New Delhi: Divita Rai, the Indian representative at the 71st Miss Universe competition, was eliminated before reaching the Top 5. In an attempt to win the coveted trophy this year, the model faced up against 85 rivals from various countries.
Meanwhile, the participants who prevailed in the pageant competition were from the Dominican Republic, Curacao, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and the United States.
Rai lost to the current Miss Universe, Harnaaz Sandhu, in 2021's Miss Diva Universe competition. After that, she competed in and won the Miss Diva 2022 pageant. She also took first place in the sub-contests for Miss IQ, Miss Lifestyle, and Miss Sudoku during the pageant.
The 25-year-old was born in Mangaluru, Karnataka, and she received her degree in architecture from the Sir JJ College of Architecture in Mumbai. She tried her hand at set designing for a movie, but she never lost upon becoming Miss Universe.
Divita Rai dressed up as "Sone Ki Chidiya" during the National Costume round of the 71st Miss Universe 2023 competition. With its gorgeous design and gold metallic hand embellishments, she charmed everyone with its message to the world. Abhishek Sharma created the outfit, which was a lehenga made of hand-woven tissue fabric from India's Chanderi area.
Meanwhile, the reigning champion for 2021, Harnaaz Sandhu, will pass her prestigious title to the sole woman who will succeed her.
The 2023 Miss Universe pageant kicked off at 8 p.m. on Saturday, January 14, or at 6:30 a.m. IST, on January 15. Indian viewers can watch the stream live on Voot or on the JKN18 channel's official Facebook and YouTube sites. Outside of India, fans can watch the live stream for free at 7 p.m. ET on the Roku Channel website or in Spanish at the same time on Telemundo.