Miss India 2004

Miss India. The coveted crown. How many girls dream of becoming one and how many of them finally reach the pinnacle of success treading on an honest path? Previously I took this question in a very positive light and admired the hard work of the candidates who participated in the contest. Beauty part being hereditary, too much hard work goes into developing the right kind of attitude and personality that is required for the pageant. And if each girl participating in the contest thinks on the lines of "Chand tare tod laoon, saari duniya par main chaaoon", it is quite rightly so. But the returning of the crown by this year Miss India world Laxmi Pandit has raised several questions in my mind. More so my initial question now acquires a negative shade. I have been forced to think that is being successful is so important that one has to sacrifice his or her own values.

Let us consider the controversy surrounding the Miss India pageant in detail. When Aaj Tak, the popular news channel reported that Miss Pandit is actually Mrs. Pandit, at first I didn't believe a word. Over time, this channel has gained the reputation of slightly exaggerating their reports. But this may not be always true. So I thought that this also would subside with our dear Laxmi Pandit coming out clean. Aaj Tak had shown the photocopy of the lease document for a rented house in which her name was mentioned as Mrs. Laxmi Siddharth Pandit. She kept on denying the report that it was only to acquire a rented house that she had done so. So far so good.

Then came the report that she had lied about her age too. She was twenty-five according to her birth certificate, when according to the rules of the Miss India pageant all the girls should be under twenty four. Her neighbours also said on the television that though they did not speak to her but they had seen the man in question. Till that time I was convinced that she was actually Miss Laxmi Pandit and she would prove all this wrong. But my conviction was short-lived. When Aaj Tak reporter wanted to elicit some words from her on the topic, she remained tight-lipped and refused to comment on screen. After that she returned the crown adding that her dreams have been shattered. This proved to be the last straw for me. If she was truly innocent, she should have stick firmly to her ground. This action of hers showed that there was indeed some bit truth in the report presented by the media. My gutfeel is that if a person has guts to misrepresent oneself in a national level contest, then the rules for entry needs to be revised and be more stringent. What is your gutfeel?