Sushmita
Miss Universe - 1994
She stunned the universe. And shone on Manila. Euphoria gripped the entire Indian nation on May 21, 1994, when for the first time ever an Indian girl was crowned Miss Universe, at Manila, Philippines. And, she was there at the pageant weeping, when she was being crowned the most beautiful woman in the universe. That's Sushmita Sen, Miss Universe 1994.
It is not everyday that an 18-year-old speaks of downtrodden children or explains the essence of womanhood. But this young belle from Delhi had the most compelling combination of beauty and brains.
The young lady made a powerful impact in the first round itself by introducing herself as, "Namaste, I am Sushmita Sen from India, where love is the essence of life." When asked to explain what she meant by that, she spontaneously replied that India was multi-racial, it was a goliath of a country with 168 languages, no less. That people here live in a state of relative harmony, is an indication that this is a nation of love.
In the final round of the beauty pageant, the question put to her was, "What is the essence of a woman?", to which she very craftily replied, "Just being a woman is God's gift". Followed by a spontaneous notion: "The origin of a child is a mother, a woman. She shows a man what sharing, caring, and loving is all about. That is the essence of a woman."
She was immensely articulate, aware, sensitive, and a delightful combination of beauty and brains. The judges were enchanted with her replies. And they chose her, the youngest among the 77 contestants, to be an ambassador of peace and goodwill and angel of mercy to underprivileged children
Sushmita likes instrumental music, writes poetry and is fond of children. Today, she has directed her brilliance, energy and talent towards the Indian film industry. Sushmita Sen is as outspoken as they come. She won't mince her words to get any message across and she's a no-nonsense woman.
Sushmita made her debut in Dastak followed by Zor . But it was with her comic role in David Dhawan's Biwi No.1 that she caught movie buff's attention. She also got good reviews for her role in Meghna Gulzar's directorial debut Filhaal . Her latest releases are Tumko Na Bhool Payenge opposite Salman Khan and Aankhen the Amitabh starrer. She has also been chosen by Mahesh Manjrekar to play the female lead in the English version of Astitva
Her life at present revolves around her adopted daughter Renee. Sushmita being Sushmita has take the bold step of adopting a daughter and says her man will have to accept her daughter along with her.
Sushmita we are proud of you!
Aishwarya
Miss World - 1994
Her winning at beauty pageants comes as no surprise, because beauty that glorious has a way of conquering the world. And eventually she did conquer the world, by claiming the ' Miss World title', in South Africa. Immediately after being crowned Miss World 1994, Aishwarya Rai spoke of her dream for peace for this world, and her desire to be an ambassador of peace during her one-year reign.
What qualities should the Miss world 1994 embody? To this question at the pageant, she replied," The Miss Worlds that we have had to date have been proof enough that they must have compassion for the underprivileged and not only to the people who have status and stature. We have to look beyond the barriers that man has set for ourselves - of nationality and colour. That would make a true person, real person."
Looking back at her life we find, her face launched a thousand shoots and almost as many ad campaigns. This constant quest for fresher, newer pastures that has taken this ravishing beauty to where she is today - on top of the world.
She finally entered films and stormed the silver screen. The best actress award for the film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam was the turning point of her film career. She went on to do commendable roles in Taal and Mohabbatein . Then came Devdas for which she once more won the Filmfare Best Actress Award. She has been hailed as a superstar and has won international recognition. She was recently invited to the 56 th Cannes Film Festival in France as a judge.
However with her beauty, charm and talent, too much of her is too less. It seems the world still can't get enough of the ethereal goddess, Aishwarya Rai.
Diana
Miss World - 1997
Great hair. Loads of confidence. And a smile that's worth a million dollars. It was no wonder, that she walked away with the Miss Beautiful Smile trophy at the Femina Miss India 1997. But adulation followed her even after that. This little princess from Hyderabad flew out of the country, only to return after being crowned the world's most beautiful woman, at the Miss World pageant on November 22, 1997, in Seychelles. And moments after winning the crown, she told the press that the title meant the world to her.
Diana Hayden exuded loads of confidence and looked the most collected of the lot at the pageant, when she introduced herself by quoting W B Yeats ''In dreams begin responsibilities...'' and expressed the desire to help fulfil the dreams of others. She radiated immense confidence on the international stage, and performed a hat trick that year, by also winning the Miss Photogenic title and the award for the Best Beachwear.
Diana has a passion for music and dance. But, her first love is reading. She likes horse riding and playing chess. After completing school at St Ann's High School, Secunderabad, she shifted to Mumbai to pursue her career goals. She started work in the public relations division of BMG Crescendo, where she helped handle the careers of artistes like Anaida and Mehnaz. She had a brief stint in modelling and has done a couple of fashion shows in the past.
Today, this 5 ' 8'' tall Anglo-Indian runs her own celebrity management company in Mumbai. She actively supports an orphanage in Hyderabad, with her own money, and in the future would like to host a talk show on public and social issues. Here's wishing her all the best in all her altruistic endeavours!
Yukta
Miss World - 1999
Her serenity and calm shone throughout the pageant. The 5'11'' tall brunette from India, took London's Olympia theatre by storm in 1999. The year she was crowned Miss World. Ecstatic Yukta Mookhey told the media after winning the crown,''It is the best day of my life because I had this as a beautiful dream as a child and now it's come true...''
The Miss World title carries an award of nearly $100,000, a year of travel around the world and many more responsibilities. The title-holder is expected to work towards raising funds for underprivileged children and for social causes.
Yukta was chosen for the Miss World title from among 94 other hopefuls. She impressed the judges with her simple replies to their queries. When asked whom she would like to emulate as a role model, she replied that she would like to be born as Hollywood actress, Audrey Hepburn, whom she admired for her "inner beauty, compassion and great aura." She told the judges that Thai food was her favourite and that she would love to go to France because, "It's a country of models and that's the place where I would like to be."
