Shanina Shaik Australian Model Born 1991 in Melbourne

Early life

Shanina Mahinur Shaik was born on 11 February 1991 in Melbourne, Australia. Her mother, Kim, is Australian with Lithuanian roots; her maternal grandparents emigrated from Lithuania after the Second World War. Her father, Hanif, was born in Singapore and has Pakistani and Saudi heritage. She attended Werribee Secondary College.

Shaik began modelling at the age of eight, working for the department store Myer and appearing in a television advertisement for Hyundai. She paused that work when she started secondary school, where she was accepted into an accelerated programme and finished a year ahead of her classmates. At fifteen she entered the Girlfriend Model Competition. Agents showed interest, but she was too young to move to Sydney, so she took part in the Australian reality series Make Me a Supermodel instead and finished as runner-up.

Career

Shaik made her runway debut in the autumn and winter 2009 season in New York, where she walked in eight shows and opened for the designer Yeohlee. In the following seasons she worked for labels including Betsey Johnson, Catherine Malandrino, Project Runway and Bebe. She appeared in catalogues for retailers such as Macy's, Urban Outfitters, Bloomingdale's, J. C. Penney and Ann Taylor, and in advertising for brands including Aéropostale, Cotton On, Olay and Bonds. After signing with New York Model Management she also appeared in editorial pages for Seventeen and Men's Health.

In 2011 she changed agencies to NEXT Model Management and worked on campaigns for the Italian lingerie company Intimissimi and the Australian shoe label RMK. She also walked in Rosemount Australian Fashion Week for the spring and summer 2012 season, appearing for labels such as L.A.M.B. and Lisa Blue.

Her major breakthrough was being cast in the 2011 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. She was the sixth Australian model in the show, after Miranda Kerr, Jessica Hart, Elyse Taylor, Sarah Stephens and Abbey Lee Kershaw. She also walked for Chanel's pre-fall 2012 collection at the Grand Palais in Paris. In 2012 she appeared in print work for Victoria's Secret and Bonds, and during the autumn and winter 2012 shows she opened for Jason Wu and walked for houses including Oscar de la Renta, Tom Ford, Vivienne Westwood, Stella McCartney, Diesel and Nanette Lepore. She also shot a feature for Vogue Australia.

Shaik became an ambassador for the Australian clothing chain Just Jeans, for which she modelled alongside the rugby player Sonny Bill Williams, and in 2016 she became a brand ambassador for the swimwear label Seafolly. Her magazine covers include Cosmopolitan, Cleo, Vogue India and editions of Harper's Bazaar in Singapore, Arabia, Vietnam and Australia. In 2019 she appeared on the cover of the May and June issue of Maxim.

Personal life

In a 2022 interview Shaik described herself as a spiritual person and said she had been giving more attention to her mental wellbeing as she got older. She follows a largely plant-based diet and avoids soft drinks and fruit juice. She is active on social media, where her Instagram account has more than three million followers.