“Manappuram Miss Asia”, the first ever pan Asia beauty pageant by Pegasus, was held at Le Meridien, Kochi yesterday. The pageant aims to bring out the inherent talents of young women in Asia and provide them with a platform to launch themselves into coveted careers in fashion, film, advertising and glamour. Ms. Kanika Kapur was crowned Miss Asia 2015 by Mr. Nandakumar, MD & CEO at Manappuram Finance Limited. Ms. Alfe Marie Nathanile from Philippines and Ms. Jeyla Guliyeva from Azerbaijan were crowned as the first and second runners up respectively by Mrs. Sushama Nandakumar.
The event featured three sequences; the national costume round, theme round and Black and White Gown. Miss South India, Miss Queen of India and Miss Asia are the only beauty pageants in India which do not feature a bikini or similar rounds.
The other contestants were Deki Wangmo from Bhutan, Yang Wantong from China, Mina Jay from Iran, Ais Latsch from Malaysia, Grishma Basnet from Nepal, Prisca Nirmalee Rathnasingam from Sri Lanka, Tenzin Yangzom from Tibet, Gulshat Baltayeva from Turkmenistan, Parmida Baniardalan from UAE and Malika Karimove from Uzbekistan.
The event was judged by a panel of national and international judges drawn from the world of showbiz, entertainment and the corporate world. Ms. Larysa Sergiienko, International Model, Ms. Natasha Suri, Indian supermodel, Mr. Sohan Roy, Director, Ms. Ambika, Actress and Ms. Sumudhu Prasadini, Miss Sri Lanka World, were the judges for the event.
The Title Partner of the event was Manappuram Finance Limited, a leading NBFC and a pioneer in the gold loan segment. The winners were presented with a gold plated crown. The title winner received a cash prize of five lakh rupees while the first runner up and second runner up won a cash prize of two lakh rupees and one lakh rupees respectively. The prizes are sponsored by the Manappuram Group.
The profits generated from the event would be used for the “100 Life Challenge” mission of Mr. Ajith Ravi which aims at saving the lives of 100 needy people by enabling critical heart surgeries for them.
The event is additionally supported by Chungath Jewellery, Medimix, Kanyaka Fortnightly, Furore, Beaumonde The Fern, Deshadan, Kalpana Beauty Hub, Parakkat, and Aiswaria Advertising.
