Malaysia’s first Malay/Muslim Victoria’s Secret model Nia Atasha draws mixed reactions

THIS TOO IS FEMINISM; AS IT IS BLASPHEMY

Ms Nia Atasha was picked as one of the faces of Victoria’s Secret’s T-shirt Bra collection.

PHOTOS: SLEEPYLLLAMA/INSTAGRAM


Lok Jian Wen

STRAIT TIMES
UPDATED
JUL 7, 2023,

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Two Malaysian models on Tuesday fronted Victoria’s Secret’s latest promotional campaign, intended to empower women by using an all-female photography and production crew, but it has drawn some flak for missing a trick by not promoting colour and size diversity.

Apart from the team formed by Women Photographers Malaysia, the campaign was also notable for Malaysia’s Nia Atasha becoming the first Malay/Muslim to model for the iconic lingerie brand.

Along with Miss Universe Malaysia 2018 Jane Teoh and American-born Thai model Janie Tienphosuwan, Ms Nia was picked as one of the faces of the brand’s T-shirt Bra collection.

“It’s an honour, honestly. This is a big opportunity, and I’ve always had a dream since I started modelling to be the face of (Victoria’s Secret) or be in a campaign with them,” 26-year-old Nia told the Malaysian media at the campaign’s launch in Kuala Lumpur.

“I’m honestly still processing everything and currently in pinch-me mode. Teenage Nia wouldn’t believe this,” she added on an Instagram post where she shared a video of the campaign.

But on other social media posts sharing the same campaign video, other women lamented the lack of representation for more types of women.

“Where is the body inclusivity? We need larger and different body types represented with underwear and lingerie,” wrote Instagram user Jenny Woo. “It’s nice that it’s different races, but we also would like to see realistic and various body types.”

“Where are my dark-skinned and plus-sized queens,” another Instagram user Reenosha Krishnasamy wrote, while an S. Suhashini commented on the irony of “feeling unrepresented as a Malaysian/South-east Asian woman”.

While becoming the face of Victoria’s Secret may represent a milestone in the career of Ms Nia, who has also appeared in a film and TV programmes in Malaysia, there were guarded reactions, including from some media outlets in Malaysia who covered the campaign’s launch using partially censored photos of the Kuala Lumpur-born model.

A few netizens commented that Ms Nia was an example of a “Muslim human who was set for hell” or that her actions were “fuel for her fate in the afterlife”.

But most netizens commended Ms Nia and her colleagues for the showcase, with her image set to front Victoria’s Secret international stores while the series of photos and videos has been beamed to a global audience.

Supermodel Ling Tan was the first Malaysian to don Victoria’s Secret apparel and walk for the brand’s fashion show in 1996.

The Straits Times has contacted Women Photographers Malaysia and Victoria’s Secret Malaysia for comment.