Johnny Lever's 26-year-old niece, Naomi Janumala is making her family proud internationally with her walks and runway looks. Read on to know all about her!
Johnny Lever has made a huge name for himself in the world of comedy in Hindi cinema. While his children are working hard to forward Johnny Lever's legacy, his niece, Naomi Janumala, has carved an entirely different yet successful path for herself internationally. She is a model and has walked the ramp for famous international labels. Read on to know all about her beautiful journey, and how she is hailed as the most gorgeous Indian-origin model internationally.
Naomi Janumala is the daughter of Johnny Lever's younger brother, Jimmy Moses Janumala, who is an Indian actor, playback singer, stand-up comedian and mimicry artist. While Johnny has made a big name for himself, his brother, Jimmy, has also been famous for his comedy for more than two decades. He has done more than 4,000 shows in more than 30 countries and made millions laugh. However, Naomi Janumala choose a completely different path from her family of actors, dancers, and comedians.
At the young age of 16, Naomi fell in love with modelling and fashion. She walked the ramp and became an international model. She is proud of her Indian roots and has been making waves internationally. In 2024, Naomi walked the runway for the Burberry Summer Showcase at London Fashion Week in 2023.
In an interview with News18 Showsha, Naomi revealed that she started modelling in Mumbai in 2016. After working for one year, she packed her bags and started her international modelling journey. Naomi revealed how during that one year working in India, she felt weird due to her skintone. She has been to auditions where people would bluntly ask 'dark-coloured' models to leave. Recalling the moment, Naomi said:
"In that one year, even when I was booked and busy, I wouldn’t feel the best about myself; make-up would always be the same products they would use for fairer models; in 80% of the pictures that would come out, my skin would look five shades lighter; and I had been to auditions where we were told that all dark models must leave because that’s not what they were looking for."
Naomi further revealed that she felt most accepted outside of India by brands like Burberry, which were looking for models of her skin tone. They loved her natural hair and no makeup. She said:
"Currently, working in London with Burberry, they like me the best with absolutely no make-up and my natural hair the way I do it. So just that itself says more than enough. I feel way more accepted and appreciated for who I am and what I am outside of India, which is sad, but it is what it is."
In the same interview, Naomi revealed that she wanted people to know that she was an international model who bagged the Fenty campaign. She clearly stated that her uncle, Johnny Lever has nothing to do with her success as a model, and the 'niece narrative' only exists in India. She said:
"Of course, I would want to be known as the model who bagged the Fenty campaign because Naomi Janumala bagged that campaign, not Johnny Lever’s niece! That was all me. Apart from getting all the moral and emotional support that I needed from my family, I shall take credit for the rest, thank you!! But seriously, I think this Johnny Lever’s niece narrative only exists in India, because that’s the best way for the media to catch people’s attention since Johnny Lever is such a household name."
What do you think about Johnny Lever's niece, Naomi Janumala, making a huge name on international runways?
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