New Delhi: Karolina Bielawska, the reigning Miss World, arrived in Kashmir on Monday for a daylong tour and festivities. Prior to the 71st Miss World 2023 competition, which will take place in India later this year, Bielawska visited Jammu & Kashmir for the first time as an international beauty pageant winner.
After nearly three decades, the pageant is being hosted by India, which has won the prestigious title six times. The last time the country hosted the event was back in 1996.
Poland's Bielawska, along with other pageant winners, including Miss World India Sini Shetty, enjoyed breakfast with other dignitaries at a five-star hotel here. Miss World and other dignitaries, such as Miss World America Shree Saini, Miss World England Jessica Gagen, and Miss Asia Pricilia Carla Saputri Yules, took a boat ride on the famous Dal Lake during the full-day tour in addition to meeting with the press and later visiting Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.
Bielawska and Shetty will be accompanied on the tour for the entire day by Miss World America Shree Saini and Julia Morley, the CEO and chairperson of the Miss World Organisation. At the breakfast meeting, Jamil Saidi, Chairman of PME Entertainment in India, and Rouble Nagi, founder of the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation, were also present.
The pre-event tour for the Miss World contest is taking place in the region months after the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting that was held here, according to Syed Abid Rasheed Shah, the secretary of tourism for Jammu and Kashmir.
"The number of inbound tourists (foreigners) is a record high for the last 33 years. From the Miss World pre-event tour, we expect the guests to be ambassadors for Jammu and Kashmir's beauty and hospitality throughout the world," he said.
A press conference for the Miss World Pageant 2023, which includes Miss World, Miss America, Miss Asia Pacific, Miss India, and others, will take place today, August 28, at 3:30 at the SKICC.
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