Miss India Worldwide Nepal on tracks

“Almost all pageants or other cultural events organized in Nepal are for Nepalis. None of them are targeted to the Indians who were born here or have been working here,” says Deependra Ratna Shakya, the executive director of the event management company, Nepalese Council Pvt. Ltd.[break]

He has a valid point.

For the first time, therefore, the event management company has taken the initiative to organize Miss India Worldwide Nepal on February 27. Only women of Indian origins and between the age of 18 and 27 can participate in the contest.

The winner will represent Nepal at the 19th edition of Miss India Worldwide event which is to be held on March 27 in Durban, South Africa.

“Not only will the event provide an opportunity to strengthen Nepal-India bond but will also draw international Indian communities under one roof,” opines Deependra, who is also the country director for the pageant.

“The event will also serve as a chance for the Indo-Nepali women to exhibit and explore their talents and cultures, such as Bharat Natyam,” shares the organizer.

Indian origin as defined by the Indian Festival Committee (IFC) is anyone who has at least one parent of Indian origin.

The event is a franchise of IFC, an organization based in New York. IFC was established in 1974 with the objective of unifying the peoples of Indian origins scattered across the globe and in order to celebrate their rich heritage and oneness as part of the larger Indian Diaspora.

Since 1990, IFC has been organizing the Miss India Worldwide Pageant, which now takes place in about 30 countries. For the first time Nepal will also vie for the crown along with these 30 winners from different countries.

IFC has been annually organizing Miss India New York and Miss India USA for the past two decades.

“We had the plan of organizing this event in 2008. But it materialized only four months ago when I had the chance of meeting Dharmatma Saran, the chairperson of IFC,” informs Deependra.

“It’s not a traditional beauty pageant where the participants have to meet certain criteria to be part of the contest,” claims the organizer.

Altogether, 25 participants will be selected and trained for 14 days for the finals beginning February 27. Along with Kathmandu, entry forms for participants are also available in Dharan, Birgunj, Nepalgunj, Pokhara, and Biratnagar.

The winner will work as a volunteer for various organizations affiliated to Indian communities. The appointments are yet to be finalized.

As decided, 15% of the ticket sales and participants’ fees will be donated to the Peace Buddha Child Care Society.

“For 2012, IFC has already approached Nepal to organize the grand finale of the event,” informs Deependra.