Loading...
07 September 2021
Meet the autistic beauty Oriane Medjum Toguem, Miss International America Nation 2021. Oriane started modeling when she was 23. She got into modeling by doing her first test shoot with a Mother Agency while she was Miss Cameroon America Nation. This pushed her to do better. She is a true beauty to one’s eye. But what Oriane loves about herself is not just her beauty but her heart. She believes that looks do not mean anything with ugly personalities.
Oriane’s interest outside of modeling is singing Opera and French pop. She also enjoys advocating for disabilities and anti-bullying. As a woman who herself is autistic and has suffered bullying. Oriane is very much passionate about all these and totally loves doing it. Further talking about her professional goals Oriane mentioned,
I have four professional goals to achieve. I pray about being a supermodel, singer, and a disability & anti-bullying advocate. Besides that, to not only be paid but to also be well respected and well known among people.
She wants to be in the limelight for all good reasons. Oriane’s biggest strengths are her confidence and determination. Those are the greatest assets that she holds which helps her a lot to succeed in this industry as well as in life. But she believes that she has one weakness that is, holding onto things which she needs to let go of. But she is trying to overcome it by acknowledging the fact that it inspired her to be who she is now.
My experience during the pageant was more beautiful than I ever imagined. I would have never become who I am today if it was not for Miss & Mrs. America nation. It gave me amazing experience and sweet memories to remember. The entire journey just made me really happy and strong.
Talking about how she handles feedback, she mentioned that first, it depends on if the feedback is positive or negative. If it is positive and constructive feedback she takes it with gratitude. But if it is negative she just tends to ignore it and move on.
She has been featured in various magazines like Vogue Italia, GMARO, and BEYOND. Being on Vogue Italia was her biggest modeling accomplishment. It was her first time getting a feature in a magazine. Now she is managed with C talent and has signed with Lily’s. The biggest challenge you face when you are into modeling according to her is trying to get paid bookings. That is something very difficult as some offer unpaid bookings and some do not pay enough.
The type of modeling I am hoping to do is beauty, swimsuit, underwear modeling, a little bit of lingerie and bridal. The type of modeling that I would like to avoid is nude as I am not very comfortable with it.
Oriane’s favorite photo in her portfolio is the glamour and natural beauty picture. Because as someone who was called and treated ugly, that picture just raises her self-esteem and makes her feel amazing. From all the photoshoots she has done, the hardest was the Denim Cameroon shoot.
Something that irritates me about the way society perceive autism is when people say “you don’t look autistic” or “we are all a little autistic”. Also evil men believing that just because a woman is autistic they are easy target for them to use. So, something in people’s mindset that I would like to change is that you should always have compassion for strangers. And, having a good heart takes care of you more that evil does.
Oriane handles stress and pressure during a shoot is by praying and practicing self-love. She handled rejections in her early stage by watching inspirational videos on YouTube and sometimes crying it out.
She wants to associate with some social cause in the future. And it does not matter what specific cause she works for. As long as she is able to change lives and saving them, she is good. The goal for her is to do important things in her life.
Jailyne Ojeda Ochoa is my favorite model. It is not just because she is a living goddesses but she is sweet, caring and she worked really hard to get to where she is now. She was also a victim of bullying and those bullies eat there own words now. Which is what I always aspire to do everyday.
Modeling has not thrown any great impact on her life yet. But she is sure about something better waiting for her in the future. That is why her favorite quote is,
‘The only person who decides how successful you will become, is you”.
Read: “Modeling Industry Gave Me Self-Confidence”, Tenzin Zomkyi
The article was taken and written by Saishree Mohanty.
