Danila Polyakov: “Now I eat chocolate instead of vodka”

Biography

Danila Polyakov is a Russian fashion model, fashion model, dancer, TV presenter, who built a dizzying career in the West in the early 2000s.

Danila Polyakov

Until recently, the androgyne who shone on the world's catwalks can hardly be distinguished by anyone from a city freak: Polyakov does not hesitate to beg in the central district of Moscow, calling himself homeless.

Childhood and youth

Danila Polyakov was born on January 31, 1983 in Moscow. The boy grew up in a large and creative family: his father was an artist, and his mother worked as a teacher in a kindergarten. Danila was the youngest child and already in early childhood began to look for ways to differ from his older sisters and brother.

As a child, the boy loved to attract attention to himself by dressing in strange outfits. He came to school in this form, causing bewilderment among his classmates and teachers. Danila strived for creativity and was not afraid to show his own uniqueness. Even the profession he dreamed of was unusual - he wanted to become a pastry chef because he loved sweets.

Danila Polyakov on the set of the film "Entropy"

Danila did not like to study. The only subject that Polyakov liked was natural science. He was fond of sports, although this did not particularly affect his figure. The guy swam in the pool, went to fencing and dancing. The father tried to teach his son to play hockey, but the men's game did not evoke a response in the heart of young Polyakov.

At the age of 15, the young man began dancing in go-go clubs and a year later attracted the attention of the new group “Demo”, where he became a dancer. In the group, the guy became very close to the lead singer Maria Zheleznyak, who was his sister’s friend. The girl taught her friend how to use cosmetics and choose outfits, which made Danila think about a modeling career.

Danila Polyakov has a non-standard appearance

His unconventional appearance also contributed to such a profession. The guy performed with the group “Demo” until 1999, after which his parents still forbade him to participate in tours. Danila began collaborating with the singer Valeria’s team and DJ Groove.

After school, Polyakov dreamed of enrolling as a landscape designer, but studying was expensive, so the guy chose the profession of a journalist. After completing preparatory courses, he tried to enter college, but failed the exams. In order not to end up in the army, Danila had to enter the Natalya Nesterova University to major in advertising.

Danila Polyakov: biography

Danila Polyakov was born on January 31, 1983 in Moscow. The boy grew up in a large, intelligent and creative family: his father was an artist, and his mother worked as a teacher in a kindergarten. Danila was the youngest child and already in early childhood began to look for ways to be different from his older sisters and brother. The boy loved to attract attention to himself, often dressing in extremely strange and, in his own way, extraordinary outfits. He came to school in this form, causing bewilderment among his classmates and teachers. Danila always strived for creativity and was not afraid to show his uniqueness. Even the profession he dreamed of was unusual - he wanted to become a pastry chef because he loved sweets.

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Danila Polyakov

Danila did not like to study. The only subject that Polyakov liked was natural science. He played sports, although this did not particularly affect his figure. The guy swam in the pool, fenced and went dancing. The father tried to teach his son to play hockey, but the purely male game did not evoke a response in the heart of young Polyakov.

At the age of fifteen, the young man began dancing in go-go clubs and a year later attracted the attention of the new group “Demo”, where the guy became a dancer. In the group, the guy became quite close to the lead singer Maria Zheleznyak, who was his sister’s friend. The girl taught her friend how to use cosmetics and choose outfits, which made Danila think about a modeling career.

Non-standard appearance of Danila Polyakov

His unconventional appearance also contributed greatly to his profession. The guy performed with the group “Demo” until 1999, after which his parents nevertheless forbade him to participate in tours with the group. Danila began collaborating with the singer Valeria’s team and the famous DJ Groove.

After school, Polyakov dreamed of enrolling as a landscape designer, but the training was too expensive, so the guy chose the profession of a journalist. After completing preparatory courses, he tried to enter college, but failed the exams. In order not to end up in the army, Danila had to enter the Natalya Nesterova University to major in advertising.

Fashion and creativity

During one of Valeria’s performances, the young and unconventional dancer was noticed by designer Svetlana Vatanina. Danila stood out for his tall height (189 cm) with low weight and a shock of red hair. The girl invited Polyakov to show her collection at the Smirnoff competition, where stylist Galina Smirnskaya noticed him and offered to pose for Ptyuch magazine.

Model Danila Polyakov

Later, the guy took part in a photo shoot for the fashionable youth magazine OM, after which the Storm modeling agency invited him to sign a contract. The bright start became a fateful moment in his biography for the young man.

