The nine contestants of the Miss Himalaya Pageant 2017 MHP
McLEOD GANJ, India, 6 October 2017
It’s history in the making. We have nine contestants in this year’s Miss Himalaya Pageant. It is by far the biggest number of contestants in the five years of the Pageant.
The nine are Aaisha Gurung, 25, from Chamba; Akansha Mahat, 19, from Dharamshala; Kalzang Butith, 22, from Kaza; Mannat Thakur, 18, from Nahan; Monika Negi, 20, from Rampur Bushahr; Palak Thakur, 17, from Palampur; Preksha Rana, 21, from Gaggal; Simran Mehta, 20, from Dharamshala; and Tashi Lhamo, 24, from Kathmandu.
We have the support of Honourable Minister for Urban Development, Government of Himachal Pradesh, Shri Sudhir Sharma. And the Himachal Tourism is supporting the Pageant with some funding assistance.
Now in its fifth edition, the Pageant is an example of turning words into action, and making a difference in the community. There can be many more such events and programmes if we truly want to empower the women. The Pageant acts as a launching pad for all the ambitious and talented young women, giving them the chance they deserve to touch new heights and to be seen as modern young women.
The Pageant also provides more opportunities for fostering friendship and understanding among the Himalayan people.
The contestants went to Tsuglakhang temple for Dalai Lama darshan this morning. This is followed by the press conference, and rehearsal in the evening.
The competition rounds will start from tomorrow. The Talk and Talent Rounds will be held on the night of Saturday the 7th at 7pm at Tipa, and the Finale night with three rounds will also be held at the same time and venue on Sunday the 8th.
The online Miss Photogenic voting will start at 12 noon on the 6th, and will close at 12 noon on the 8th. The winner of this round will have five marks added to her total.
The winner will walk away with a cash prize of one lakh (1,00,000) rupees, while the First Runner-up will get 50,000 rupees, and the Second Runner-up 25,000 rupees.
We are looking forward to presenting an exciting Pageant.
Lobsang Wangyal
Director