How I made my mother a model!

It was the time in my life when there was a lot of passion and loads of time, but not much experience thus resulting in not many people wanting to collaborate with me, but I needed the collaboration to build a portfolio, and accumulate the so-called experience.

So amidst all the thinking of the potential models, I could work with, I sat on my dust-ridden sofa one evening staring at the boring images displayed on my TV. Then my lovely mother came and sat right there next to me. I don't know if it boredom or my genuine want to do this photoshoot but I saw her on the side and really saw her for the first time and noticed how beautiful she really was. So just then and there I decided that this is what I will be doing. I will be making her my model. I honestly hoped to GOD that she would agree.

So I sat my butt down and made a whole plan before I could go to her and show it to her. And that's what I did. I surfed through Pinterest and Instagram all day long waiting for inspiration and ideas to hit me, hit me hard this time. Finally, I removed my notepad and started sketching what I saw in my mind and after a whole day worth of sitting, standing, drawing, shouting and dancing I came up with a theme. The theme of a princess whose wholehearted dream was to become a queen but now that she was one, she still wasn't happy as she had hoped to be.

So next came deciding the costume, makeup and studio setup. I called my friends but nothing they had to offer caught my attention. Finally, my last resort was to call my aunt up and ask her if she had something that goes with the theme, I had decided. And that day I received the treasure hidden in her her wardrobe in the form of a Whatsapp message. A perfect black dress, which showed both royalty and yet represented the darkness that was engraved in the soul of the new queen.

The next day I set out into the big bad world, on foot, and went to many, many salons asking them about their charges for their expertise in makeup and hair. And finally, I came across this wonderful lady called Ruchi who was ready to give me a very reasonable price if I tagged her on my Instagram account when I posted these pictures.

The next thing was to get the props I had imagined I set my travel to various faraway lands such as the China market and streets of Meena Bazaar. I got a few wonderful props from here and a few from there and I was all ready to set my proposal in front of my mother.

So the next day after having freshly bathed and spraying her favorite perfume, whatever it took to convince her.

I prepared her favorite breakfast for once and laid it all out on the table mimicking my best to make it look like a dinner table at the fancy 5-star restaurants. It didn't, but I sure tried.

She came out and her first reaction was surprise and her next reaction was suspicion. As I pulled her to the table she sat calmly and looked at me with her deep-set eyes. Raising her eyebrows she popped the question "what do you want?" and I smiled, mothers always know you no matter how illusive you try to be.

I got my candy.

I took a deep breath and said clearly with a calm tone, I want you to be my model, after comprehending what I just said she laughed, a deep laugh and pulled her plate towards her. Taking the first bite she nodded at me impressed. Did she forget what I just said or was she ignoring me? "Maa", I said louder like a child who wanted candy but was denied. "Please".

She laughed again."I didn't think you were serious. Look at me, do I look like a model to you." I smiled. "I did look at you, and I am looking at you and I have not met another more beautiful person than you" I said. She smiled but continued eating not wanting to believe me.

"Believe me." I said reading her mind, "I won't force you to do anything you don't want, and I won't put out anything you don't like. just try once.. for me." She sighed and looked at me, "why me?" she asked "because I know you will make the most beautiful model ever" I replied back. She finally smiled at my persistence and nodded that small nod. "Just an hour" she said but it was enough for me. I hugged her tight and went around jumping all around her, I got my candy.

I smiled silently trying to convey that she can do whatever she wishes.

Then came the day, I had rented the lighting equipment and camera from a friend my mine and promised return as soon as we were done with the shoot.

I dressed her up and took her to the salon where Ms Ruchi worked wonders with the makeup, hair and nails.

By the time she came home the setup of a simple backdrop and the lights I had rented were placed. I had even printed a few reference images for her to look at and just copy the pose.

She came and looked at everything and looked at me, silently asking me if she will be able to do it. I smiled silently trying to convey that she can do whatever she wishes.

And so we started. She copied the pose from the few pictures I had stuck on the wall for her and then later I posed for her and she posed back trying her best to copy. She was strained at first, but as she saw how lovely she looked in all the pictures and how much amusing this whole experience was, she started having fun. She started smiling more freely and laughing more. We got a small vase kept on the table and posed with that too. She loved all the pictures and we extended the promised one hour to 5 hours of shooting.

To my absolute happiness and my mother's utter astonishment, the pictures came out very beautiful and were added immediately to my portfolio without another word. But above all this, it brought a sense of confidence in my otherwise not so confident Maa and nowadays when she looks at herself in the mirror she sees the beauty she and many others saw in these photographs.

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