Danila became a model at the show of the new collection of the famous Russian fashion designer Denis Simachev. The guy’s appearance simply amazed journalists and model critics; his face quickly became recognizable. Simachev provided the guy only with his best things, thanks to which Polyakov became known in Russia and abroad. Even then, he set himself the goal of becoming a “universal” model, capable of showing both men’s clothing and women’s collections. In many ways, Polyakov’s androgynous appearance and figure contributed to this decision.

Danila Polyakov on the podium

Soon Danila had the opportunity to bring his idea to life: the stylist of the Prada fashion house, David Bradshaw, invited the guy to shoot for GQ magazine, where he had to pose as a woman.

The photo shoot caused an unprecedented stir around the model and the image, giving rise to a whole wave of imitators: in an instant, fiery red hair combined with delicate aristocratic features became popular in the fashion world. However, there were also those who did not appreciate Polyakov, considering his appearance in fashion a mistake.

Danila Polyakov - androgynous

In 2006, another photo shoot took place for the fashionable Italian magazine “Vogue” with photographer Steven Meisel. The magazine gave Danila an even greater number of fans and invitations to trendy shows around the world.

Polyakov became a popular model not only in men's shows, but also in women's, where he managed to occupy a special place. The brands Prada, Yohji Yamamoto, Jean Paul Gaultier, Junya Watanabe and Denis Simachev wanted to see him on their catwalks, and he reciprocated.

Danila Polyakov in advertising

After resounding success in Europe, Danila decided to return to Russia and continue his career here. The guy founded his own brand “100% vanilla”, which he dedicated to the so-called “crisis of 25 years”. He released a clothing collection and also organized a photo project from photographer Alexei Kiselev. It was attended by 25 people who were 25 years old and who dreamed of changing their lives and showing the audience their essence.

Danila Polyakov in heels

On his own birthday, January 31, in the Russian capital, Polyakov opened an exhibition of home clothes from the 100% Vanilla brand. The collection contained 35 items of clothing and accessories that were torn in private areas.

In 2010, Danila appeared in two shows of collections of Russian designers: Vyacheslav Zaitsev and Masha Tsigal. For the latter, he acted as a stylist, in which he was quite successful. Thanks to him, the collection acquired striking photographs and a conceptual video.

Danila Polyakov and Marina Glukhova

In 2011, the model received the position of creative director of the Pure Joy Fashion brand. However, Danila himself considers this job temporary, since the position requires a constant presence in the office, which the guy is not used to. Danila’s professional career was facilitated by his friend Marina Glukhova, who at that time was promoting the brand in the media.

In the same year, Polyakov tried himself as a jury member in the reality show about fashion “Top Model in Russian.” Of the 14 participants, the modeling star had to choose one winner. The second season of the show took place in London, the third in Miami, after the filming of which the producers decided to change the entire jury.

Danila Polyakov on the jury of the show “Top Model in Russian”

Polyakov became a guest of the Comedy Club comedy show, where he took part in the “Song about Flattery” number. For the shoot, the model dressed in cut-off jeans and a shirt, and Danila wore a Vietnamese nonla headdress on his head. Later, the model appeared on the air of the “We Talk and Show!” program, the theme of which was called “Redhead in Heels.”

Danila Polyakov in the Comedy Club show - “Song about flattery”

In 2013, a joint exhibition of Danila and photographer Dmitry Zhuravlev entitled “Natura” opened in the capital’s RuArts gallery. The mannequin's photographs were closely related to the theme of nature and were shown without the use of graphic editors.

What is Danila Polyakov doing now?

Girls, hello!)
Does anyone remember the fashion model Danya Polyakov? I remember about 2 years ago there were a lot of videos of him on YouTube, where he was walking down the street drunk and in some rags, his pussy flashing... It was a pity for him, the man was slowly slipping away. Then he somehow disappeared from my field of vision. But today I remembered him, googled information about him, it turns out he returned to work and to a more or less normal life. But more on that later. First I would like to remind you of him.

Daniil Polyakov is a Russian fashion model, a world-class top model, the only Russian male supermodel and the first male model from Russia to take part in the shows of Fendi, John Galiano, Vivienne WestWood, Jean Paul Gaultier and other world designers. In the fashion world, Danya was appreciated for his inner freedom and love of shocking.

He signed his first major contract with the British modeling agency Storm. The takeoff of Danila’s career can be considered the moment when he found himself on a shoot with the English GQ designer, then Prada stylist, David Bradshaw, which included exclusively female images. Danila Polyakov has become a sought-after model not only in men's shows, but also in women's. At Milan Fashion Week 2007-2008 he opened the women's show of Gianfranco Ferre. In 2006, he starred in a photo shoot for Italian Vogue. He returned to Russia at the height of his Western career due to his mother’s serious illness. For some time he worked with Russian fashion designers. In 2010, Danila took part in Vyacheslav Zaitsev’s show in Moscow, appearing there as a woman, and also became a stylist for Masha Tsigal’s autumn-winter collection.

