A Chance to Be a Celebrity

A novel experience at a beauty contest

Announcement of a beauty contest

A beauty contest was going to be held in Hyderabad. Those selected from every city would then assemble in Mumbai and the final Miss India contest would be held.

I recall those days, I was young and smart. People found me charming, beautiful, and lively. My peer group said that I had peaches and cream complexion. I actually did not believe it.

A new neighbor moved in from Gujarat. They were very friendly with us and my mother was always helpful in giving her suggestions and ideas and often helping her to set up her new house.

Their surname was Shah and the lady’s name was Sudha. She was very smart. Much smarter in looks, compared to other neighbors residing there.

She told my mother that she had seen an advertisement in the papers and they were looking for participants for the Miss India contest.

She said she did not qualify for it as she was married but she felt that I should participate in it.

My mother was shocked. She would hear of no such thing. She said girls from good families do not go to such contests.

Today things are very different but somewhere in the ’60s this was unheard of.

Sudha approached me and gently put it in my head that I was a great candidate and I should try my luck.

I was just out of school and in the first year of my business studies in college. I was very excited.

I was young 18 going on 19 and so perhaps these things delighted me a lot. I agreed but how to make my mother agree?

I thought I should approach my father, who I thought would be less old-fashioned in his views. He was quite liberal but he said: “Your mother is right, good families actually do not send their girls for such contests”.

So now what was I to do? Sudha had put enough interest in my mind and I was very determined to go to this contest even though it was foolhardy of me to think about winning the contest.

Anyhow, I requested my parents once again and I promised them that I would not go to Mumbai even if I was selected in the Miss Hyderabad contest.

Sudha sent my name as a contestant to the organizers. They asked me to fill a form that I was over 18 years of age and that I would abide by their rules and regulations.

I filled the form, pasted a picture, and signed it below. The seal was done.

Now, I was flooded with gifts of perfumes and cosmetics. Believe me,I had never used any in my life. Some newspaper reporters came home and asked me how I felt about the contest and took several pictures.

I was excited! I went to college and almost all my friends and peer groups came to know that I was going to participate in the contest. They all wanted to come to cheer me up at the program.

The program had tickets and my friends bought tickets out of their pocket money to be with me on the program.

This was a risky affair for sure. I was both excited and nervous now. I had to do it somehow!

Now, my parents did not know what to do with me? How to dress me up? My mother was pretty too but far from participating in contests of such types.

I was warned by my parents that they were not going to finance me with expensive makeup or anything and I had to contend with whatever best I could.

I was a little disappointed, but, at least they had agreed to my participation.

Before the contest

I was in a fix but Sudha put it right. According to the rules of the contest, I had to wear a sari for the occasion. These days people wear gowns but in those days the dress was saris.

Sudha took out her bridal sari. It was a bright red with the traditional patterns of Gujarat. They had dazzling beads on them. The whole effect of the sari was that of shimmer and looked very pretty.

I had never worn a sari before that and looked forward to it, but to wear it directly to a contest was a little tricky, so I learned the art of wearing a sari and walked around in it to be sure I was on firm ground.

I had to wear heels to look tall, so I bought stilettos and worked on it as well, learning to balance in it and walking in a sari.

I had not ever done any makeup either so depended on Sudha to do my face and hair.

I was nervous, even though my friends helped me out but tried to make a bold and confident exterior.

On the contest day

On the day of the contest, Sudha and some friends dolled my up, packed me in a sari, and I said aloud, “I have to do it,”

I had to handle the makeup, a bun on my head, heels, and a sari. I was such a carefree person. I loved to romp around and this was completely new to me.

I was ready to leave and some reporters came home and asked a few questions as to how I felt like a candidate and why I decided to go for this contest.

When I reached the auditorium or the venue of the program chaperoned by Sudha and some of my friends, bulbs flashed, and oh so many pictures were taken.

The contestants were called separately and a roll call was made. Each person was given a number as a name.

I kept looking at the other contestants. They were looking tall and beautiful. They had expert makeup on and the most ordinary girls looked super that I felt I looked ordinary but ‘unique.’

This was my specialty. I looked different and plain Jane!!!

I was unique, raw, different and special.

The contest started, and the music began. One after another the numbers were called and the first round took place.

I was shortlisted. I seem to bear a resemblance, to one of the Bollywood stars of that time. Someone called Mala Sinha!

There were hoots of Mala Sinha, Mala Sinha, and whistles too. I shrunk inside and thought whether the hoots were positive or negative I could not make out.

Seeing all the tall people around me, I became more determined to stand tall. Somehow, the second round was not so good and I almost left the stage, that I had at least tried my luck with no regrets.

I found myself on the shortlisted list and I was surprised because they announced my number.

In the third and final round, I was selected as the runner up. As it happened that there was to be one winner and two runners up who were supposed to go to the final Miss India in Mumbai.

All the contestants were invited to the stage and were given many gifts for joining in the contest.

Finally, the three finalists were asked to come on the stage. There was a crowning ceremony and a sash was placed from the shoulder to the waist and many gifts were given.

I had become a celebrity

My friends shouted with glee and wanted a part of my bountiful gifts that i had received. I gave the largest share to Sudha.

I was thrilled and so were all those who had to motivate me to participate.

What are the learnings?

#1. Never be afraid of trying new things. There is one life and we should learn to experiment with new things.

#2. You may not be the best but you can strive to do your best.

#3. It is important to be determined and confident when you are going to do out of the box things in your life.

#4. Always help others. If my neighbor and my friends had not helped me, I would not have been able to achieve in the contest.

#5. Be persuasive but not angry. The technique I adopted made my parents allow me to participate in something that they had no intention for me to go.

#6. Share your things with other people once you receive honors.

Conclusion

The best thing is to be ‘just you’, unique to yourself and different from others. It is not necessary that you are the best but you can still achieve if you are confident and determined and patient. Be persuasive and learn to negotiate and ultimately do what you feel like as there is only one life. Make the best of it!

This is such an old story. I have never forgotten the people who helped me. I think it is most important to honor people who made you a part of ‘you.’