GROWING UP IN A SMALL village in northeastern Thailand, Rojjana Phetkanha, 23, spent her childhood working in rice fields and helping tend the family's water buffalo. She never went beyond sixth grade in school. But four years ago she was discovered by a fashion designer and rose quickly to stardom. Now she is a lead model for Chanel, and her face appears at bus stops in Paris and in leading fashion magazines around the world. She's had a bit part in a Bruce Willis movie and a role in a George Michael music video. Her success, she says, may signal a breakthrough for Asian models who--like her--are darker-skinned, and have suffered from a prejudice against women considered too ""Asian-looking.'' In Bangkok, Yui (as she is known) talked with the help of a Thai translator to NEWSWEEK'S Ron Moreau. Excerpts:
MOREAU: What was your ambition as a young girl when you were growing up in your rural Thai village?
YUI: When I was 8 years old I was already helping my mom in the rice fields, looking after the water buffalo and my young nephews and nieces. That hard work made me very tough and very strong like a boy. So my role models were strong people who wore uniforms, like the police and soldiers. I also admired the models on TV, but I never dreamed I'd ever be one.
How were you "discovered'?
I first came to Bangkok when I was 15. I began going to night school, worked in a restaurant, all the while dreaming about becoming a model, because just about everyone I met in Bangkok said I was tall enough to be a model. But I didn't know how to go about it. One day when I was 19, I was sitting at a sidewalk shop having a bowl of noodles when this Eurasian woman walked up to me and asked if she could take my picture. My first reaction was to say no, but she insisted, saying I was so beautiful. She turned out to be a fashion designer who enrolled me in an international supermodel contest being held in Bangkok. I didn't expect to win, but I did.
Was that your biggest thrill?
No. Being selected by Chanel was my dream come true. It was so exciting, because I never considered myself to be as beautiful as all of these top models who entered this huge competition. I guess my winning was a result of having the right look and a lot of luck. It's not easy for an Asian girl to win such a contest. But Chanel took a risk, and I think it's happy it did.
Was it difficult to live and work in the West?
My life has changed dramatically, but I'm enjoying it, even though my English is so poor. I don't have any problems on the job. I love the camera, the camera loves me and I kind of anticipate what the photographer wants. Some say I'm a natural, that I was born to be a model. Everyone in the West has been so accepting. One day in the London Underground I passed by four or five beggars. Suddenly this one guy jumps up and shouts, ""You are so beautiful.'' That's great. I feel I belong in London and New York. In fact, I feel I lived in the West in a former life.
Is it true that you are more popular in the West than in Asia because of Asian prejudices against darker-skinned people?
I think that's true. Asians almost avoid me. They prefer Eurasians and lighter-skinned Asian models. That's why I feel more comfortable, even more genuine working in the West. When I was growing up in the village I could sense this discrimination against dark-skinned people. Villagers used to come up to me and say that my brother was more attractive simply because he had lighter skin. ""Why aren't you white like your brother?'' they'd ask. It really gave me a complex. But now I've gone beyond that. I'm proud to be an Isarn girl [her home region]. Who needs a big nose and light skin? I'm happy with the way I am.
What about modeling agencies saying you should undergo cosmetic surgery if you want to become a supermodel?
I'm not going to change anything. I'd like to be taller, but there's nothing I can do about that. I feel confident and comfortable with the body I was born with, and I'm getting plenty of work the way I am. If people don't accept me as I am, then too bad. I'm Asian, not European. I'll stay the way I am.
Can your success change these Asian conceptions of feminine beauty?
Yes. I may have made a breakthrough for other darker-skinned Asians. More Thais and other Asians are asking for my autograph and are even talking about a new standard of beauty. It would be great if I could be an example to the young generation so they can be proud of having a very dark-skinned, Asian look. Too often we Asians reject our looks and culture in favor of Western standards. For ex- ample, young Thai women don't wear sarongs anymore. That's a great tragedy. It shows they are not comfortable with themselves. It's like they are forgetting about or looking down on their own culture and where they come from. For me, the sarong is the perfect dress. It's traditional, modern and more sexy than any Western clothes. I often mix a T shirt with a sarong. I recently went to a reception at the Thai prime minister's wearing a pair of boots, a sarong and a traditional top. I was the only Thai woman at the party in a sarong. Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.