ELLE Digital Cover Star: Nora Fatehi Is ‘Just A Girl’ Doing It All

Everyone has an opinion on Nora Fatehi. And they generally aren’t mild. Depending on who you ask, she’s either a game-changing talent redefining global Indian pop culture or a lightning rod — someone whose ambition, visibility and occasional provocative takes invite as much scrutiny as applause. Yet, regardless of where one stands, one fact remains impossible to debate: Fatehi stays relevant. She doesn’t just appear in culture; she interrupts it. 

Behind the glamour is a rigour few ever see. The explosive stage moments are built on near-ascetic discipline. And the payoff is unmistakable — especially in her recent US television debut, where she performed her latest single What Do I Know (Just a Girl), alongside Jamaican artist Shenseea. “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon was a manifestation of everything I’ve been building toward in my global pop era. We didn’t want it to be “just a performance”, we wanted it to be a music, dance and fashion moment that travelled across borders,” she says. “The idea was to introduce the world to what a Nora Fatehi moment looks like: bold, confident, high-energy, and culturally fluid.”

If this year looked like Nora Fatehi’s peak, she insists it’s simply a natural expansion of her universe — one where she now moves as actor, singer, producer and performer with intuitive ease. It kicked off with Snake, her chart-climbing collaboration with Jason Derulo, followed by The Royals on Netflix, where she made an entrance engineered to live rent-free in everyone’s mind. From there it was a global sprint: What followed was a parade of moments that cemented her as a genuine cross-continental force: a custom Tom Ford moment at the American Music Awards, the high-voltage of Oh Mama Tetema, the swagger of I’m So Rich, a front-row nod at Pharrell Williams’ Men’s SS ’26 show in Paris, and the shimmer of the Oscars after-party.  And finally, a homecoming — Dilbar Ki Aankhon Ka, a deliberate return to the genre she helped redefine. 

Before the fame, a young Nora Fatehi spent hours in her living room studying Shakira, Beyoncé and Rihanna — then recreating their performances beat for beat. “That instinct to study pop culture and reimagine it through my own lens has stayed with me,” she says. “Even as a kid, I had this hunger to express myself through movement and rhythm. That curiosity shaped the performer I am today.”

Naturally, her young adult years were defined by movement, too, just of a different kind. It played out like a montage of hustles: selling menswear at 16, fast food shifts, telemarketing scripts, dancing at weddings. Canadian-born and Moroccan by heritage, she arrived in India in pursuit of purpose, carrying with her one quiet certainty: no matter the job, she knew how to draw a crowd and keep their attention. Commercial modelling offered a foothold, films and South Indian songs added bricks, and reality shows cracked open a new lane. But the grind nearly broke her more than once. 

“There were years of nonstop work, rejection, and financial struggle, and I had to rebuild myself emotionally and professionally,” she admits. “There was a phase early on where I was juggling survival and ambition at the same time. No one will ever truly know how much strength that took. But those unseen battles built the resilience behind every pop moment I create today.”

Then Dilbar hit in 2018 — not as a breakout, but as a seismic rerouting. The song didn’t simply put her on the map; it shattered records, breaking YouTube’s history by clocking 24 million views in 24 hours. It was one of those rare “Okay, I’ve arrived” milestones. But Nora was never interested in being slotted as just another ‘item girl.’ Her benchmark was clear: she’d only take on songs where the choreography moved the needle, demanding something fresh from both her and the industry watching. And beneath the noise, something quieter began: her independent singing career, tucked into the Arabic version of Dilbar, hiding in plain sight. 

From that moment on, the catalogue only grew louder: Pepeta, Dirty Little Secret, Light The Sky for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, her self-titled NORA, a Warner Music deal, performances at Untold Dubai and Cherry Blossom 2025. With that kind of momentum, the question naturally arises — what does this constant traction signify for her now? “Virality, for me, is confirmation that the energy I put into my work is resonating worldwide. It tells me that what I’m creating isn’t just entertainment, it’s culture-shaping. As a pop star, that connection across continents is exactly what fuels my global pop era,” she says. 

Ask her what her next big dream looks like, and the answer is immediate: “A high-concept visual album blending Afro-Arab rhythms with electronic pop and a little Bollywood cinematic flair. I’d love to collaborate with artists who really push boundaries… someone like Rosalía, The Weeknd or J Balvin, and pair that with a director who understands movement-driven storytelling. The idea is to create a global pop moment that feels iconic, timeless, culturally expansive.”

You’d be right to assume she’s booked and busy, but the hunger to prove herself, even today, is what keeps her grounded. It’s the kind of drive that makes her revisit rehearsals long after everyone has packed up, rework a routine until the muscles remember it instinctively, or push for another take because she knows she can do better. “I give 200% to everything I do, and I expect the same energy from the people around me. Whether it's choreographers, musicians, directors, or stylists, we’re creating global pop moments, not ordinary content. I value discipline, collaboration, and the willingness to push limits. If you understand that, we can create magic together,” she says. 

That, perhaps, is the most disarming thing about Fatehi: the world may see a global celebrity, but she still carries the work ethic of the girl who once hustled her way through the anonymity of survival jobs. Off camera, she’s exceedingly human — loyal to her morning smoothie, particular about her avocado gluten-free sandwich (“never just slices”), and unbotheredly decisive about which pair of Louboutins completes her look. And then, without warning, she’s welling up when you note how her journey inspires thousands. It’s a rhythm built on precision and instinct — the rhythm of someone who knows exactly who she is.

Fatehi’s story isn’t about arrival. It never was. It’s about evolution. The kind that doesn’t ask for permission, the kind that announces itself with impact, and the kind that makes one thing unmistakably clear: she’s nowhere close to done.

Team Credits:

Editorial Director: Ainee Nizami Ahmedi (@aineenizamiahmedi); Photographer: Victoria Krundysheva (@victoriakrundysheva); Fashion Director: Zoha Castelino (@zohacastelino); Asst. Art Director: Alekha Chugani (@alekhachuganii); Makeup: Séverine Perina (@beautybysevy) rep by Faze Management (@fazemanagement); Hair: Hrishikesh Naskar (@hrishidoeshair) rep by Eficiente Management (@eficientemanaganent); Bookings Editor: Rishith Shetty (@rishithvshetty); Assisted by: Idris Nidham (@iidrrisss ), Hardika Singh (@i__hardika) (styling), Sharayu Karalkar (@sharayukaralkar) (bookings).