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DUBAI: Part-Middle Eastern actress Yara Shahidi is the face of Jean Paul Gaultier’s latest “Divine” campaign for the luxury brand’s new elixir.

 The French brand released its Divine eau de parfum as an elixir — a type of concentrated perfume — this week, with Shahidi starring in the campaign alongside model Raphael Diogo.

Crafted by perfumer Quentin Bisch, the scent has floral and marine notes and was first released as an eau de parfum in 2023.

The fragrance is vegan, cruelty free and made with 90 percent “natural origin ingredients responsibly sourced,” according to the label.  

In a new set of images and clips shared on social media, Shahidi can be seen posing in a gold-hued sequinned gown while clutching the new product. The actress also showed off a velvet black top edged with gold baubles in another image.

In the original 2023 campaign, Shahidi appeared alongside Spanish actress Lola Rodriquez, South African catwalk star Thando Hopa, US actress and model Tess McMillan, Lagos-born model Janet Jumbo and Brazilian runway model Ana Elisa de Brito.  

The “Grown-ish” star was also included in the casting decisions and creative aspects of the launch, which aimed to celebrate women. 

“Actress, model, activist, social justice advocate and feminist, she was one of Time Magazines’ Most Influential Teens of 2016. Harvard graduate and creator of Eighteen x 18, a platform to encourage young US people to vote, Yara Shahidi has many different faces,” the brand wrote in a statement at the time.

The collaboration came after Shahidi was spotted wearing a custom-made, bronzed look by Jean Paul Gaultier at the 2023 Met Gala.

 Shahidi is also a global ambassador for the Dior’s fashion and beauty lines and was named among National Geographic’s list of 33 “visionaries, creators, icons, and adventurers” from across the globe earlier this year.

Part-Middle Eastern star Shahidi, whose father is Iranian, was named on the list in the “Creators” subsection that celebrates “out-of-the-box thinkers developing innovative solutions.”

The “Black-ish” and “Grown-ish” actress was highlighted due to her podcast “The Optimist Project.”

Shahidi, 25, launched the podcast to explore how to live a more fulfilling life with various special guests hosted on each episode.

Shahidi, a Harvard graduate, says she was inspired by the dynamic conversations she has with members of her diverse family. 

LONDON: Several bands withdrew from a British festival on Saturday following claims that Irish folk group The Mary Wallopers had their set cut short for displaying a Palestinian flag.

The incident sparked a wave of boycotts from other performers in solidarity, it was reported on Sunday.

The Last Dinner Party, Cliffords, and The Academic announced that they would no longer perform at the annual Victorious Festival in Portsmouth, citing concerns over political censorship.

Rock band The Last Dinner Party described the incident as “outrageous” and said they could not condone silencing artists.

“As Gazans are deliberately plunged into catastrophic famine after two years of escalating violence, it is urgent and obvious that artists use their platform to draw attention to the cause,” the band said in a statement shared on Instagram.

They urged fans to support Palestinian medical charities and apologized to those hoping to see them perform.

The Mary Wallopers claimed the festival released a “misleading statement” by suggesting their set was cut due to a discriminatory chant, rather than the band’s call to “Free Palestine.”

They released video footage showing a crew member removing the flag from the stage before the sound was cut.

“The same crew member is later heard saying ‘You aren’t playing until the flag is removed’,” the band added.

The Academic said they could not “in good conscience” perform at a festival that silenced free speech, while Cliffords said they “refuse to play if we are to be censored for showing our support to the people of Palestine.”

Festival organizers initially said The Mary Wallopers’ microphones were turned off after displaying the flag, citing a long-standing policy against flags for safety and event management reasons.

They said: “We spoke to the artist before the performance regarding the festival’s long-standing policy of not allowing flags of any kind at the event, but (we said) that we respect their right to express their views during the show.”

They acknowledged, however, that the policy was not communicated sensitively and apologized for the way the situation was handled.

They added: “The Mary Wallopers are a fantastic band, and we were very much looking forward to their performance on Friday.

“We are in the business of putting on great shows, not cutting them off, and this is the last thing we wanted — for the band, their fans and ourselves.”

Organizers also pledged to make a “substantial donation” to humanitarian relief efforts for Palestinians.

The festival’s closing day on Sunday was set to feature Kings of Leon, with Bloc Party, Gabrielle, and The Reytons among the other acts scheduled to perform.