Diva America Inc hosted the fourth biannual Miss India Connecticut Pageant on September 21, in Hartford, CT, at the Bushnell Theater from 4pm to 7pm with the theme “Shakti – Strength of a Woman”. This year’s pageant was hosted by India Association of Greater Hartford. It was a sold-out event with 1,000 people attending the show. Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy and Hartford Mayor Pedro E. Seggara extended a warm welcome to the pageant and released the souvenir brochure. Earlier pageants were held in New Haven and Stamford.
Following a V.I.P. cocktail reception, sponsored by Indian Master Chef Krishna Pandey, who is also the owner of Haveli Restaurant, attendees of the Miss India CT 2014 Pageant made their way to their seats at the theater. Over the next three hours, the audience was entertained and enthralled by the talent demonstrations and colorful dresses worn by the 15 Pageant contestants, dance performances, knockout medleys from local artists, and hilarious stand-up comedy. Bollywood choreographer Rajeev Khinchi stole the show with his dramatic choreography and Bollywood dances. Ms. Malavika Vidwans, president of Sneha, a non-profit service organization empowering women, inspired the audience with her mission. This was lead-up to the grand finale of seven groups of classical and folk dancers with over 70 artists performing on the stage.
The Miss India CT Pageant 2014 winner is Nidhi Bhimani, who was also recognized as Miss Best Dress. She will have the opportunity to attend Bollywood Film Producer and Director Subash Ghai’s Whistling Woods International internship for one year.
The Pageant first runner-Up is Devisha Patel and second runner-up is Shivani Jonn. Other special award winners are: Janessa Patel - Miss Smile; Vinali Patel - Miss Catwalk; Nisha Singh - Miss Photogenic; Siddhi Patel - Miss Congeniality; Shivani Jonn - Miss Talent; Krushangi Maisuria - Miss Best Dressed; and Rozana Tamis – Miss Face Book.
Mrs. Anita Bhat, President and CEO of Diva America Inc., took pride in saying that Miss India Connecticut is the first beauty pageant to introduce BMI (Body Mass Index) as one of the selection criteria for the contestants. “We believe that the Fashion Industry influences our next generation in its attitude towards health and fitness. To target the Fashion Industry, we have introduced BMI and we hope that by bringing this awareness, we can help reduce obesity, anorexia, bulimia, low self-esteem and depression amongst the next generation. If we succeed in bringing about this change in other beauty pageants, it will be historic!” Anita Bhat said.
Diva has been engaging several local Indian American community groups. The Pageant was endorsed and supported several organizations like CAPI (Connecticut Association of Physicians of Indian Origin), AAPI (American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin), Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, GOPIO (Global Organization of People of Indian Origin) Connecticut Chapter and CT temples. Diva America’s team was proud to present a spectacular show with seven different classical dances of India simultaneously on the stage, which was a unique offering at the Pageant. All of this, in addition to the talent shows by brilliant contestants and Bollywood, Folk and fusion dances by the talented local community, showcased magical India for the audience. Matt Scott, Meteriologist from Hartford’s Fox Channel, and Miss Asia Pacific Parmita Kurada entertained the audience as Emcees. Celebrity Chef Hari Nayak, Actress Manya, Designer Anne Agoren, Baldwin Media owner Ann Baldwin, Yale World Fellow Parmesh Sahani and Veteran broadcaster Al Terzi were the Pageant’s esteemed panel of judges.
Manisha Patel, who chaired the Miss India CT 2014 program, helped in collaborating Diva America with Subhash Ghai’s Whistling Woods International, Mumbai.