Indian Woman Is Miss Universe 2000
The Associated Press
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - Lara Dutta gave a dream birthday gift to her father: the Miss Universe crown, which she was awarded for her beauty, poise and an eloquent defense of the pageant.
Dutta, a 21-year-old model from India, won the 49th Miss Universe pageant on Saturday when her father, a retired Indian air force pilot, turned 60. He was in the audience with his wife to watch their daughter beat 78 other young women who had competed for the title during three weeks on this Mediterranean island.
Claudia Moreno, 22, of Venezuela was second and Helen Lindes, 18, of Spain was third. Miss USA, Lynette Cole, 22, of Columbia, Tenn., was among the five finalists.
It is going to take a while to sink in,'' Dutta told reporters after the show. It is a wonderful and incredible, exhilarating feeling.‘’
The pageant was held before dawn and broadcast live to an audience of millions, largely aimed at the Friday night television viewers in the Americas. The contestants had stayed awake since Friday morning, and Dutta said the first thing she wanted to do was to eat some breakfast and get some sleep.
After the field was whittled down, the three finalists were asked to react to a small but noisy demonstration Friday night outside the pageant venue organized by the Cypriot Church, which condemned the event as unchristian and an affront to womanhood.
Dutta, speaking fluent English, impressed the judges with this answer: ``Pageants like Miss Universe give us young women a platform to foray in the fields that we want to and forge ahead, be it entrepreneurship, be it the armed forces, be it politics.
``It gives us a platform to voice our choices and opinions and it makes us strong and independent that we are today,‘’ said Dutta, wearing a single-strap glittering red gown.
Minutes later a tiara was placed on Dutta’s head by Mpule Kwelagobe of Botswana, the Miss Universe 1999.
Dutta was a near-unanimous choice by the judges.
As soon as she opened her mouth she had such presence, such grace. And her answer was the grand slam. She represents the women of 2000s so clearly,'' said motivation speaker Tony Robbins, one of the judges. She had such a regal aura about her.‘’
The Miss Universe Organization says the pageant is not just about beauty but also about uplifting women because the winners, under increased media scrutiny, help focus attention on humanitarian issues.
Kwelagobe traveled the world as a representative of a charity group, AIDS Awareness, and Dutta will do the same as part of her contract. She said she will also work toward population control in India, which officially reached 1 billion people last week.