Miss Tibet - Women with Wisdom from the Roof of the World

Dolma Tsering is Miss Tibet

Tribune India

Published in:
www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20021014/himachal.htm#4

By R.K. Prashar

DHARAMSALA, India, 13 October 2002 (Tribune India) – New Delhi-based Dolma Tsering was crowned the first Miss Tibet last evening at the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) in McLeodganj, uptown Dharamsala, during the grand finale of the Free Spirit Festival.

Dolma Tsering of India, winner of the first Miss Tibet pageant, prays in front of a photograph of the Tibetan spiritual leader

Dolma Tsering of India, winner of the first Miss Tibet pageant, prays in front of a photograph of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala on Sunday. — Reuters photo

Dolma was crowned by Ama Aadhen, one of the oldest political prisoners of Tibet. The atmosphere in the quadrangle of the TIPA was charged with excitement even as dewdrops moistened the jam-packed audience comprising foreigners, Tibetans and local residents.

A battery of cameras of the native and international media panned the beauty queen of Tibet who sashayed on to the ramp to answer a volley of questions, mostly in Tibetan.

Soon after the coronation, Dolma Tsering told this reporter that she was thankful to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the people of her community. "I will represent Tibet and the Tibetan cause on the world stage and would like to be a special woman who epitomises the Tibetan culture and religion," she added.

She was presented a cheque for Rs 1 lakh by the organisers.

The crowning of Dolma Tsering as the Miss Tibet beat the favourite USA based Tenzin Deki.

With the Miss Tibet function, the ongoing struggle for the freedom of Tibet will get a new dimension. The pangs of the massive Tibetan diaspora for their homeland now will be made known to the world of beauties.

The exiled Tibetan community will have another medium to propagate its cause even as the man behind the show, Mr Lobsang Wangyal, told this reporter that there was nothing in this pageant to project China as bad.

Out of the 27 beauty queen aspirants, six contestants in the age group of 18-26 with a minimum height of 5'-6' had arrived in Dharamsala. The finalists included Tenzin Deki Chokteng of Colorado, USA, Tenzin Yanki, Dehra Dun in Uttar Pradesh, Lhakpa Dolma, Manipat in Madhya Pradesh, Dolma Yangzom, New Delhi, Dolma Tsering, New Delhi, and Tsultrim Dolma, Karnataka. Tsultrim Dolma and Dolma Yangzom, however, did not participate in the contest.

Since their arrival in Dharamsala, the girls had been observing a rigorous regimen of language rehearsals, training and diet control.

Lhakpa Dolma, a teacher by profession, was busy improving the accent of her weak English, Tenzin Yanki, a student of fashion designing and computers, was engaged in learning tips on confidence-building, while Tenzin Deki Chokteng, engineering student at the Colorado School of Mines, remained confined to learning Tibet's ancient history, culture and religious background.