There were pouts and ponytails galore, and plenty of chutzpah as well. Close to 250 young starry-eyed wannabe models turned up for the auditions for Miss Vijayawada contest. With every new season comes a new crop of fresh-faces trying to prove their mettle on the ramp. It was fun going backstage to capture the roller-coaster of emotions the young promising newbies experienced.
The girls were excited. They had been queuing for long hours but couldn’t stop smiling. Some of them practised their model pose—hand on their hip, one leg slightly bent and in front of the other—as they waited, one of them adjusted a curl that had escaped its neatly coiffed position with her perfectly manicured fingers.
The hunt for Andhra beauties is here. City-based Sai Creative Entertainments has begun a search to find a new breed of ramp scorchers and fresh faces. The 25-odd short-listed girls are being put through a 10-day grooming session and training by stylist and fashion designer Manga Reddy.
“A ramp walk is no more just about glamour and glitz. It must be carried out in a professional way and only those who work hard will succeed. I am here to groom them in styling, how to catwalk and how to present themselves before an audience. Besides an attractive and pleasing persona, our focus is on hair texture, skin tone, gait and of course size,” she says. The contestants will compete for the title of ‘Miss Vijayawada’ slated for April 12. “There is a burgeoning need for fashion models these days. There has been an upsurge in the number of fashion shows in recent years. The expansion of the media has given a boost to the ad world, which in turn has upped the demand for more models. In the wake of the new capital here, we need to bring in high-end fashion to the city for the younger generation,” says the event host Gottipati Sai. As interest and participation in modelling increases from this part of the State, people like Gottipati endeavour to provide a platform for young talent. “A few of last year contestants have succeeded in finding a foothold for themselves in the glamour world. The winner has a film to her credit while other finalists are not idle either,” he says.
Similar auditions will be held at Guntur, Nellore, Rajahmundry, Visakhapatnam and Bheemavaram. Three finalists from each place will qualify to battle it out in the grand finale for the title of Miss Andhra Pradesh, to be held sometime in November this year.
“The number of contestants has more than doubled, compared to last year. I am sure in the next five years, we will be able to churn out well-groomed and sophisticated girls who would rule the Telugu film industry,” says a confident Sai.
“The stress is on a healthy look. After the first round, the make-up and hairstyling will give each participant an equal chance to look good. The photo shoots are to test if they are photogenic or not; the question-and-answer rounds are to test their confidence, maturity and seriousness about their approach to modelling as a career,” says Ms. Reddy.
A team of film personalities—actors Tharun and Poonam Kaur and director Nageswara Rao, will be the judges for the grand finale of Miss Vijayawada.
For most contestants, winning a title like this one had been their dream created in their imagination. “A dream cannot become real if it stays in your imagination. That’s precisely why I am here,” says a chirpy teenage contestant. The organisers also insist that the contenders must comprehend the fact that rejection is more common than acceptance. Each wannabe beauty queen competing for the title is up against several other aspirants. Not everyone can get the title. The participants are pitted against each other in a challenge of mind over matter, where poise and confidence are as important as looks. The confident ones make their mark enjoying the attention and swaying to the music. Others are clearly nervous or uncomfortable, walking gawkily on the ramp.
