‘The story seems short but the struggle was long’

From looking for a breakthrough to sharing screen-space with Fawad Khan, Sadaf Kanwal has come a long way

KARACHI:

With her billboards spreading across Pakistan, it’s hard to take your eyes-off this ethnic beauty. As popular as she may seem to be, it’s not a piece of cake to get hold of this always-on-toe, rising model. The Express Tribune got an opportunity to gain an insight into the life of Sadaf Kanwal.

The model diligently unfolded the story of her success. Revealing about the interest of pursuing a career in the field of modelling, she said, “Back in 2010, I visited a salon and was spotted by none other than Frieha Altaf. She convinced me that I should consider modelling. [I am] Not denying, I was excited and Saba Ansari was also always there to support me.”



Her journey began when she got an opportunity to participate in the first ever Veet Miss Super Model. “I was the runner-up in the show. This marked the beginning of my career on ramps and ad campaigns,” she said. Since then, she did fashion shoots with Nabila and Sabs, which turned out to be brilliant and made her “fall in love” with her work. “My passion grew and so did my shoots. The story seems short but the struggle was long,” she admitted.

As they say, all that glitters is not gold; Kanwal also had to work hard to pave her way through the competitive fashion domain. Recalling the response of her co-workers during the initial days of her career, she said, “It wasn’t a walk in the park initially; people were not responsive, not welcoming [at all]. Photographers and make-up artists both used to tell me how I didn’t have a model’s face and [that I] lacked expressions.”

“Not everyone was alike though. There are a few, who stood by me and guided me [throughout]. Things became better as time passed by and people started believing. Now, I look back and don’t hold a grudge against anyone because I know they were all being professional and were trying to get me motivated to try even harder,” she added.



Despite facing all the turbulence, it’s appreciation that keeps her going. “There is a struggle behind every successful person. This field is very competitive; we have to be on our toes all the time. But what I love about this field is the appreciation we get for great work,” she said.

“It means a lot to me when my colleagues praise me for the work I have done, especially the seniors. Knowing that everyone tries to put their best in what they do, I feel pretty content when my hardships are acknowledged,” she added.

A “dreamer”, as she claims to be, sets her goals straight and tries to achieve all of them.  Fashion campaigns and TV commercials have been her primary area of interest. Talking about her recent project, Kanwal revealed, “I just wrapped up the TV commercial shoot for a popular beverage, which is being anxiously awaited since it was shot by the renowned Indian director, Pradeep Sarkar [of Laaga Chunri Main Daagh and Parineeta fame].”

“I share the screen with everyone’s favourite and the extremely talented, Fawad Khan. The ad will be aired within a couple of months. Hopefully, this becomes the stepping stone for me getting closer to my dreams,” she added.

When asked if she is interested too in acting, she said, “I have been so busy with my shoots and ramps that I could not take out time for acting. Even though, I would love to act. I have a lot of commitments and I would prefer completing them first before focusing on the world of drama.” She “dreams” of working with a good script and most importantly, a great character.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 11^th,  2015.

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