Years
after winning the coveted Miss World crown, Agbani Darego remains
beautiful like a gazelle, with little or no additional flesh on her slim
frame.
But if you ask her how she has managed
to stay so slim and beautiful through the years, the elegant former
beauty queen has a simple answer: “I eat well, work out, do some yoga
and generally take care of my body.”
With a smart head on her shoulders,
Darego recently added ‘entrepreneur’ to her already crowded curriculum
vitae with the launch of her own denim line.
But that does not make everything rosy.
To the former world’s most beautiful woman, there are challenging
moments which she did not allow to daunt her.
“I am human,” she says.
She adds: “There are moments where it
seems that moving back to Nigeria, setting up a business and working on
several projects all seem too much for me to take on. Nevertheless, we
have to work hard and pursue what we want to do. I don’t think it is
wise for me or anybody to give up when things are not working out the
way we expected them to. For example, I first released promotional
pictures for my clothing line some months ago and I had hoped to open
the place a month or two after.
“However, I had some issues with my
production team, I could have given up but I did not, I persevered and
together, we figured out the best solution. Now, we actually have a
better production line because of that issue. It all goes to prove that
if you believe and work hard at what you want and don’t give up in the
middle of everything, you would achieve whatever you set your mind on.
“I am inspired by the fact that I have a
huge project on my hands and I am determined to push it. I have been
blessed with opportunities and it would be a shame if I don’t make use
of the opportunities. Young girls all over the world look up to us, we
have to prove to them that dreams can be realised with hard work and
perseverance.”
It would not be the first time Darego is
persevering and refusing to be discouraged. Her tenacity dates back to
pre-Miss World days. She had gone for many competitions but lost.
Recalling some of these, she says:
“I went for the casting of the Mnet Face
of Africa but I did not make it to the competition. That was where I
actually ran into the pageant manager for the Most Beautiful Girl in
Nigeria and she convinced me to go for it and MBGN became my first major
pageant.
“Before then, I took part in one or two
pageants in secondary school and I did not win them but I placed well.
After winning MBGN, I went on to the Miss Universe pageant, I did not
win that but I placed top 10.”
She never felt bad at any of the losses.
“Losing Mnet Face of Africa did not make me feel bad because it was my
first time of going for something so big and on an international
scale. I am happy that I made it to the stage that I did. I also think
it was a blessing in disguise. It was because I did not go on to
compete there that I went on to compete in MBGN, which created a
platform for me to compete in Miss World. God has always been faithful
to me and I see His hands in everything that happens to me. I think
God’s guidance led me to where I went and where I am at the moment,” she
recalls.
Born in Port-Harcourt to family of three brothers and five sisters, she relives fond memories of her childhood:
“It was a wonderful experience. I am the
sixth in the family and one of the babies. Sometimes, that is not so
good because everyone thinks for you and believes they know what is
right for you. But I do love my family, we are one close unit and I know
that I can always go back home when I need any support from them.
“I lost my father last year
but while he lived, he made sure that his kids did not lack for
anything. He was my best friend and strong supporter. Any questions or
issues I had, I could go back home and call him and speak to him. My
family is notoriously close knit and after we lost my mother, our father
was everything to us. He was like one of the kids; we played and made
jokes with him. He instilled great values in us and I hope he is happy
with me today with what I have been able to do with my life,” she
recalls.
Losing her mother to cancer at a very
tender age, Darego is a pain she remembers still. “Losing a loved one
is a very difficult situation to deal with. I miss her everyday and I
never stop wishing she were here. I know that I am who I am today for
the time I spent with her and for the values she imparted in me.
“I was 11 when she passed; I do remember
very much, she was an entrepreneur, a hardworking woman and I like to
believe that I follow in her footsteps in some way. I also feel that the
loss has made me more of a stronger and independent person,” she says.
The first and only black African woman
to be the face of an international cosmetic line, her recipe for beauty
is amazingly ordinary.
“I would say, first and foremost, take
care of yourself, be good to your body and let your body be good to you
too. Eat healthy and have a good workout regime.”
Dismissing a wardrobe malfunction she
once suffered as ‘one of those things’ Darego says, “It is life. It was a
wardrobe malfunction and there is nothing I could have done about that.
Things happen but you persevere and keep on moving with your life and
hope that people know that you are human and, things like that happen to
them too.’’
Her definition of style? “It means
calm, simplicity, comfort. I love fashion but I am not one to do
anything that makes me feel uncomfortable. The key thing to me in
looking good is comfort.”
For a fashion icon, ask her what she
would not caught wearing and she responds: “I don’t know. But let’s just
say I have not been caught in anything I don’t want to be caught in
yet.”
Noting that she intends to introduce
bags and shoes, which are her favourite fashion accessories, to her line
as well, she adds, “Denim is just a line I have introduced into the
market but as the years go by, I plan to add other items to the line. I
want it to be a large scale brand. I want to introduce new products
every year and see how it goes,” she concludes.
PUNCH
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