This statuesque beauty is the hottest entrant in the modelling fraternity. Her luminescent skin and voluminous hair has caused an unprecedented stir and being chosen finalist in Glam Icon gives me reason to believe Pooja Verma's career graph is sure to ascend. In conversation with her.

''This is not a cliche. I've wanted to be a model since the age of ten!! My father owns a news agency so there used to be piles of magazines including Time, Vogue and Cosmopolitan, and what always caught my eye was the glamorous covers, the supermodels, the dazzle,the shine, and I so badly wanted it! Growing up, I realised it's not just the dazzle and the shine it's way beyond that; it takes more than just a nice body, nice hair and nicely done nails; it takes hard work and passion. But somewhere at the back of my mind there were beauty standards that wouldn't stop pushing me down… the world defines beauty not with health and youth but also placing an emphasis on a rigid standard of beauty due to which a lot of people struggle to fit in. I was told I was too skinny to be a model and looked malnourished; honestly I've had breakdowns because of this! But, I finally learnt to use negativity to light up the fire within me; I chose what my heart felt, not what people said. And here I am!

My portfolio includes Dehradun Fashion Week and Punjab Fashion Week alongside catalogue, print and online shoots. I feel I'm a good model because I'm photogenic, versatile, understand the need of criticism and I take negatives and turn them into positives. Discipline is very very important as models do not have an easy serene life. I think I'm ready to take it all! I stay fit by training at the gym and am of the belief that workout and diet go hand in hand. I track my calories and macros, I eat indulgent food to honour my cravings and tastebuds and I nourish my body by meeting the dietary needs of vitamins, minerals and fibres — there's no magical shortcut to achieve goals. Although I am satisfied with a career in modelling, I would also like to be motivational speaker because helping people is something I've always wanted to do."

— JASMEEN DUGAL