Model Amira Noor Shares Her Journey From Switzerland To Mumbai

Model, singer and actress Amira Noor delves into how taking a gap year between high-school and college changed her life, when she decided to spend it in Mumbai.

Noor, who was born and raised in Switzerland, was always fascinated with Bollywood, and when she visited India in 2015, the trip changed her life.

“So I got introduced to that whole world,and once I went, I fell in love with India. So I went for the summer, and while I was there, I got signed to a modeling agency.”

Noor signed a one-year contract with an Indian modeling agency, and was able to work in TV commercials and print ads during that time.

Moving from Switzerland to Mumbai was definitely not easy, especially as a teenager, and for Noor, she was working in a completely different industry than one she was used to.

“Moving there, at 18-years old, I barely had any friends. It is a very, very difficult industry, it’s very competitive, and it’s very hard to make friends … Not everyone’s going to want to be your friend, especially other models, because at the end of the day, you both audition for the same thing, and only one person is going to leave that room with the audition.”

Currently, Noor is in Los Angeles working on her modeling, as well as advancing her career in the singing industry.

“After my gap year finished I went to Boston, and was studying music at Berkelee College of Music … and now I’m in Los Angeles. I’m a musician as well, and working with some musicians in Los Angeles, as well as other models and photographers.”

Noor mainly focuses on modeling, especially after having had the ability to model for a year in India. Modeling also helped Noor transition into acting, which helped her land a role in Imtiaz Ali’s ‘Love Aaj Kal 2’.

“I wasn’t familiar with all the big Bollywood actors, so i hadn’t even seen ‘Love Aaj Kal’ one … I heard that they would like to cast me in this role, [and] I was playing the ex-girlfriend of Kartik Aaryan. So a very small role, but it was a great opportunity.”

For Noor, watching herself on the big screen for the first time was a life-changing experience.

“I actually saw it in Boston, which was even more interesting because I didn’t even know that they show Bollywood films in Boston. So just going to the cinema, and sitting and waiting, not knowing when you’re gonna appear, and then just seeing your face on screen, I think that’s a great feeling.”

Noor loves being in front of the camera, whether that be through modeling or acting, and she hopes that she can continue to do that whether it’s in Hollywood or Bollywood.

“I think my next step would be to achieve one of those [a billboard] for acting, and maybe get a show or film and have a lead in one of those.”

She is also working on producing her first album after releasing a few singles, and Noor writes all of her music herself.

“[My dream] for music would be to perform for millions of people, and even collaborations.”

Noor works collaboratively with producers to create her music, and she explains that the collaborative process is what makes creating music really interesting. She talks about her creative process, and how she starts producing a single.

“I start off with a core progression: I go to my piano, I sit there, and I have to create the music before I start writing lyrics. I write the lyrics after the music is kind of complete.”

Through her modeling, singing and acting work, Noor has amassed a pretty large following on social media, and being an influencer is now part of her job.