Five Tibetans arrive for annual beauty pageant

Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse (AFP)

Published in:
indiatimes.com
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1535&ncid=731&e=6&u=/afp/20041001/wl_sthasia_afp/india_tibet_pageant

Dharamsala, India, 1 October 2004 (AFP) – Five Tibetan beauties have defied criticism from their conservative society and arrived in India's Himalayan foothill town of Dharamsala to compete in the 2004 Miss Tibet pageant.

Organisers welcomed the participants, but sought to appease sections of Tibetan society who have criticised the event in the past, by axing the swimsuit round from public viewing.

The pageant will be held October 8 to 10 in Dharamsala, the seat of the exiled Tibetan community in India, after contestants undergo a week's training on Tibetan culture and history as well as beauty tips.

Pageant coordinator Ngawang Samdup said about 20 Tibetan girls had originally applied to take part in the competition but most of them withdrew their bids, probably because of pressure from their families.

"Tibetan culture has to evolve and move with the changing times. Miss Tibet is an expression of modern young Tibetans," he said.

One of the contestants for the title, Kalsang Dickey, has come to Dharamsala from as far away as the Tibetan capital Lhasa to take part in the contest, first started two years ago.

There was only one participant in last year's competition who was crowned unopposed.

The winner of Miss Tibet receives a scholarship of 100,000 rupees (2,200 US dollars), participates in festivals and represents Tibet at international pageants.

The first Miss Tibet, Dolma Tsering, participated in Miss Tourism Intercontinental last year in Malaysia, where she won the Miss Goodwill title.

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