Muslim model Halima Aden has contemplated a return to fashion after nearly a year away from the catwalk, as she was concerned it would ‘compromise’ her devotion to Islam.
The Somali model took to Instagram and captioned the image to her 1m+ followers: ‘Shooting a super special project with one of my favorite designers @tommyhilfiger.’
Back in November 2020, Aden explained her decision to move away from the fashion industry in an Instagram post to her fans.
‘But… this isn’t even my style?? Never was. Why did I allow them to put jeans on my head when at the time I had only ever worn skirts and long dresses?’ she wrote.
‘I went back to my hotel room & just sobbed after this shoot because deep down I knew this wasn’t it. But was too scared to speak up.
‘The truth is I was very UNCOMFORTABLE. This just ain’t me.’
In a recent interview, Aden also said that she began to ‘look like a white man’s fetishised version’ of herself and barely recognise her image on magazine covers.
Halima said: ‘I had zero excitement because I couldn’t see myself. Do you know how mentally damaging that can be to be to somebody? When I’m supposed to feel happy and grateful and I’m supposed to relate, because that’s me, that’s my own picture, but I was so far removed.
‘My career was seemingly on top, but I was mentally not happy.’
