It’s crowded at the top!

Manpriya Singh

For anyone, who believes that too much of a good thing can, in fact, be a bad thing, must be talking especially in context of reality shows, literature festivals and beauty pageants that have been lately going for the overkill.

While inclusivity in the idea of beauty to fit in plus size, petite size, married, forty plus and so on is a good thing, no one in the industry believes for sure that too many titles out there is a great thing. “There was a time, there would be one annual pageant, one crown and all of us remembered the name of the winner,” Asmita Garg, recalls the days of one country and one Miss India.

The show needn’t stop

But many of the ladies out there with dreams in their eyes of seeing a crown on the head lost out on that chance once married. Education, marriage, children, every tick in the personal graph meant a slimmer chance of a shot at showbiz. “So, it’s a great thing for so many, who have been caught up with life and responsibilities,” shares the 35-year-old and also the winner of Mrs Chandigarh—Woman of Substance-2019, who didn’t stop dreaming despite having two kids and a busy career. Having also been a participant of Haut Monde Mrs India 2018 and having represented Punjab in Greece, she knows all too well the exponential growth in beauty pageants at local levels. “It’s not even the fact that every person has a crown on their head, but its’ more to do with the credibility of such titles. I came across events being organized at street level with the word ‘international’ in the title, then there was another one where it was written, ‘Pay Rs 10,000 and walk away with the crown,” laughs Prabhjyot Kaur at how the pursuit of crown has become more like a kitty party where everyone gets to have one.

Discover yourelf, discover organisers

Having been a second runner-up at Mrs Punjab—Pride of Nation 2017 and later becoming the co-founder of Ms and Mrs Punjab—Discover Yourself, she suggests the contestants check on a few things before participating. “Check the background of the organisers, whether the contestants are being chosen after due auditions in every city and whether the pageant is an annual property.”

More often than not, she finds herself advising girls during auditions, “If the idea is to just wear a crown, then I tell them to go out in the market, buy a really pretty looking crown and wear it. In Jalandhar itself you’ll come across at least half a dozen such titles,” she adds. “They should be about grooming yourself, learn something, explore and when you come out a winner, you should be able to inspire women in the room, give back to society.”

Which is pretty much what happened almost 20 years ago when Aditi Govitrikar walked away with the crown of Mrs World 2001. Post a degree in medicine, a marriage, she seized the beauty title and went on to make a career in modelling and acting. Today, she proudly takes a bow, among other things, changing the widely prevalent perception of the time, “Those days especially, shaadi meant sab kuch khatam,” she doesn’t mince words. “When I won the Mrs World title, I got acceptance and that’s when things started to look up for married women too.” Because now they not just have a platform, but also precedence. But yes, “There is no denying the mushrooming of beauty contests and the dilution of prestige attached to such contests being the sheer case of demand and supply. One negative thing I feel is many of them being a pure commercial exercise and not just participants but even winners being decided on the basis of the money they can shell out.”

Having said that, she feels, “Inclusivity is a great thing, why should the marginalized and everybody not have a fair shot at anything,” adds the model- turned-actor having just judged one meant exclusively for doctors and adds, “After all, the charm of a crown and the thrill of wearing it still remains intact.”