Samadhi Dharmaratne is the new ‘Face of Kess’

Wednesday, 29 August 2012 00:01 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Salon Kess, in a bid to find Sri Lanka’s next top model, is proud to announce that the winner of its recently-concluded competition ‘Face of Kess’ is Samadhi Dharmaratne. Roshalie Fernando and Nadine Samarasinghe were selected as the 2nd place and 3rd place winners respectively.

The ‘Face of Kess’ competition, conducted entirely on Facebook for the first time in Sri Lanka saw a record number of applicants signing up to be the face of prestigious Salon Kess.

Applicants were initially requested to send in a recent picture, which was then uploaded onto Salon Kess’ Facebook page, and based on the number of likes and comments by its fans as well as the judges’ decisions, the top 20 were chosen. The judges were Vasantha De Silva, Style Director/Chairman, Salon Kess and Chris Burgess, London/Sri Lanka based photographer, director and film maker.

“This is the first time we carried out a competition of this nature. The response we had was overwhelming. We never expected over 70 ladies to apply. This is the first in our search for a new face, a new look. It is important that we open up avenues to everyone across the country to engage in our industry. It is initiatives like this that will bridge barriers and encourage everyone interested to explore the world of fashion,” said De Silva.

Following a one-on-one meeting with the top 20, the judges then narrowed it down to the final six, which consisted of Kei Watanabe, Nadine Samarasinghe, Roshalie Fernando, Samadhi Dharmaratne, Shanela De Livera and Shehani Liyanege.

The finalists then embarked on a two-day photo shoot – this pictures of which were uploaded on Facebook, and based on the number of likes and the judges’ final deliberations the next ‘Face of Kess’ was chosen.

‘Face of Kess’ is the brainchild of Kess’ founder and director, Vasantha De Silva – borne out of an imminent need to promote Sri Lanka’s beauty and talent to the rest of the world.