In 2011, he worked as a creative director and also became a judge on the television project “Top Model in Russian.”

In 2013, Danila became a participant in the TV show “Dancing with the Stars”, dancing together with Alla Anastasyeva. In 2020, he participated as a host in the show “Fashion Police” on the STS Love channel. Then there was a lull in Dani’s career. He started drinking, as many probably remember.

Danila on the podium.

Various photo sessions.

The other day I saw his recent interview, in which he talks about changes in life, said that he has not been drinking for almost a year, is realizing himself as an artist-designer and stylist, creating images in the art style. In general, I am sharing the interview with you.

Tell us, how do contemporary artists live now? Enough for a piece of bread. At the same time, I do different things: I act as a model, walk on the catwalk, collaborate with Olya Samodumova as part of her vintage design project Peremotka. Sometimes I am called to work as a stylist - it turns out to be something between a production designer and a costume designer. In general, I put the puzzle together in my own way and act as an accumulator for what interests me. I love doing things with my hands, creating images and moods. The most difficult thing is not to surprise, but to delight

You said before that you don't know how to spend money correctly. Has anything changed? Certainly! Reasonable savings have appeared, especially since for the last two years I have been living alone and am responsible for myself. The brains began to work differently. By the way, I recently finally understood why people drag everything into a hole: so that the guests have something to show and tell!

Do you have this "mink"? Various media outlets wrote that you had to spend the night on the street... It wasn’t like that, of course! I have always led a nomadic lifestyle: I could live with friends and relatives. It’s just that one day one of the TV people asked how I was doing, and then presented a picture of what was happening in a bad light. I used to move from place to place, but recently I settled down and have been living in my relatives’ apartment in Krylatskoye for 2 years.

About alcohol. How much could you drink before?

Alone I could drink two bottles of vodka a day. I remember how I woke up and plunged into an alcohol trip, came up with something, got dressed, laughed... Surprisingly, I stopped drinking overnight. This happened about a year ago. I have always been clear that when I have a terrible hangover, it will be better if I drink. But one day there was a click: the body simply blocked the “hangover” function. I remember how the sweat disappeared from my face for three days... I was still surprised how this could happen. As a result, the brain was completely renewed and returned 20 years ago, and my health improved. I started dancing, stretching and walking, and sewing. I also started overeating on sweets: now instead of vodka I eat chocolate and Napoleon cake. It turns out that, having quit drinking, I returned to childhood, when I was literally sick of candy. Now I don’t understand how you can drink alcohol at all? Just don’t think that I’m behaving like a sectarian and imposing my position on others, that’s not true.

I admit, when I was getting ready for the interview, I expected to see Danila Polyakov with all his outrageousness. And now you look completely normal... Lately I dress very simply. I don’t know what this is connected with. Do you sew everything yourself or do you still buy some of your clothes? Mostly I sew it myself, but sometimes I buy it. There is a wonderful charity store in Moscow called Lavka Joy. There you can buy something and donate it. All funds raised are transferred to help children in need.

What other interesting places in Moscow can you recommend? Go to the Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Garage, Multimedia Art Museum, as well as the good old Tretyakov Gallery, the Paleontological Museum. Just don’t hang out there for hours and carry sandwiches. Spend a maximum of thirty minutes. What do you think, if now, as before, you walked the streets of Moscow in skirts, what would the reaction be? Has our society become more tolerant? Tolerance is an eternal problem, but still our society, albeit slowly, is moving in this direction. There is a lot of information in the public domain now. You can read and find out about everything. But on the other hand, there is also plenty of tin.

And I’ll add some photos of Dani at the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2020.

Danya on the podium. Show RakshaMasha. 20.10.19.

Personally, Danila never caused me any negativity. I’m glad that he’s busy again, working, and I’m glad that he doesn’t drink anymore. I hope it doesn't break. May everything be fine with him.

Scandals

Having become a world-famous catwalk star, Polyakov continued to shock the public with renewed vigor with his behavior and frank statements. He put on women's outfits, in which he walked along the streets of the city, causing both admiration and disgust among passers-by.

By appearing at public events, Polyakov provoked another scandal. One day, while attending a performance by Ksenia Sobchak, the androgyne began shouting to the TV presenter how much he loved her. After Danila was reprimanded, he, without thinking twice, urinated on the floor, which shocked those present.

