african-models

"If you are blessed, you find yourself with many talents that you can utilise with ease. That was the case with modelling, acting and making movies. The reason storytelling has taken centrestage is a matter of what I enjoy more between the two"

"If it was back then when I did pageantry, it would be what did the pageant stand for, for example, Miss World stood for beauty with a purpose. To conform to that I took projects that spoke to their mission"

"Venturing into filmmaking, I did not quit modelling, rather I shifted my attention and priorities to creating films. When I was younger, I always loved storytelling, so when I got older and realised that there could be a career in the field, I pursued it,"

"There are too many to mention ... hahaha what I will say is that my most memorable moment was losing the Miss World pageant because that was the catapult that thrust me into my true love film"

"My foray into professional modelling began in 2011, where after winning a number of local and regional pageants, I made history when I was crowned as the youngest Miss Zimbabwe ever"

"In runway, I pay attention to the look and mood of the designer’s vision. If it is a fierce look, I adjust my walk accordingly. In editorial, I analyse the image trying to be captured if it is a sweet innocent look, I then practise on the mirror angles and looks that capture that look. As I think of it, modelling is all about being a chameleon and acting out what is needed"

"I do have to say that the Lord knew what He was doing as His grace saw me groomed and polished to be the person I am today. Modelling brought about confidence to a girl who was born on the left side of the island, it opened doors that seemed beyond my reach and broadened my perspective as to what I can achieve"

"As a little girl, I never dreamt that one day I would be a model. I remember in high school, I was in social clubs such as Interact and hosting a pageant, not once did I have the inclination to partake in it. Only after high school I was scouted by Mercy Mushaninga through her Zim Gossip Agency, and I did entertain the thought after much persuasion"

"We embarked on a water and sanitation project that saw us build, dig, and educate people on how to construct low-cost Blair toilets and protected wells. The project was done after the cholera pandemic of 2008-09, so it spoke to a prevailing need to prevent another outbreak"

"During a year-long reign, my role under the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority centred on being a national brand ambassador and promoting the nation as an exciting tourist destination. This period also saw me winning various international pageants as well as undertaking a number of philanthropy initiatives, with the most prominent being a water and sanitation project with Aquamor"

"Like any other industry, the modelling world has its pros and cons. My perspective is to know why you are getting into something and stick to your vision"

"Modelling is a balance between owning your look (having a signature look character and characteristics) and being able to be malleable, so find your look and be open"

"The next thing I want to do is grow and grow more my career and just get where I want to get. Be a supermodel and make everyone proud of my job"

"Amilna is without a doubt one of the most unique faces that I've seen in the last 15 years," says director of Elite London, Michelangelo Chiacchio"

"Watch This Face: Almilna Estevao,10 August 2015,By Harper's BAZAAR UK"

"Where I’m from, beauty is not that important.We place a higher value on other things, like education. We focus more on that and moral values...and that’s it.It’s more important to be intelligent and educated"

"Modeling is like acting. When I am on the runway, I am more confident, and I feel like I’m on top of the world. I just focus on the photographer, not the crowd—that’s the attitude. When in photo shoots, I’m always conscious about the outcome that the client expects, so I give it my all. But mostly I have fun."

"I model because I love fashion and art. Modeling is the best way I have to communicate to the society that I want to inspire."

"Modelling wasn’t something I ever thought I’d do. I was never the most beautiful girl in the neighborhood, but a lanky, tall, dark girl with curly hair."

"I have good memories of growing up with four brothers. I only knew how to play boy games, like climbing and gymnastics, and I was in our school parade. I loved wearing clothes with pockets, like jumpsuits, skirts, dresses or shorts—anything with pockets, which I still like."

"The Genocide left a sad stain on our country’s history, and I remember growing up, at school and everywhere else, there were so many kids who were orphans. It was very rare to find a child with both parents."

"If you want to make it to the top, you’ve got to look out for yourself. And finding support is a very rare thing, especially when your family is all over the place."

"Everyday you have to wake up and do something that scares you, because if you don’t, you’re not living. You have to feel that rush of adrenaline or whatever it is, that spark of energy that makes you feel alive."

"It's good to manifest things you want and goals. If you do, they kind of end up happening."

"You can be going home in a cab and get inspired by the most random thing."

"You know, personal experience…you’ve got to learn to be tough, you’ve got to learn to survive."

"Do something every day that scares you, which is why I do what I do. It’s just the biggest rush of like adrenaline. Face your fear head on."

"There’s talent here and people are recognizing that now.We’ve got great actors, we just haven’t been able to show that because of our past history with apartheid."

"I always tell myself that I’m running my own race because when I do so, I don’t expect pressure from others."

"A lot of people were surprised about the wedding, but not us and especially not my parents. By the time Zakes proposed, my parents already knew because he asked them for my hand in marriage. So technically I was the last to know."

"Zakes and I went for many sessions of marriage counselling before tying the knot. Those sessions were very insightful into what married life was like and preparing to make that transition from being someone’s boyfriend or girlfriend into being a wife and husband,"

"My daughter, on the other hand, is introverted. So graceful, so beautiful. She has this quiet confidence"

"Motherhood is healing. When done in the right way, it’s healing because you have to heal. You are forced to look at yourself and heal, so it’s humbling as well"

"Make sure your relationship is between you and the person you love, no one has power over it, no one has a say over it and people will always talk, we were laughing. People will try and break something that’s beautiful, there’s nothing you can do"

"That’s why they get along so well. My daughter doesn’t want the spotlight and my son thrives in it. There’s no competition—just harmony"

"I want society to be comfortable with these kinds of conversations—conversations that matter"

"My children are like black and white, the most different ever. And I love it"

"I had to heal so much so that I am able to understand that my children are born through me but belong to God. In that way, I don’t project onto them. I’m even counting down the years until my son leaves home to go flourish,” she jokes—yet it’s clear she’s deeply intentional about preparing them for the world while also allowing them to discover their own callings"

"My dad is actually the one who suggested a doctor and by the time we got there, I was already convinced. I was convincing my family she was on the spectrum. I was just happy to get that confirmation. And I’m happy to always talk about it to normalise it"

"My kids are like my own dopamine"

"My son is Mr. Entertainer, Extrovert. In a room full of people, he’s that kid who stands out. He loves socialising and is so independent. He even has an exhibition coming up in September and is also a pianist. OMG, he is everything"

"I pride myself on working on myself as often as I can, and I finally reached a place of real self-awareness after I had kids. For example, I’ve always known I was neurodivergent—I have ADHD—but I didn’t fully understand the effects, especially how it ties into anxiety"

"It’s through my kids that I’ve come to better understand myself and see what else I still need to work on"

"Being a mom is like a passion project that doesn’t stop"

"When my daughter got her diagnosis as being on the autistic spectrum, that was enlightening. More than anything, it helped us understand our family genetics. Back then, there wasn’t much information. You didn’t have a name for things, but we were always very sensory sensitive"

"To show a different narrative of Zimbabwe, that there's beauty, invite people to come and spend money in Zimbabwe… show that Zimbabwe is powerful and incredible in its own special ways."

"I am not going to apologise for anything. What I will say is I did not know I was going to be at the State House, and I didn't know I was going to be in a situation that was going to look politically charged. Because, generally, once people have made a decision, you can't change their minds."

"I was never in this situation to be like, 'Ah, let me hurt people',"

"When I was asked to go to Zimbabwe, there was one thing I was told; tourism."

"So when my daughter received her diagnosis, it became a moment of clarity—one that also helped me better understand my own family’s history"