodie here, all from adidas. *Plus, shop the full Campus range here.
Like this? You might also be interested in:
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.