Miss France, Iris Mittenaere, took home the Miss Universe crown this year. As we saw Sushmita Sen return to the grand stage, that she once walked as the winner back in 1994, here’s looking back at the final moments that set her and Aishwarya Rai on the path to international stardom.
It all started at the Miss India pageant held in Goa on January 16, 1994. Aishwarya Rai was the big favourite and no one expected Sushmita Sen to win. Even though Ash didn’t win that night, she has been referred to on several occasions as one of the most gorgeous women on the planet. The two were locked in a tie at the Miss India pageant.
As the tie-breaker, Aishwarya was asked the question "If you have to look for qualities in a husband, would you look for the qualities in Ridge Forrester from The Bold & Beautiful or in Mason Capwell from Santa Barbara?". Ash chose Mason and said, "Mason. They do have a lot in common, but from what we see, Mason has a very caring side to him, and a terrific sense of humour. And that really gels with my character."
Sushmita, on the other hand was quizzed about India’s textile heritage by Ritu Kumar, and her answer gave her the lead over Aishwarya. She was asked "What do you know about the textile heritage of your country? How old has it been and what do you prefer to wear personally?" The bold lady gave Mahatma Gandhi’s Khadi movement the credit with her answer, "I think it all started with Mahatma Gandhi's khadi. It has gone a long way since then, but the basics of Indian textile heritage has been from there."
Sushmita beat Aishwarya by a mere 0.2 percent. No one quite knows why Sushmita’s answer was considered better than Aishwarya’s, but the two women have represented India on global platforms in their own ways, having carved quite the niche for themselves in Bollywood too. Sushmita remains reclusive as an actor, but Aishwarya is still the top choice for most filmmakers in the industry.
Filmmaker and journalist Khalid Mohamed recalls meeting a heartbroken Aishwarya at the 1994 pageant’s after-event dinner.
Aishwarya in a fire-engine red ensemble, an update to Zeenat Aman’s fashion statement in Yaadon ki Baaraat (1973), hung on to her mother and didn’t let her disappointment show.“Not fair! The jury must be suffering from cataract vision or they must be dumb,” I huffed for all to hear. Aishwarya responded with a barely audible, “Thank you”.Khalid Mohamed, Journalist
This is not to say that Sushmita Sen wasn’t deserving of the crown. There is after all only one crown to be won, and this one made them both destiny’s favourite girls.