Cybil - Girlish maybe, immature not
Sadia Malik

ISLAMABAD—Cybil is nineteen years old and stunning. The best kind of unaffected beauty. Angelically gorgeous without realizing the effect her looks have on people around her, she is definitely a ‘double take’ girl. Cybil is also perhaps the most ‘un-model’ like of all the models. She doesn’t come with the usual expected model baggage. There is no starry attitude, no airs and no graces, no make- up, no designer clothing, none of the prerequisite diva ingredients. All one sees is a young lady who is terribly sweet, extremely polite and just plain old down-to-earth.
Cybil may be a teenager but she is definitely a grown up. Girlish maybe, immature not. Nor can she be, she is a mom to her little baby boy Kevan and wife to hubby Kashif and a full time working model.
After steadily modelling for about two years, Cybil stunned the fashion world when she announced that she was getting married. Cybil’s reply is simple, “I was in love and marriage seemed like the most logical thing to do. Having a baby wasn’t a conscious decision but when Kevan happened it was the best thing that ever happened”, says Cybil, with pure joy on her face. “Your life completely changes, and your priorities too, you no longer live just for yourself.’’
Modelling was not an accident for Cybil. Her mother who is German thought she could be a model and encouraged her to get a portfolio made and one thing lead to another. Vaneeza Ahmad and her brother Amir are her friends and they hooked her up with fashion photographers Ather & Shahzad. The next thing she knew she was posing away in front of the camera for a shoot. At that point modelling didn’t ‘rock her world’. Slowly but surely she got the hang of things and it became not only fun but also a lucrative profession. Cybil has come to a point where she is completely comfortable being a model, the occasional ramp appearance may make her nervous but all in all it’s a piece of cake. However her favourite work is commercials for television, it’s less time consuming, which is a priority because of Kevan and lucrative which is never a bad thing.
About the Lahore Karachi rivalry, Cybil doesn’t have much to say, she thinks the fashion industry in both the cities is more or less the same and the rivalry is just well...silly. One of the models that she admires is Vinnie, because of the way she has handled her career and the level of professionalism she has brought to it.
There are certain people she likes working with, Ather & Shahzad as photographers because she started out with them and now has become great friends with them. She says matter of factly, “the end result with them in my experience is always the best”. On acting she has no designs, in fact she is very clear, modelling for models and acting for actresses but she adds, “to each their own”.
In general, Cybil is not a very competitive person. She doesn’t believe in taking herself too seriously. She is more into quietly living her life and the responsibility of being a role model doesn’t appeal to her one bit. In fact she is at her most uncomfortable when recognized in streets or when bombarded with too many compliments. Low key is the way she describes her life. Though she gets along with all her fellow models, she doesn’t necessarily hang with girls a lot.
Life these days for Cybil is diapers, pediatricians and worrying about schools for Kevan, but when I ask Cybil if she would give up modelling for family? She replies, “yes” in a flash. She doesn’t even consider work, which will keep her away from Kevan for too long. If she wasn’t a model, Cybil says, “I would probably be a graduate student trying to figure out my major”. College is something that Cybil is considering for the future, what exactly she will be studying, she isn’t sure about. So life is smooth sailing. “I take one day at a time, who knows what the future will bring”.
The thing that strikes me the most about Cybil is that how calm, peaceful and serene, she is. There is no sense of panic about her. She is almost Zen like and totally at ease with herself and her life. A nineteen year old successful model, loving wife and mom. Could it get any better?