Going into the male-escort business, Anna felt social backlash. But not from Alla

Melbourne male escort agency owner Anna Grosman (left), 53, and psychic medium Alla Kuzmis, 46, both contend with the judgment of others – and count on each other’s unconditional support.

Anna Grosman (left) and Alla Kuzmis. “I walked [into a party] thinking, ‘How awkward: I don’t know anybody’ and left feeling I’d known Anna my whole life,” says Alla.Credit: Paul Jeffers

Alla: We’re both child immigrants from the former USSR, so we have a shared mentality: we love food, we love people and we love to party. I can throw in a Russian rude word and Anna knows what I’m saying. And our parents were so held back that you come here and just want to break all the boundaries. We met in 2002 at a massive New Year’s Eve party that Anna was hosting. I walked in thinking, “How awkward: I don’t know anybody” and left feeling I’d known Anna my whole life.

Anna’s super-welcoming, non-judgmental and the queen of parties. For her 39th, she had a sex-themed party; her house was on Google Maps as the Pleasure Dome. People weren’t having sex – Anna’s monogamous – but there was a guy dressed as a submissive with a gimp mask on. I came as a dominatrix, with a whip, corset and f--- me boots. Anna had topless male waiters and burlesque dancers. It allowed ­people to release a layer of themselves. She just loves seeing other people happy. Anna’s ­husband, a GP, allows her to be her. And she has no secrets from her grown-up sons.

When she first got into the male-escort business, there was a backlash in her social circle. But for Anna, there was this taboo around sex when she was growing up; she saw how disempowered women were. And men were king dicks; they could do whatever they wanted. She’s trying to remove stigma, say that it’s OK for women to have sex with a man they’ve paid for. Anna just visualised what she would want if she were on her own: a man who makes a woman feel special with dates, gifts, dinner, talking.

‘Anna is very much a reflection of what I preach and am still trying to be.’

Alla Kuzmis

After we met, Anna came to me as a client. I was a nutrition consultant then and I went to her for massages. I got to know this beautiful, big-hearted human being – and now we’re like family. I’d always been a psychic but was ­working quietly in a crystals shop because not everyone is a believer. Anna said, “You’ve got to come out!” I was like, “People are going to call me a psycho!”

We’d have interviews with potential matches [for a matchmaking business the pair started, which folded after COVID-19 hit] and the guy would be like, “My life is fantastic,” and I’d go, “What about when you were 16 and your father belittled you and made you feel you weren’t good enough?” There’d be a grown-arse man bawling his eyes out. Anna finally made me open up an Instagram account.

Anna will constantly do such nice things and certain people don’t appreciate her back. I ­really give it to her: “Why are you doing that?” Some people may overlook Anna’s beautiful qualities because of what she does, but she can teach us all how to let go of judgment and love more. She’s very much a reflection of what I preach and am still trying to be; she’s taught me not to be afraid to be me.

“Sometimes we end up finishing each other’s sentences. Almost like ESP,” says Anna, right, pictured with Alla in September.Credit: Courtesy of Alla Kuzmis

Anna: A girlfriend says Alla and I are like flamingos among the chickens: we stand out. We’re authentically ourselves. Alla is quiet and reserved, but also bubbly and funny when she allows you into her world. She’s protective of who she is because a lot of people don’t understand her. She’s careful about who she’s around because she picks up on negative energy.

We’re sisters from another mister: both ­resilient, which stems from our upbringings. There was lots of tough love and high expectations. As children, we were constantly judged on our performance at school, how we did chores at home, how we presented ourselves in public. You get it right the first time – or else.

‘She reads your energy, so you can’t lie to her.’

Anna Grosman

We’re each other’s cheerleader. Everyone’s curious about the escort agency because they think it’s a dirty industry, but it’s not. Even my close friends don’t ask about it, but Alla is more open. Her biggest secret was her psychic gift; she worried how people would view her. People think that if you’re talking to dead ­people there’s something wrong with you, but I find it fascinating. I told her, “You’ve got a gift; you need to share it.”

Every January I have a reading with her to see what’s in store. Sometimes I cry the whole way through. Once, when I was giving Alla a massage, my grandmother and her brother, to whom I was very close, came through when I left the room to wash my hands. They told Alla they were looking after me and everything would be OK. It’s like a cleanse; you feel so much lighter afterwards. She’s the real deal. She’ll come up to people and say, “I need to pass on a message.” She knows things that no one could ever know.

She reads your energy, so you can’t lie to her. When we were looking for a marketing person for the [matchmaking] business, she wouldn’t let some of the candidates open their mouths. She was like, “Nope, wrong person.” I like to give people a chance, but she’ll just cut them off. Even before she meets them – over email or looking at a photo – she can tell you, “No, it’s not going to work out.” I couldn’t handle that power. It gets her down sometimes: she’s often exhausted and doesn’t sleep well. She also works in a hospital and has seen ghosts there, so she’s had to learn to switch off.

Alla’s kids are 19 and 22 and she’s constantly talking to them on the phone; we’ll be working and they’ll call, just about food or something minute. She’s got her phone connected to her watch and every two seconds there’s someone needing her. If they were mine, I’d say, “Just text – unless you’re dying.” It drives me bonkers. I think, “Just be with me in the moment!”

She’s extremely sensitive, so negative comments on her socials affect her. I teach her to have a thicker skin. If I’m your friend, I’m 1000 per cent in, and she’s like that, too. We just get each other. We don’t need to explain ourselves, and sometimes we end up finishing each other’s sentences. Almost like ESP.

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