Most people audition for Guyana Model Search in person then there are the Steven Bagots; people who look good enough to submit a few photographs and trust they will get in it. Guess what; they usually do.

Some of us have looks, some of us rightly believe we do, and some of us don’t really care about looks; Steven Bagot seemingly grew up with an opinion of how he looked and he also got plenty of help. His boyhood days in Corriverton, Berbice were the usual for any guy with his looks; people saw him and they fawned over him.

Today, most of that attention could be considered deserved because whether people want to notice him or not, he is current (right now). Steven slipped into model search 2010 with a few snapshots and walked off with the title of Guyana’s top male model back in July.

“It’s been crazy, but I love every moment of it. I feel like important, I feel big!” Steven said during a telephone interview earlier this week.

The realization has sunk in “a bit”, he said, pointing out that he is still in a slight daze over the win. The 20-year-old explained that a friend encouraged him to explore modelling and pushed him into model search before he even figured out what was happening. In a matter of days, he was compiling his best photographs and sending them off for approval.

At 5, 11” he is considered tall enough on the local catwalk and there is a ‘curl’ in his walk that adds to the groove he brings to a stage. Steven’s air of confidence is not too dominating so when he is on a catwalk, he channels a calm but self-assured look. It is somewhat debatable as to how much presence he carries on a catwalk, but he has just enough to make people sit up and take a second look.

July 3 was the night his life changed, according to him. He had been in the city for a short while working a part-time job and competing in model search. The competition was as he expected, “tight”, but it was also “fun” and an experience Steven said he is not likely to forget in a while. He said some people look at it as just “modelling” when in fact, it goes beyond that and includes valuable lessons about posture; nutrition; attitude; and personal care.

It was interesting to hear a young man talk of modelling and expand on other areas that make up the ridiculously good-looking people we see on international catwalks and on the cover of major magazines (outside of airbrushing).

“It is so much more than how you walk and look,” he continued, pointing out that he went into the competition with an open mind and left with a “stronger mind”.

Steven is not afraid to tell people that he loves fashion and clothes that make him stand out; he says men often face criticism when they decide to get serious about the clothes they wear, but even that is not enough to make him do things differently.

“I wear skinny jeans, not skinny skinny, but fine bottom and I see nothing wrong with that,” he said in a definitive tone. We hear you Steven!

In fact, on the night he walked off with the title, he was draped from head-to-toe in black – skinny jeans; a netted, long-neck jersey; black shoes and initially, a black hat. The models were asked to wear something black and Steven decided on that look. Judging from the reactions in the room when he appeared on stage, his choices were spot-on.

“I was in another world that night, I couldn’t hear anything much or see anyone, the only thing on my mind was winning,” he recounted. He admitted that he was nervous and felt threatened by a few of the other male models who were “making a splash”. Of the guys in competition, he recalled that the top male runner-up model, Tyrone Hamid was a hot favourite for the title.

Steven revealed that he also felt a bit disadvantaged because he lives in Berbice and the finals were in Georgetown and before an audience “who don’t know me”.  But he learned quickly how to play to the crowd and in addition, he stepped things up. Steven said he was walking better that night and doing everything he was expected to.

Being a male model sometimes comes with a stigma, according to Steven but he declared that it is nothing he is not in a position to handle. “I know, people say things from time to time but I can’t change that. I don’t even care to. I am just doing what I love,” he stated.

If modelling full-time here was enough to financially sustain a person, Steven would make a career out of modelling, but since that is not likely he has decided on teacher’s training college for now. “I would like to train to be a teacher,” he said.

Steven grew up as an only child in a single-parent home in Berbice and his mother has always been his biggest supporter and number-one fan. “I would leave home with an outfit I coordinated and she would smile to herself,” he recalled. He said no one in his family has done any modelling so when he decided to take the step the family was generally excited.

Since his win Steven has accumulated a small fan base and he was not hesitant to say it is largely females. Women still fawn over him, but now it is different, he is not just Steven Bagot the “good-looking” guy from across the street; he is Steven Bagot, Guyana’s reigning top male model.

(ianaseales@yahoo.com)