Miss IndiaNZ 2016 – the Final Countdown!

Miss IndiaNZ 2016 – the Final Countdown!

From academics to sporting champs, career professionals to high school students, they are 26 beautiful & extremely diverse women who share one common dream – to take home the coveted title of Miss IndianNZ 2016.

And they don’t have long to wait. In less than three weeks Bollywood will descend upon Auckland’s Aotea Centre for the much-anticipated Miss IndiaNZ event. Now in its 14th year, Miss IndiaNZ 2016 will be a visual extravaganza of glitz, glamour, fashion, music & dance. A spectacular celebration of Kiwi-Indian culture, Miss IndiaNZ brings together women from mixed ethnic backgrounds to showcase their unique identities.

“It will boost my confidence and help me play a positive role in the community,” says nursing student and pageant contestant Karishma Patel. “I hope to influence other young women of Indian origin to stand up and be proud of who they are and what they wish to achieve.”

For Auckland-born Natalie Nand the event provides a great opportunity to reconnect with her Indian heritage. “My identity was not very close to my roots while I was growing up,” says Natalie, who has a degree in Psychology and works as a mental health specialist. “I started learning Hindi film dances and Bharatnatyam this year and decided to enter Miss IndiaNZ as a way to engage with the Indian community and find out what it means to be a Kiwi-Indian.”

Produced by specialist event company Rhythm House, Miss IndiaNZ takes place on September 17and is expected to draw a crowd of over 500 spectators, with ten thousand more following proceedings via social media.

After a traditional Maori welcome, festivities will kick off with the Kiwi-Girl round, giving contestants the chance to showcase their love of New Zealand high fashion. For event producer Swapna Parikh, this segment captures the true spirit of Miss IndiaNZ.

“Ever since 2002 we have opened the show with the Saree round– but this year we want to put more emphasis on our unique Kiwi-Indian identity. We encourage our contestants to embrace Te Reo and Maori Tikanga, not just their native language and aim to showcase not just Indian talent, but KIWI-Indian talent,” says Swapna.

“This year’s contestants come from Queenstown, Wellington, Hamilton and Auckland. They have a diverse mix of ethnic backgrounds - Tongan-Indian, Kiwi-Indian, Anglo-Indian and migrants. Celebrating their unique identities is what the heart of Miss IndiaNZ is all about.”

Miss IndiaNZ started 14 years ago and since then its popularity has soared.

This year's event takes place at Aotea Centre on Saturday 17th September, 7:30pm.

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