The Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, first published in 1964, is an iconic American publication. It has served as a launching pad for many future supermodels, including Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Heidi Klum.
The issue attracts tens of millions of dollars in advertising.

Dara is the daughter of Atlanta, Georgia residents Poornima and Prithipal Dara.
Sonia Dara was discovered at the young age of 16 by the New York-based Elite Model Management, one of the countrys high-powered modeling agencies.

She later went on to do assignments for magazines like Seventeen and Cosmo Girl. But she never lost sight of academics and she is enrolled at Harvard, studying economics and human evolutionary biology. Dara is als a member of the Harvard South Asian Dance Company.

In a video posted on Sports Illustrateds website, Dara said of shooting in Rajasthan, Since this is where my ancestors are, I feel theres a certain place in my heart for it.