Fashion fraternity shows support for Fayezah Ansari

KARACHI:

"Fayezah — you have excellent willpower. Now go for it. It’s now a very small way to clear, don’t lose your will. You are indeed a daring one."

This is just one of the numerous responses that Fayezah Ansari has received after she opened up about her heroin addiction. In an interview published in The Express Tribune earlier this week, the model took the plunge by talking about her fight against a dangerous year-long habit and the consequent reluctance of others to maintain personal or professional ties with her. In the interview, she admitted to having a constant fear of losing friends and being shunned in the fashion world; about being labelled a "goner" and a "drug addict" by people in the fashion fraternity who were reluctant to work with the model as a result of her addiction.

 

Surprisingly, while there were some whispers that the industry will avoid giving her work in light of her public acknowledgment about her problem, the fraternity has welcomed Fayezah’s resolve to stay clean and be better with open arms.

"She cried her heart out," exclaims fashion doyenne Maheen Khan, who is also the CEO of Fashion Pakistan, referring to the model’s interview. "When Fashion Pakistan Week 4 was going to take place, we weren’t taking them [Fayezah and her husband Rizwanullah] on," she admits. "But they needed help and that’s when we said yes. Deepak Perwani was the one who stood up for them and said that we need to help them. They have really been good with their work and Fayezah has done a great job by speaking up. Like her, others must see a ray of hope. I would love to work with them."

In similar spirit, former model and event manager Frieha Altaf, says: "What do they say? Kal ka bhoola shaam ko ghar ajaye to ussay bhoola nahi kehtay [if someone strays away from the right path but returns to it, he is not a lost person]." Frieha adds that while the other models gave her a hard time during Fashion Pakistan Week that was held recently in Karachi, Fayezah was professional. "She was always the first one to arrive — that really impressed me."

Marketing professional Samra Muslim doesn’t see why anyone should be reluctant to work with her. "She has realised the error of her ways and is trying to make amends. We should all give her a chance." Muslim adds, "If somebody is coming clean, we should help them. More than brands themselves, it is this industry that needs to support these girls."

While Fayezah has walked the ramp for many fashion shows and also appeared in print ads for various designers, Maheen Karim is one designer that has used the model as the face of her brand very often. When Karim returned to Pakistan in 2005 after having worked in London, she says she instantly noticed Fayezah’s professionalism. "I realised that Fayezah Ansari was a thoroughly professional and highly experienced model," she says. "We started out in this industry at the same time. I found out earlier on in our working relationship that she was fantastic to work with and had no qualms at all. She would model any outfit I would give her and would smile during the shoot if I requested it. She made herself into a Maheen Karim woman!"

Despite the challenge of battling an addiction coupled with the animosity of some who had said that her career was over, Fayezah showed her determination during Fashion Pakistan Week 4. With a painful toenail injury and subsequent surgery that would have left anyone in unfathomable pain, Fayezah strutted her stuff on all three days on the ramp, and only a few in the front row caught on to the slight quivering of her lower lip as she took each agonising step. We wish her the best in health and happiness!