The 71st Miss World pageant is all set to take place in India after a gap of 28 years. The opening ceremony for the much-awaited fashion event begins today and its grand finale will be concluded on March 9, 2024. Ahead of the competition, Miss World contestants visited the Raj Ghat in New Delhi to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi.
The Miss World's official page shared pictures of its contestants at Rajghat on Instagram and wrote, ''This morning Julia Morley and the Miss World participants visited the Raj Ghat, also known as the Gandhi Memorial, where they paid respect to Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi is most famous for his philosophy of nonviolence which has inspired civil rights leaders around the world.''
Notably, Julia Morley is the chairman and CEO of the Miss World Organisation. The candidates also visited the Gandhi Museum.
See the picture here:
The beauty event will welcome participants from 120 nations from across the globe. The India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) on Tuesday will host the ‘The Opening Ceremony' at Hotel Ashok in New Delhi. Over the next few weeks, several major competitions will take place across different cities in the country. Femina Miss India World 2022, Sini Shetty will represent the nation at the prestigious event. On February 21, there will be a Continental Beauty With A Purpose Challenge at Bharat Mandapam in the National Capital.
The finale of the 71st Miss World pageant is scheduled to be held on March 9 at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai.
''My love for India is no secret and having the 71st Miss World Festival in this country means a lot to me. A big thank you to Jamil Saidi for his Herculean efforts to make this return to India a reality. We have assembled the very best team for the 71st edition," Julia Morley earlier said in a statement.
Former Miss World Manushi Chhillar also expressed her excitement about the pageant being held in India after so long. She told ANI, "I'm simply excited, and it's wonderful that so many girls will come to India and talk about it and experience our hospitality, just as India will also get to experience what I did six years ago when I attended a competition like this. They will be posting about their experiences on their social media handles. They have a great fan following so those people will also come to know about it. Their families and team will also be coming. So, there will be exposure at the same time for many countries."
India last hosted the international pageant in 1996.
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