Swimsuit

7 Jaw-Dropping Photos of Birthday Girl Padma Lakshmi in Dominica

The 2023 SI Swimsuit model and culinary personality turns 53 Friday!

Ananya Panchal

Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. 

Emmy award-winning TV host and culinary personality Padma Lakshmi practically broke the internet with her stunning SI Swimsuit debut in Dominica earlier this year. The Taste the Nation creator and executive producer, who was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica for the 2023 magazine, turns 53 on Friday. In honor of her Sept. 1 birthday, we’re treating you to some gorgeous pics.

“I really thought that the Sports Illustrated ship had sailed for me, or the possibility of it, and I’d never done it before,” Lakshmi said while on location of her SI Swimsuit photoshoot. “But I have never felt better about myself. My thighs may have been leaner, and my boobs were probably slightly higher in earlier parts of my life, but I wouldn’t go back to my 20s if you paid me all the money in the world.

“I love where I am in my life, and no, my body’s not perfect by any means, but I don’t care. I feel like I have a very lucky, fruitful, productive life, and I hope that’s what [people] see when they see these pictures. I hope they see a full woman in all my facets and nuances, and also some contradictions.”

The Top Chef alumna was a well-known model in her 20s but then decided to pivot into television and pursue her culinary passions.

“I was a little bit freaked out, because I knew that I couldn’t get as tight and lean as I could if I had some more time,” she admitted about pre-photoshoot nerves. “But then I just looked in the mirror and I reminded myself, ‘I’m not here because I’m the world’s greatest model. I’m here because I’m me.’ I’m not getting this in my 20s. I’m getting this now, at this point, and it’s so much sweeter because I’m doing it now.”

Below are seven of our favorite photos from her SI Swimsuit debut.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by PatBO.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by Toxic Sadie Swimwear.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by Heidi Fish.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by Initial S Paris. Necklace from model’s own collection.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by NAVY RAY.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Set by Elizabeth Shevelev.

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Padma Lakshmi was photographed by Yu Tsai in Dominica. Swimsuit by Ola Vida.

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Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Before joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. When she is not writing or doom-scrolling on social media, Panchal can be found playing sudoku, rewatching One Tree Hill or trying new restaurants. She's also a coffee and chocolate (separately) enthusiast. Panchal has a bachelor’s in communications and journalism from Boston University.

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