A behind-the-scenes video from a denim photoshoot in Tanzania has ignited a fierce online debate about professionalism, consent and boundaries on fashion sets, after footage showed a male crew member repeatedly adjusting a female model’s thong during the shoot.
The clip, filmed for local label Room of Jeans, was first spotted by NAIJA TV crew but quickly spread across TikTok, X and Instagram, racking up thousands of views and comments — most of them critical.
In the now-viral footage, the model is styled in a white knotted crop tee and high-waisted, wide-leg khaki jeans, with a light pink thong deliberately worn above the waistband in the early-2000s “whale tail” style. The set is a stark white studio with professional softbox lighting.
The controversy centers on a male crew member, wearing a Black Room of Jeans polo shirt, who is seen from behind the model pulling, positioning and smoothing the thin pink straps at her lower back and hips.
In one of the most replayed moments, the man crouches beside the model, grins directly at the camera and gives a thumbs-up while still holding the thong strap. In other frames, both of his hands rest on her hips as he smooths the jeans around the exposed underwear.
For many viewers, especially women, the thumbs-up and the repeated handling of intimate apparel by a male staffer crossed a line.
“Why is a man adjusting her thong? Where is the female stylist?” one top comment reads. Another user wrote: “This is not styling, this is harassment packaged as content. She looks uncomfortable.”
Others defended the shoot as standard fashion practice, arguing that the whale-tail look requires precise placement and that on-set adjustments are normal.
“Stylists touch models all the time. It’s literally their job,” a user countered. “The look is the thong showing, so someone has to position it.”
The debate has reignited broader conversations in East Africa’s growing creator economy about set etiquette, particularly for commercial shoots where budgets are small and formal roles like intimacy coordinator or dedicated wardrobe stylist are often absent.
Fashion professionals who weighed in said the issue is less about the adjustment itself and more about how it was done and documented.
“Adjusting undergarments is part of styling, but best practice is to have a same-gender stylist do it, ask for consent on camera, and keep it off the BTS reel if it’s that intimate,” a stylist told our desk. “The thumbs-up to the camera is what made it feel performative and disrespectful.”
As of press time, Room of Jeans has not issued a public statement on the video. The model featured in the shoot has also not commented publicly.
staffer adjusting model’s thong on camera
The incident comes amid a wider push across African fashion for more professionalised sets, with calls for clear consent protocols, closed sets for sensitive adjustments, and more women in key crew roles.
Whether the brand intended it or not, the clip has done one thing for Room of Jeans: everyone is now talking about their jeans — and about who should be allowed to touch the model wearing them.
