Soundous Moufakir

Fake It Till You Make It Happen.

Soundous Moufakir is a Moroccon model who appeared as a contestant in the most-watched reality show MTV Roadies X9 season18 in 2022.

Soundous always desired to be a model. She came to India to start her career in modelling. She worked with brands like Caprese and Softline.

She has also been a part of some bridal shoots. Before becoming a model, Soundous was a financial analyst.

Soundous also appeared in the Hindi Music album Aja Aja, opposite Sunny Ratan on 23 December 2020. This was her first music video.

We sat with Soundous this month for this exclusive cover interview.

Please introduce yourself to our readers.

Hello I'm Soundous Moufakir. I'm 27 years old French and Moroccan. I came to India a year ago. I'm a graduate in Finance and I've done my MBA in finance from IMT Ghaziabad. I'm an aspiring actor and a model.

What are your fondest childhood memories?

I think they're mostly with my grandmother as I was most of the time with her. The farm, farmhouse, nature, the wind, I miss it all because nowadays I'm mostly into work, glam and fashion and I miss these little moments.

Tell us about your education. At the age of 16, I moved from Morocco to Paris to my dream school which is EM Strasbourg to do my Masters Degree in Finance in 2017 and moved to India to pursue MBA in Finance in Sustainable and Corporate Finance from IMT Ghaziabad.

When and how did you get into modeling? Who inspired you?

I actually inspired myself by being confident and looking in the mirror and seeing a beautiful person. I was normally a shy and introvert person but in front of the mirror I would act and dance freely. I think to get into Bollywood Industry we need to first start with modelling and get comfortable in front of the camera before we start acting. I grew watching Vogue and Victoria's Secret shows and was a big fan of fashion. Also being in the fashion capital that is Paris at the age of 16, inspired me a lot.

Why and when did you move to India?

I came to India for the first time in 2017 for my MBA from IMT Ghaziabad and then went back to Paris for 4 years to work there. When I worked in Finance and established a career in it I felt that maybe it's time to try the thing that I've always loved which is to get into Bollywood.

What qualities and attributes do you think are needed to become a good model?

I think that's a wrong question to ask in itself. Because the time has changed and we do not need to be perfect or to fit in a box to be a good model. Everyone is beautiful in their on way, whether you are thin or chubby, have long or short hair, tall or short. As long as you be yourself and confident, you don't need anything else to be a model.

How was your experience participating in the reality show MTV Roadies X9?

It was so challenging for me as it was within two months of me coming to India. I remember working so hard on my resume during those two months, go to the gym and work on my dancing skills. I used to google and contact casting directors, agencies as I had no clue what to do.

Being in Roadies was also tough as I struggled with the language and some of the participants were ex-roadies and they already knew the game. The competition level was already high and I'm proud of myself as even as a foreigner I was successful in building a personality and the perception that I wanted people to look at me through.

How was your experience working with Sunny Ratan for his music album Aja Aja?

That was also great. Sunny Ratan was someone I met in the gym who used to see me working hard everyday and he was inspired. Once he told me that he had a music video that he was producing and it would be good for my break. So, we discussed the project and it was nice working with someone who was also trying to build his craft at the same time. I thought it was a win-win situation.

And how was your acting experience in “Ulhje Hue”?

It was so amazing because that was my first movie experience and acting next to these experienced young actors gave me so much motivation and determination because we were at the same age but they were already there. I felt I needed to catch up but I learned a lot. That was a good feeling because it put a little bit of pressure on me and made me work twice harder.

Any new projects you are working on?

Yes, my first music video with me in the main lead is coming where I'm dancing and sizzling. It has some street dance and belly dance moves. It's an item number called Habibi. Another short movie called Continuity produced and directed by Deepak Singh.

What is your ideal role or character that you would like to play in a movie?

I would love to play a smart IT girl who has that power that no one can break easily but at the same time when she is with her lover she is sweet and fragile. I want that kind of character that everyone looks up to but once she's home she is very submissive and different.

What is your fitness routine?

I either dance or go to gym. If I want an outdoor workout I run, but sometimes I do an indoor workout with a lot of stretching.

What other secret talents do you have?

I believe I'm a good actor but language is still a

RAPID ROUND:

Favourite Sport: Running

Favourite Music: Punjabi Music Song Kismat

Favourite Travel Destination and why: Morocco because i can relate to the smell, it makes me feel like home.

Favourite TV Show: Friends

Favourite Food: Avocado egg toast and pasta

Favourite all time Movie: inception, Barfi, Mary kom, Dabang, Dear Zindagi barrier for me as most of the scripts are in Hindi. Other than acting, I'm good at dancing, and with numbers, negotiations and marketing.

What does the tattoo ‘ن’ on your finger signify? It's the letter N in Arabic. It actually has one point but I added two more to signify the three most important people in my life. Me my sister, my mom and my dad because all their names start with 'N'. It's in the middle finger next to the wedding finger because I'd like my husband to know that my family comes before everything.

Three things that make you happy? Being surrounded by my people that I love the most and good quality food with my people. I love sharing quality time with my family. Also being on set makes me happy and proud.

Your favourite quote (s)? My favourite qoute is Fake it till you make it happen.

What is your dream or what would you like to achieve?

My dream is to work with such people that I used to only look through my screen in Paris and in Morocco. That includes big directors, Anurag, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, actors like Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Also Nora Fatehi she's a big inspiration. Watching them in action on screen, I had never imagined being in Mumbai sharing the same space with them, the same industry. My future dream is that I would love to do Big Boss next year.

Your message for us at the CiiN magazine.

I love the name CiiN magazine as it reminds me of the letter ''س" from my mother tongue Arabic. It's also the first letter of my name. Thank you so much for giving me the space to express what I feel and asking such intriguing questions. I hope that you bring more opportunities in the industry. I would love to read or watch my interview on your pages.