Mr Model of Tourism World to be Paul Charles’s last pageant

Paul Charles
Paul Charles

Pageant veteran Paul Charles will close that chapter of his life when he represents Guyana at the international leg of the Mr Model of Tourism World in May; it will be his final pageant.

He is certain that the experience will be bittersweet. Paul, who is also a dancer, turns 35 in April, noted that it was time to step away from pageantry, but promised to use his experience to continue to mentor and train other representatives for Guyana.

“My journey in competing in pageants will come to an end this year. This will be my farewell pageant. It’s amazing,” Paul said. “I’m happy to have been given this opportunity to represent Guyana because this is what I do and this is what I love but on the other hand, I’m still nervous because it’s been so long since I last competed in a pageant. I’m very much excited and prepared to the best of my ability to make it happen. This is not just for me but to show that men have what it takes to be on the international stage and do pageants too.”

Asked whether he thought he was a front-runner in the upcoming competition, having had a great deal of experience in competing in pageants, Paul said it was about competing, “with the man in the mirror”, but he is working to be the best he can be. Though the pageant is four months away, the dancer has already started training. For the talent category, he will be doing what he does best, dancing.

“I always tell this story. Growing up in a low-income community, which is Albouystown, and in a single parent home, I found my talent in 2002 and took the opportunity to build on that and to let that make me a better and rounded individual,” said Paul. The second of four children, he dropped out of school to assist his mother in sustaining their family. His first job was as an assistant at GuyOil at the company’s Providence location, when he was only 14 years old. Later that same year he joined the Young and Thoughtful Youth Group at the Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association. It was through this group that he began dancing and continued to hone that skill with the Classique Dance Company for 13 years.

“Classique was my backbone. It was through them that I got many opportunities to perform at events in and out of Guyana,” he said.

Paul later pursued his CXC’s at Global Technology where he sat five subjects and passed them all. He went on to do Theatre Arts at the Bishops’ High School, securing a distinction in the subject and later a diploma in Computer Studies at Global Technology.

He is currently at the Ministry of Health National AIDS Programme Secretariat and does outreaches in the hinterland and around Guyana ensuring that people know their status and counselling them.

While Paul’s major setback in dropping out of school could have taken him down another path, it instead became a stepping stone. His dedication to success and self-development and the development of others make him an ideal candidate for the title he now seeks.

“This is the story I want to tell and share so that young people should know that no matter what the situation you would have gone through or are going through right now, you should put self first and make it happen for you. Life is not easy, there are speed bumps, but you have to keep going because there is light at the end of the tunnel for you,” he advised.

While Guyana needs to be more accepting of men competing in pageants, there are still many people who are still ignorant about what pageants are on the whole. Gone are the days when pageants were almost always about physical appearance. Paul noted that a lot of people do not see past the glitz and the glam of pageantry.

“Being in a pageant, we would have to have a cause or passion. Pageants are very uplifting. For me in this pageant, I’m focusing on youth development through art and culture. It’s way beyond the glitz and the glam. Being in a pageant, you have to have your talent, you have to have your head on, you have to have your smarts, and you have to have your cause, and even after the pageant is gone, your cause still keeps on going,” stressed Paul.

He also took the opportunity to talk to men who are fearful of being stigmatized and discriminated against for choosing non-traditional careers and opportunities.

“This is something we’ve been fighting for and struggling with over the years when it comes to pageantry and runway. I think it’s a third world thing because in North America and Asia and Europe, there are a lot of males who would have gained a lot of exposure and gained a career in modelling,” he posited. “So yes, there is a stigma of males in the fashion industry but what [men] need to do is to put pride and our ego aside and make something of it. If you think that modelling is your thing, or dancing, fashion designing, or cooking is your thing, then you need to go after that. Make it happen for you despite what the world may think. Don’t let what people say stop you. I use those negative comments as motivation.”

Mr Model of Tourism World Guyana 2021 has participated in Guyana Model Search in 2008 and 2012 where he finished in 2nd and 3rd places respectively; Super Model Search (2005); Shubu Face-off 2012 (1st runner-up); Mr United Nations 2012 (1st runner up and Best Talent); Mr Guyana International 2014 where he won the title and was awarded Best Talent and Best Physique; Mr Caribbean 2015 in Dominica which he won and also copped prizes for Best Talent and Best Costume; and the Music, Model, Talent and Showcase 2016 competition where he won the Mr Commercial Print title.

Paul acknowledged all those who have been with him along his journey so far, as well as those responsible for making this present opportunity available to men. At the moment he needs sponsors as he goes forward in representing Guyana.

 

Photos by SR Photography