JOIN USShe’s won several beauty pageants, appeared in music videos and even done cameos in films like ‘Fashion’ and ‘Bluffmaster’. But for Aanchal Kumar, the happiness that her marriage to long-time boyfriend Anupam Mittal is bringing her is incomparable to her modelling days.
“I think it’s the best phase of my life. I’m very happy to be married to the love of my life. The timing was perfect — I’ve achieved what I wanted to in life through my career. This was the next best thing that could have happened to me. I love the idea of staying with my husband and being treated as a wife,” she tells Metrolife.
Striking a balance between her professional and personal life will be a piece of cake, she says. “My family life will take priority now. Initially, it was always about my career and nothing else. Now, I have the added responsibility that a wife has. I’m thankfully married to a man who is understanding and encourages me to do what I like. I’m doing modelling now because I’ve done it for so many years and can’t stop.
But it won’t be as hectic as it used to be and I’ll do selective work that excites me,” shares Aanchal, adding, “I’m good at multi-tasking. I’ve lived alone all my life, paid my bills and done everything a housewife does to maintain her house. So I think I’ll do a pretty good job.”
Though fashion will now take a backseat, she is grateful to the industry for all that it has given her. “Growing up, I’d see all these beautiful girls wearing glamourous clothes and having a fancy life. So in many ways, walking the ramp was a dream come true. I’m very happy because the industry’s been good to me. A lot of people see struggle and have bitter experiences but I understood in the beginning that to be here for a long time would require me to be professional, whether it was for reaching somewhere on time or listening to instructions given by a choreographer. All the small things take you a very long way,” she recalls.
Aanchal also believes that the fashion industry in India has grown by leaps and bounds. Comparing her experiences between international and Indian shows, she says, “They are leagues ahead of us in terms of their production. It’s a proper business for them whereas here, it’s a form of entertainment. But I see India getting there. From when I started my career 14 years ago until today, there’s a world of a difference. Fashion is being taken very seriously now and our designers are doing very well abroad.”