Universally ‘Diva’licious

When Roshmitha Harimurthy wore the Miss India Bangalore 2016 crown, recently, she had no idea she would go on to win the title of Yamaha Fascino Miss Diva 2016. The 22-year-old Bengaluru model has now beat many other competitors to win the coveted crown and will represent India at Miss Universe 2016!

At 5’9’’, the svelte beauty was judged by a panel comprising Lara Dutta, Arjun Rampal, Abhay Deol, Aditi Rao Hydari and fashion designer Gaurav Gupta.

She couldn’t have asked for anything more as she sashayed down the ramp with Lara Dutta, as the excited Roshmitha reveals, “The first time you meet Lara you’ll be intimidated, at least that’s what happened to me. But as we contestants spent more time with her we got to know that she is the most genuine person. We were glad to have her as our mentor. On stage, we had an eye contact and she was very happy for me as she gave me a big warm hug. The other judges were very kind and encouraging as well.”

How did she begin modelling “I did my schooling from Sophia high school and college from Mount Carmel College. Modelling was never on my mind, but as fate would have it, I auditioned for my college fashion team and got selected. The joy of walking the ramp in those beautiful outfits is something else altogether. There is always something new to experiment with; be it clothes, hair or makeup,” says the young model who has walked the ramp for Indian and Italian designers like Roberto Cavalli, Versace and Missoni.

Getting candid on the contest that she won on Sunday, Roshmitha states — “I knew my strengths and weaknesses well, and that gave me an edge over my co-contestants. I believed in myself and dared to dream. I made sure that I didn’t lose my personality throughout the competition and worked diligently towards learning something new every time! I’m going to channelise all my energy towards the preparation for Miss Universe now.”