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Born in Coventry, England, Neelam Gill is the British Punjabi model taking over your Instagram feed. Since kick-starting her career at the age of 18 (she’s now 28), she’s worked with some of the industry’s most renowned names—from Burberry to Balmain, Adidas to Ahluwalia—and recently appeared in Vogue’s Runway Icons show in Florence with Luisa Via Roma. Here, the model opens up about her beauty journey, and shares her make-up and skincare secrets.
On her Bollywood beauty muses
My family is from Punjab, so I grew up watching Bollywood movies. To me, the heroines were the epitome of beauty. They were just so glamorous and aspirational to me. Every time a new film came out, my mum would take me and my sister to the cinema at the weekend.
On the pressures of colorism
Although I grew up idolizing Bollywood actresses, I didn’t see myself in them, which may be funny to people in the West, because they think, “Oh, they’re Indian, and you’re Indian,” but there was a big movement in India, especially when I was growing up, that saw beauty equated with being fair. All the Bollywood actresses would endorse skin-lightening products. Whenever I’d go on holiday and get a tan, there would be certain people… random extended family members, who would make a comment on my skin tone. I could never understand why people in our community wanted to be fairer. I was like, “We have brown skin!”
On the ritualistic power of beauty
Growing up, there was a big focus on Ayurvedic beauty and self-care. Before Indian weddings, they do this ceremony for both men and women where they scrub your skin with turmeric. I see so much influence from India in Western beauty. You can go into any big brand and they’ll have turmeric face masks. My mum would also oil our hair and plait it, which I used to find so annoying. But now that I’m a model and my hair gets frazzled from shoots, I find joy in oiling my hair. Now I appreciate those practices, and I also realize the influence they have in the beauty space today. But we’ve been using those ingredients for centuries.
On struggling with her self-image
I definitely did not feel beautiful growing up and I think that followed me into my early adult years. I’ve only recently started to feel comfortable with and proud of who I am. I felt very awkward in my own body and extremely self-conscious. I hated taking pictures. My mum was always very, very glamorous and my younger sister looked exactly like my mum. And then there was me with glasses and braces. I was never known as a pretty kid and I accepted that. So I decided to study really hard and focus on gymnastics.
On becoming a model
I was scouted at 14, but I didn’t start modeling until I was 18. That’s when I got Burberry and then everything in my life changed. I became comfortable in front of the camera because it was an escape. I grew up in Coventry so when I came to London I was really anonymous. Even though I was still that shy, insecure girl, I would feel like a different character on set. But as soon as the job was done, I would go back to being my old self. It was a weird juxtaposition. I still feel like that a lot of the time. I didn’t feel pretty in most of the pivotal moments of my modeling career. That said, I’ve become much more secure in myself. I think there’s always going to be a little bit of imposter syndrome. Even though I’ve been doing this since I was 18, there are certain moments when I have to pinch myself. The difference now is that I can have those moments and look at them through a lens of gratitude, instead of having it paralyze me like it did when I was younger.
On self-care
I’ve always been into self-care. I’ve lived alone from a young age and a lot of the time my practices came out of loneliness. When I moved to London, I’d get my nails done or I’d get a massage. Doing certain things would make me feel connected to home, like doing my hair treatments three times a week. But now I love my own company—I crave it. I love being around my loved ones, but there comes a certain moment in time where I feel completely overstimulated and drained. I love a solo trip. I like running a bath and reading a book. I love getting facials. Some people will look at these things as materialistic or shallow, but I do find that you can find peace in doing these practices for yourself, and it doesn’t have to be something fancy.
On her go-to skincare products
I don’t have an intensive routine because my skin was problematic in the past, so I find simple is better. If I’ve been working, I’ll always do a double cleanse. I love the La Roche Posay cleanser, it’s very gentle, and the Clinique Cleansing Balm as it melts everything off. I also love the Sarah Chapman cleanser—I’ve been seeing her for years. For eye cream, I love La Mer. I also swear by Augustinus Bader The Cream.
On her approach to make-up
I’m so lucky that I get to work with such great people on set and I have a really good hair and make-up team for events. So when I’m doing that then I’ll go all out. I can do a simple look on myself but I’m not the most confident. Saying that, my friend recently got married in Sardinia and I did my own make-up. I did a red lip and for me that was major. Otherwise, I keep it really simple. Because of my skin tone, I always have to mix foundations to get the right shade. I swear by Armani Luminous Silk and the Nars Radiant Cream Concealer. I find that those two products work really well together. I’ve recently gotten into blush. I love the cream blush by Fenty. I also love a brow gel. I get my eyebrows threaded so I only have to fill them in slightly and then brush them up with the gel. As for mascara, I’ve tried so many but my favorite is L’Oreal. For lips, I really like Pat McGrath’s lip liners. I always overline my lips a little bit, and then I love the Dior Lip Glow.
On when she feels the most beautiful
I love it when I have a tan. That’s when I feel the most confident. When my skin just has this glow.
On what beauty means to her
Having met a lot of people in this industry who match the stereotypical definition of beautiful, the ones who have left a lasting impression on me are the ones who are beautiful on the inside. I remember first coming into the industry at 18 and feeling completely out of place and not good enough. The people that I viewed as the most beautiful were the ones who stopped and spoke to everyone in the same way. For me, that’s beauty.