You wouldn’t think this svelte and sultry 27-year-old teaches kids for a living but that’s exactly what she does.



Layka Sethuram is an educator or in her own words, she’s an “interactive educator” who teaches children aged 3 to 6 arts and crafts and other fun stuff.



“Modelling is only a part-time occupation for me. My full-time job is teaching kids but it’s not the conventional way of teaching. I work for an agency which provides a different approach to teaching young kids by engaging their five senses through various activities,” said Layka who works at Doodle Stickman agency where she was trained as an interactive educator.














There’s a simple reason why the former Miss Universe Malaysia 2012 finalist went into teaching: “I like kids.” And she’s been actively teaching for three years now.



Teaching however, is a relatively new occupation to Layka as she has been modelling for 10 years now.



“I started modelling when I was 17. I was introduced to it by a friend,” said Layka, who is of Chinese and Indian parentage.



Born in Sungai Petani, Kedah, Layka was raised in Kuala Lumpur and as a model, she frequently did photoshoots for magazines and newspapers, walked the runway for fashion shows as well as appeared in events.



Out of all the aforementioned activities she indulges in as a model, Layka enjoys doing photoshoots and hitting the runway the most.



So what’s it like for her to have taken part in the Miss Universe Malaysia 2012 competition?



“It was very challenging but it was a great experience overall.”



Layka says she doesn’t have much time for herself between modelling and teaching but when she does, she takes the opportunity to hang out with her friends.



“I’m not much of a movie person, so I don’t go to the cinema very often,” she said but she does enjoy listening to music.



“The kind of music I like listening to is acoustic alternative like Yuna and Boyce Avenue, among others,” she said.

And here’s something you wouldn’t expect of Layka: her knowledge of cars.



She posed with the Volvo V40 T4 (RM173,888 on-the-road without insurance) and when we tested her knowledge by telling her this hot hatch produces 180hp and whether that meant anything to her, she said, “That’s powerful enough for a car like this.”



When asked about her interest in cars and where she learnt it from, Layka attributed it to her dad who’s really into cars.



“Being a model and attending car launches and motor related events taught me a lot about cars too.”



As for the Volvo itself, Layka likes the way it looks amongst other things.



“The way it’s designed is really good. I like it a lot. I think it would be a perfect car for girls.”

The V40.