By Nethmie Dehigama   The ever-talented Rochelle is a Sri Lankan blogger and social media influencer who has found her niche in beauty and makeup. Over the past eight years, she has garnered a significant local and international audience, with multiple viral posts and recognition by international brands. We caught up with her for a chat.   Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself. A: I'm Rochelle. I’m 27 years old and I have been a beauty blogger based in Sri Lanka for the past eight years.   Q: You have studied law while also being a social media beauty influencer. Did you ever imagine you’d be doing these two things side by side when you were younger? A: Never could I have in a million years imagined I’d be doing what I’m doing, especially while in Sri Lanka. Back when I started my blog, the social media industry in Sri Lanka was pretty much non-existent. I didn’t think that anybody would be interested in watching a girl from Sri Lanka do her makeup since the global beauty community was mostly saturated with white people. Beauty has always been a passion of mine since I was little, and later on a hobby, but I never thought I would give up a career and a future in law for this. However, the freedom, independence, and happiness I’ve received from following my true passion and working for myself is not something I’ll ever give up. It has been a huge blessing in my life and in the end, it was all well worth it. I’m glad I decided to follow my passion and turn my hobby into a career.   Q: Your Instagram @RochelleWick has now reached 262K followers, and you have a considerable international audience too. How did your beauty blogging journey begin? A: As I mentioned earlier, beauty and makeup have always been something I was interested in as a child. I’ve enjoyed putting on a little bit of makeup and dressing up. When I was in university, I would occasionally post makeup selfies without thinking much of it. That was my go-to stress reliever, a form of therapy almost. One day a photo of mine was shared by a makeup brand with a huge following which led to quite a number of new followers. From there on, I would post regularly. Afterward, I started posting viral content/makeup hacks. Everything blew up from there.   Q: Who are your muses when it comes to makeup and beauty? A: I’ve always loved and admired Pamela Anderson not just for her unique beauty and style but also for what she stands for. She’s definitely one of my major inspirations. I also love Türkan Şoray, an iconic Turkish actress. Monica Bellucci is another inspiration and Kylie Jenner from the new generation.   Q: Where do you see yourself and your brand in the next 10 years? A: I’m really not sure. I stopped making plans for myself years ago. The time has come for me to take a break from my makeup brand due to personal reasons and the unfortunate situation in the country which has made it nearly impossible to run a business that relies on imports. However, I’m open to venturing out and starting something new. As for my blog, I would like to rebrand a little bit and start sharing more about myself. I’ve always kept it strictly makeup, but now I’d like to include more lifestyle content, too. All in all, I’m very much looking forward to seeing where life takes me in the next decade.   Q: What is your advice to other beauty bloggers in Sri Lanka? A: Follow trends for engagement but don’t rely on trends for longevity. Be original and be creative. You don’t have to be good at something to be successful; you’ll learn along the way. Just make sure you put your heart and soul into whatever you do and do it with love. Most importantly, be persistent and consistent. This is what I do.   Q: What do you think is the secret to happiness? A: For me, true happiness comes from having freedom – freedom to live your life the way you want to, the freedom to wake up in the morning and decide what you want to do with your day, and the freedom to express yourself and be who you are without having to fit into places you don't even belong. To me, there’s no happiness without freedom. Happiness is freedom.   PHOTO © ROCHELLE WICKRAMASURIYA   Nethmie Dehigama has a BA (Hons) in International Communications. She is a digital marketer, songwriter, literature enthusiast, and writer.