Spunk and bold moves. That’s the new mantra of the Pakistani ramp. Models from Lahore and Karachi are wooing the world of international fashion.

Meet Neha Ahmed. At 23, she’s already catwalked in Paris and Dubai. Next month, she’ll do a show in London for designer Hasan Sheriyar. “We’re getting a lot more international exposure now. I’m listed with agents in Paris and Dubai and keep going for shows there,” says Ahmed. But entry into modelling wasn’t easy. “My father, an armyman, was furious. But that was then. Now, he’s cool about it.”

Sunita Marshall, having done ramp shows in London, Sri Lanka, India, Singapore and Dubai, is one of the most sought-after models on the Pakistani ramp. “Though modeling is seen as a short-term profession in Pakistan, there’s a lot happening in the industry: we’re looked upon with respect and the money is amazing,” says Marshall, set to make her acting debut in the play Sukhay Patay, which has been shot in Canada and co-stars Suresh Oberoi.

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the reigning sexiest super model of them all? Chances are, the mirror would reveal Neha Ahmed, The pretty brown girl from Lahore with the gorgeous brown eyes, a perfect ten figure and the pair of lips that can’t decide if they want to pout continuously

Let’s start with a bit about how you started out?

Around four years ago I got my portfolio done from Ather Shahzad. It turned out to be better than I had expected and it was the first time that I realized that I might have some potential as far as modeling was concerned. Shahzad seemed to agree with me and I showed the portfolio to Tariq Amin. He really liked it and offered me a photo shoot.

What makes a woman truly sexy? Is beauty lies in the eye of the beholder? Are voluptuous curves of sex sirens enough to get them in to the list of the county’s sexiest women? Does showing skin in movies of four dimensions transform many a woman in showbiz or modeling world into a goddess overnight? Check out Diva’s pick of five knee-weakening, lust-worthy, desirable divas of fashion & entertainment industry. You just might go crazy from the heat.

Charged with verve and ambition, Quratulain Khan, better known as Annie, has all the ingredients needed to take her to high places. Soft spoken and lady like she commands respect as a producer at HUM TV, and glamorous and confident, she is a woman to be noticed on the catwalk or on the mini-screen when comparing a show. Fashion Collection speaks to her about her past achievements and future plans.

Did you start your career with modeling or production or as a host of TV shows?

I started with modeling but prior to that I had been approached by Telebiz for their BBC programme ‘Face to Face’. I didn’t get the programme but I ended up doing lot of different news anchor jobs for them, such as for Business Round-up, Business-Links and Business Breakfast, as well as helping out with overall production and generally learning the ropes. So it was a simultaneous entry into two fields, more-or-less.

1. What is on your mind?

That I have to go for shopping, go to studio for voice dubbing, make a few phone calls, see my designer, get manicure and pedicure done… Ah! I am out of breath!

2. If you had to make an apology, what would it be for and for whom?

My mother! For not giving her much time because of my hectic schedule.

3. Where’s the best place to be?

Home.

4. What scares you most?

Bad karma.

5. What keeps you sailing in a crisis?

My willpower.

What is power? Who has it? How can you tell? These are questions that have no easy answers. Ask an assertive journalist, and you’ll hear a vehement dismissal of all glamour types and the list of powerful people whittling down to a stodgy industry bigwigs. Ask a starry-eyed showbiz fanatic and you’ll hear a bubbly eulogy for all the hot starlets who in reality would not even have the clout to wangle a solo project. So the dilemma remains.

Aladdin had a magic lamp and he could make his genie do everything, but that was centuries ago. Khawar Riaz doesn’t have a magic lamp but he has a mind that works far better than that. No wonder he picks up people from the streets and turn them into Greek gods and goddesses.

“Khawar grooms his models in such a way that no one really believes that they have been picked up from the streets” designer Deepak Perwani recently commented. The only problem is that at one stage the demi gods and goddesses think of themselves immortals and become too big for their own boots. Case in point: Zara Shiekh and Ahmed Butt, Two people KR took under his wings, spent money, groomed them and presented them to the world of fashion as his discoveries.

Hard-work, dedication and focus is Tahseen Tasneem’s motto, an upcoming stylist from Karachi and a former air hostess with the national flag carrier. She ventured into the beauty business about a year back and has never looked back since. “I joined PIA in 1987

As an air hostess and worked in that capacity for 15 years. But the time came when I wanted to do something more in sync with my family life and having undertaken a number of courses in styling, I decided to open up a salon on Zamzama Boulevard and called it Dazzles. As is usually the case, initially people didn’t know about my work and they had certain reservations about working with me. However, the people I did work with spread my name by word of mouth. Over the past one year, I have worked very hard with the aim to make a name in this field,” says Tahseen.

‘My age is an asset. I feel great when people come up to me and say I don’t look 30. What is there to hide? I’m so against cosmetic surgery to make one look younger. I want people to know I’m a real person’.

She shocked the world with her first shoot 12 years ago. Here was a 5-foot-10 inch dusky girl with long, curly locks posing in a mini-skirt and knee high boots - a far cry from the petite, fair, straight-haired models that were the icons of beauty then. Iraj changed the rules. She had spunk, not sweetness, style, incentive and a whole lot of attitude. And now, with more than a decade of hard work behind her, she rules the roost as one of the top three supermodels in Pakistan

Three reasons why Abdullah wouldn’t make a good model:[1.] he seems to be the product of non-indigenous genes. [2.] He has a laid back attitude towards PR in modeling. [3.] He sometimes deceives the viewer into thinking that he/she is looking at Farooq Mannan.

Firstly, If people cannot at some level relate to the face they see in the image, they will not buy into the fantasy of whatever he is so alluring advocating. Furthermore, shyly spurning diversification and trading fashion magazines and swanky celebrity soirées for textbooks and motorcycle joyrides is not the way to go about advancing a career hinged on media appearances and keeping up appearances. And finally, fashion is about change: people don’t want to see variations of the same face over and over again.