The twenty-year-old girl from Mumbai, was studying zoology at Kelkar college, prior to winning the crown. She has also studied classical music for three years. She loves the media and plans to take up higher studies in communication.
But today, though she's being rather secretive about it, it's a well-known fact that she has signed has been signed to play the female lead in International Cine Inc. production's Hum Teeno – Three Is Company . The film, presumably a thriller, will have Yukta pairing with two heroes – one Indian and the other American. Both the heroes are yet to be finalized.
We hope this is the beginning of a very promising career for her !
Lara
Miss Universe – 2000
That this dusky ambassador from India was a strong contender for the crown was apparent days before the Miss Universe pageant, with more and more people commenting on her winning combination of beauty and brains. And when she actually wore the crown on May 12, 2000 in the beautiful city of Cyprus, her triumph was best described as deserving. Lara Dutta describes her winning the Miss Universe title as being "a culmination of a dream."
Lara impressed the judges with her answer to the final question of the contest: "What would you say to those who condemn the contest as an affront to women ?" To which she replied, "Pageants like Miss Universe give us young women a platform to foray in the fields that we want to and forge ahead be it entrepreneurship, be it the armed forces, be it politics". And added, "It gives us a platform to voice our choices and opinions and it makes us strong and independent that we are today."
She was born in 1978, Ghaziabad, to Wg. Cdr. L.K. Dutta (retired) and Jennifer Dutta. In 1981, she moved to Bangalore with her parents, where she completed her schooling, and then shifted to Bombay where she obtained a degree in economics. She enjoys outdoor sports like rock climbing and bungee jumping. She is trained in Indian classical dance and loves to read autobiographies. Before winning the crown, Lara was a leading fashion and print model.
After finishing her reign as Miss Universe 2000, Lara decided to take the plunge into Bollywood. Her maiden flick Andaaz with Priyanka Chopra and Akshay Kumar has recently released, and next in the offing is Mumbai se aaya mera dost opposite Abhishek Bachan.
Lara has also signed to play Akshay Kumar's heroine in a film titled Aan.
She also has in her kitty the female lead in Vikram Bhatt's next action thriller titled Jurm with Bobby. But on her filmi career Lara says "I've always wanted to do documentary films. That is what I plan to do eventually".
We wish her every success in whatever she does!
Priyanka
Miss World - 2000
Not only was she the audience's hot favourite, even the judges were impressed by the way she spoke so effortlessly on behalf of humanity and charity. The eighteen-year-old gal from Bareilly, beat out ninety-four other lovely ladies to claim the Miss World 2000 title. And, she sashayed away with $100,000, as prize money, at the Millennium dome, London.
Priyanka Chopra had done her homework before stepping on the international stage. As an answer to one of the questions asked at the pageant, she said, that she would use her success as "a platform to influence people's thoughts, minds and actions".
Mother Theresa, she said, was someone "I admire from the bottom of my heart for being so considerate, passionate and kind ... giving up her life to put smiles on people's faces". In reply to another question that she was asked, she said, "I work best under pressure...."
Priyanka was born on July 18, 1982 in the family of doctors, Capt. Dr. Ashok Chopra & Dr. Madhu Chopra. She has a penchant for Indian music and dance, a flair for writing poetry and short stories, enjoys reading and theatre, and has worked for several social welfare programmes.
Priyanka seems to have a mantra for success. Her career got off to a good start in Bollywood too. She recently made her debut in Anil Sharma's The Hero opposite Sunny Deol. Then came Andaz along with Lara Dutta and Akshay Kumar.
She already has a number of plum projects in her kitty including Sanjay Dutt's Plan , Suneel Darshan's Andaaz , Sanjay Gupta's Musafir and Guddu Dhanoa's Kismet . She has also been recently signed on for director Rajiv Rai's Asambhav , starring Arjun Rampal.
Diya
Miss Asia Pacific – 2000
Think delicacy, poise, elegance and brains. Think Diya Mirza, a heavenly beauty from Hyderabad, who won the prestigious Miss Asia Pacific title at the beauty pageant held on 2 December, 2000, in Manila.
Diya's victory has created history. She is the second Indian contestant to be crowned Miss Asia Pacific and the first in 29 years. Her winning has scored a hat trick for India, as she is the third Indian contestant to be crowned at the international beauty pageants held this year. Earlier this year, Lara Dutta bagged the Miss Universe title in Cyprus, and Priyanka Chopra was declared Miss World in London.
The final and decisive question that was put to Diya was, "What are the three most important values that matter to you?", to which she replied, "Love, Honesty and Friendship", and with that answer, she had almost the entire audience rooting for her.
She is class twelve student from Nasr High School, Khairatabad, and always dreamt of becoming a lawyer before winning the crown. Her friends describe her as a bubbly, active and a happy-go-lucky girl with a sunny disposition. Diya likes dramatics and poetry, and is fond of Hyderabadi food and biryani. However, the most striking thing about her face is her beautiful smile, which won her Femina Miss Beautiful Smile title too.
Diya Mirza after winning the crown got a number of offers from Bollywood and made her foray into films. However after beginning her Bollywood career with glamorous roles, she is now shifting her focus to offbeat roles.
Diya has signed director Govind Nihalani's next semi-realistic flick which also co-stars Namrata Shirodkar and Sharad Kapoor. The film will have Diya in a stellar role with some shades of grey.
Besides this movie, Diya will be sharing the screen with Namrata Shirodkar in Mahesh Manjrekars Pran Jaaye Par Shaan Na Jaaye . Diya is also playing the lead role of "Padmashree" in Mahesh Manjrekars Padmashree Laloo Prasad Yadav .
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