Danila Polyakov with Alla Anastaseva in the show “Dancing with the Stars”

In 2013, Danila became a participant in the popular show “Dancing with the Stars,” where he danced together with Alla Anastasyeva.

During one performance, the model took off his pants, appearing in front of the audience in shorts. According to the artist himself, in this way he tried to smooth out the impression of an incompletely learned dance.

In July 2020, Polyakov again shocked the public by starting to dance at the Fruitvibrations electronic music festival, dropping his pants and exposing his butt to the public. However, his prank went unpunished, only providing journalists with a number of photographs and material for articles.

Shocking Danila Polyakov

Over time, his photo shoots became more and more shocking, and his appearances on the catwalk were accompanied by scandalous antics. Thus, during the filming for the autumn-winter lookbook of cashmere accessories by Katia Mossina, Danila appeared naked, only covering himself with his hands. Considering the complexity of the fashion model’s character, he was less and less invited to fashion shows.

He was increasingly seen only as a fashion model, and Danila’s social circle narrowed to a group of young designers. On behalf of Polyakov there is a personal profile on Instagram, where he posts photos and videos from previous shows. New shots have not appeared on the model’s page for a long time.

Fashion

During one of Valeria’s performances, the young and unconventional dancer was noticed by designer Svetlana Vatanina. The girl invited Polyakov to show her collection at the Smirnoff competition, where stylist Galina Smirnskaya noticed him and offered to pose for Ptyuch magazine. Later, the guy took part in a photo shoot for the fashionable youth magazine OM, after which the Storm modeling agency invited him to sign a contract.

Model Danila Polyakov

Danila became a model in the show of the new collection of the famous Russian fashion designer Denis Simachev. The guy’s appearance simply amazed journalists and leading modeling critics; his face quickly became recognizable. Simachev provided the guy only with his best things, thanks to which Polyakov became known not only in Russia, but also abroad. Even then, he set himself the goal of becoming a “universal” model, capable of showing not only men’s clothing, but also women’s collections. In many ways, Polyakov’s androgynous appearance and figure contributed to this decision.

Soon Danila had the opportunity to bring his idea to life: the stylist of the Prada fashion house, David Bradshaw, invited the guy to shoot for GQ magazine, where he had to pose as a woman. The photo shoot caused an unprecedented stir around the model and the image, giving rise to a whole wave of imitators: in an instant, fiery red hair combined with delicate aristocratic features became incredibly popular in the fashion world. However, there were also those who did not appreciate Polyakov, considering his appearance in fashion a mistake.

Danila Polyakov on the podium

In 2006, another photo shoot took place for the fashionable Italian magazine “Vogue” with leading photographer Steven Meisel. The magazine gave Danila an even greater number of fans and invitations to trend shows around the world. Polyakov became a popular model not only in men's shows, but also in women's, where he managed to occupy a special place.

After resounding success in Europe, Danila decided to return to Russia and continue his career there. The guy founded his own brand “100% vanilla”, which he dedicated to the so-called “crisis of twenty-five years”. He released a clothing collection and also organized a photo project from photographer Alexei Kiselev. The project involved twenty-five people who turned twenty-five and who dreamed of changing their lives and showing the audience their essence.

Danila Polyakov - androgynous

On his birthday, January 31, in the capital of Russia, Polyakov opened an exhibition of home clothes from the 100% Vanilla brand. The collection contained thirty-five items of clothing and accessories that were torn in private areas.

Danila Polyakov on the jury of the show “Top Model in Russian”

In the same year, Polyakov tried himself as a jury member in the reality show about fashion “Top Model in Russian.” Of the fourteen participants, the modeling star had to choose only one winner. The second season of the show took place in London, the third in Miami. After filming the third season of “Top Model in Russian,” the producers decided to change the entire jury.

Personal life

Danila Polyakov prefers to remain silent about his personal life, but is happy to talk about intimate preferences and experiments. He does not hide the fact that he had close relationships with men. However, Danila is still closer to traditional relationships and values; at one time he lived with a girl named Marina in his own apartment in Moscow.

Marina was called the wife of Danila Polyakov

In an interview in 2020, Danila stated that he lost his home, often sleeps in the open air and eats instant noodles. Fans of the model assumed that this was part of the image of a freak, but the young man is still met on Arbat or on Kamergersky Lane, where he begs.

Polyakov has repeatedly stated that family life, wife and children have never been a priority for him. He still does not feel ready to take responsibility for his loved ones. Although, as Polyakov admits, he once proposed marriage to a girl, however, he kept silent about the name of his chosen one.