Anukreethy Vas, a college student from Tamil Nadu, was crowned Femina Miss India 2018 on 19 June in a grand ceremony at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Indoor Stadium in Mumbai. Vas had to beat 30 contestants to win this coveted title.
Overjoyed by her win Vas said:
I still can’t believe that it happened. I’ve been dreaming for it since so long. There were never any bad days for me because I didn’t think about losing or wining. I just wanted to live in the moment. I’ve waited everyday to touch this crown and now it’s with me.
Anukreethy is a 2nd year college student from Tamil Nadu, pursuing BA in French Literature. As for her hobbies, she is also a great dancer and a state-level athlete. She loves riding bikes, and even harbours acting aspirations!
Apart from her ravishing beauty and impressive style, what helped her win the title was her answer on being asked- ‘Who is a better teacher, failure or success?’
Vas very confidently answered,
“‘I would say failure is a better teacher because when you get continuous success in life, you will feel content at a point and your growth will stop. But when you get failures continuously, the soul will have the fire and you will keep working hard until you reach the goal”
Raised by a single mother, Anukreethy has grown up with the idea that “nothing can dim the light that shines from within.” Vas went on share her experience in life that triggered her to success.
It’s always been failure in my life that took me to this position – from a village-based place, from all the struggle, I am here. Not even a single person was there to support me other than my mother and I feel only the failures, the criticism I have gone through have brought me up as a confident and independent woman in this society. And experience is always the best teacher, and that is what I can tell you. So keep trying.
Having already been crowned Miss India Tamil Nadu 2018, Miss India Beautiful Smile 2018 and Miss India Miss Fashion Icon (South) 2018, the 19-year-old will now represent India at Miss World 2018.
The winner says there is no time to sit back and relax as she had already set her eyes on the next goal- to keep the Miss World crown in country, which was won by Manushi Chillar last year.
After 17 years, Manushi has brought the crown to India and I would never want that to go away. I am looking forward to keeping it in India.Anukreethy Vas, Femina Miss India 2018.
Anukreethy says she decided to participate in a beauty pageant competition after she saw Aishwarya Rai Bachchan on TV as the Miss World winner.
"When I saw Aishwarya Rai on TV (getting crowned), I started thinking about how one gets to be there. That's how it started. I always wanted a platform to share my views and be a great influence on life." Post her win, she is looking forward to going back home, as "it's a proud moment for me because it's the first time Tamil Nadu has won Miss India." "I give 100 per cent credit to my mom for pushing me. I am a confident woman today because she has the strongest personality and she has brought me up like that," she said.
Meenakshi Chaudhary, 21, from Haryana was declared the first runner-up while Andhra Pradesh's Shrey Rao Kamvarapu, 23, stood as the second runner-up in the beauty competition.
The glamorous evening was hosted by filmmaker Karan Johar and Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana. The crowning ceremony also saw performances by Bollywood stars like Kareena Kapoor Khan, Jacqueline Fernandez and Madhuri Dixit.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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