THE FASHION MILLITANT
Born in Kerala, India, Nidhi Sunil is a model, activist, and actress. After gaining a law degree, she first worked as an environmental attorney, and switched career to become a model in 2011. She worked with some of the biggest names in national and international fashion publications, such as Vogue, Elle, Maxim, Harper’s Bazaar; before starting her career as an actress in Bollywood. Her film break came in the 2013 movie Gangoobai, then followed household fame for her role as Samira in Kaash in 2015. In 2017, her modeling career reached a stepping stone as she was named Vogue India’s Model of the Year.
COMBATING COLORISM
Nidhi has become an influential voice in the fight against colorism. From being bullied at school to being trolled online to experiencing discrimination within the fashion and movie industries – she calls out the obsession with fair skin. Whether appearing as a panelist for the “Women of the World Teen Summit. No Shade” or writing a powerful opinion piece for Dazed Digital, she has helped to foster dialogue and raise awareness of the colorism she continues to face as a model with dark skin. She resisted early career pressure to laser away her freckles, for example, standing firm in self- belief to become one of India’s success stories.
“I’m so happy to join L’Oréal Paris – to speak out for the self-worth we must all believe in to succeed, especially when others try to tell us different. To me, beauty lies in the full power of your own voice and your belonging in the world. Every one of our stories is worth hearing. Our worth is our birth right.”- Nidhi Sunil
A VOICE AGAINST GENDERCIDE
The message at the heart of L’Oréal Paris, that every woman is worth it, is one Nidhi Sunil shares through her fight against violence towards vulnerable girls. Passionate about sounding the alert on this issue, she is an advisory board member and spokesperson for the Invisible Girl Project, an NGO working against gendercide and the neglect and violence disproportionately facing girls. As their ambassador, Nidhi shares the stories of girls rescued from trafficking and abuse, in a film which she was invited to present at the United Nations as part of her dedicated campaigning for girls to be considered just as worthy as boys.
