bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

I’m local Hongkongese. I was born and raised here in a single-parent family.
I had two childhood dreams: one was to be an air stewardess and the other was to model.
When I first sat on a plane, I told myself, “No. This is not a cool job.” It’s quite tiring and not as glamorous as I thought. You have to serve people all the way through a long flight.
So I decided to be a fashion model. I enrolled in a modeling school for six months, and I’ve been modeling since.
Years ago, when I was in Paris, I was at a casting. There were about 20 models there. They asked us to take all our clothes off with only our underwear on, so they could check out our figures.
It was the first time I was asked to do something like that. I did it, because I saw all the other girls doing it. If I didn’t do it, then what was the point of me going to that casting?
It was embarrassing and somehow, it felt like I lost my pride.
The fashion industry has changed since I began. We don’t have any newcomers who are from here. When you talk about the models of the moment, none of them are local.
There are also no shows. We used to have big fashion shows here at least once a month—in ballrooms where the stage is huge. We don’t see that anymore. It’s always inside a shop or at a restaurant.
“Lang mos” [pseudo-models] are totally different from fashion models. They don’t do the job that we do. The only thing that is similar is the name mo, the Chinese character meaning “model.”
We do real fashion shows. We have the body frame and the height for it. You don’t have to have big boobs to be a fashion model, but you have to have a proportional figure.
“Lang mos” can’t do fashion shows. Have you ever seen them in one? They do underwear and swimwear.
I met Michael [Wong] on a job. I asked him out. He was so proud of that. He told everyone.
I found him quite cute. I think it’s a little bit like love at first sight. He probably feels the same way, but I’ve never asked him.
He didn’t decline my asking him out, so I suppose he feels that way too.
Michael and I are chased by the paparazzi all the time. I don’t know why they’re so interested in me doing everyday things like waiting for a taxi and going to the supermarket.
Sometimes they write really nasty things, and I have some reservations.
Two weeks ago, they wrote that I was wearing glasses and looked like a witch. I had my makeup and hair done that day, and I thought I looked quite good. At an event, I saw a reporter from that magazine. So I went up to them and said, “Did I do something, or am I that horrible to you that you have to write something like that?”
Everything is fine now, but at least I told them how I felt to have something written about me that’s not too nice.
They spotted my elder daughter smoking outside a bar. I’m really grateful they saw her. Through the paparazzi, I found out something that I might not have been told before.
I thought she had quit smoking. I told her off, and I think and hope she’s trying to quit. So it’s a good thing, right?
Michael wouldn’t want our children to be in showbiz, but I don’t really mind. This is the 21st century—how can you control what your kids do or don’t do?
Hong Kong doesn’t have as many parties nowadays compared to years ago. I guess it’s because of the economy. 60 percent [of businesses] have moved to China.
I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not. But you have fewer opportunities to dress up and try to be a princess.
I don’t go out that much. Michael probably parties more. I’d rather hang out at home.
I still very much enjoy modeling. It’s a very interesting and glamorous business.
After that casting in Paris, I had some big jobs booked. But then I left without finishing them.
I was homesick. It’s quite stupid, right?
I think back to that time and ponder, “What if I hadn’t come back?” I could have been a big star in Paris.
But if I had never come back, I wouldn’t have met Michael, and my life would have been totally different.
I compare those choices, and I tell myself: “No regrets.” I have three loving children and a good husband—it’s what any woman could ask for.
As long as there are people who still want to hire me, I’ll still be in this business.


Best of the Best: Quotes from the Most Prominent People in Hong Kong

Designer Comma Leung is Crowdfunding to Make Wallets for the Blind

What Do I Need to Know to Survive in Hong Kong?

HK Mag Staff Pick Their Favorite Eats for the Last Time

HK Magazine Archive

Janet Ma

Photo: Sean Lee Davies

Magazines

Local supermodel Janet Ma has been in the limelight since the late 80s. She’s married to actor Michael Wong, and the glamorous pair is rarely out of the news. She sits down with Andrea Lo to talk about how she met her husband, her views on pseudo-models, and how the paparazzi can be a force of good as well as evil.
