Former Page Six Reporter Neel Shah: America's Next Top Model?

Earlier this summer, the New York media world was rocked by the departure of Page Six reporter/mascot Neel Shah, who moved to Los Angeles to pursue a writing career with the upcoming NBC/Imagine Entertainment sitcom "Friends With Benefits." Shah's West Coast exploits have remained unreported, but now sources close to the former Postie tell us that, not content with working solely behind the camera, he is making plans to put himself in front of it.

We hear that these modeling photos, taken by rising photographer Skip Hopkins and showing a grim and menacing Shah—a far cry from the jovial New York persona he demonstrated on the popular MTV reality series "The City"—are just the beginning of a rebranding campaign for the Indian lothario, and have already been passed around various modeling and acting agencies on both coasts.

Although recent rumors suggested Shah would be returning to his old Page Six stomping grounds, our spies say that there's little-to-no truth to these rumblings. "Neel is completely over [being behind the scenes]. He thinks he's a star and is embracing that," said a source close to Shah.

Representatives for Shah were contacted but refused to comment.