SHAH ALAM, Feb 12 — Saturday evening’s grand finals of the Miss and Mrs India Worldwide Malaysia 2018 pageant saw 28-year-old Amrit Kaur Dhillon Ikbal Singh crowned Miss India Worldwide Malaysia 2018 while 39-year-old business support professional Jeya Priya Pandian took home the title of Mrs India Worldwide Malaysia 2018.

The first runner-up for the Miss category went to model Tinaprit Dhillon while her best friend, student Joanna Joseph was placed second runner-up. Joseph also took home the subsidiary title of Miss Social Media.

In the Mrs category, mother of two from Ampang, Maynicca Devi Rajamanikam was crowned first runner-up and Gaithri Cheran went home as second runner-up.

Held at the TSR Conference Hall’s D’Royale Ballroom, the joint pageant was the first franchised Indian-Malaysian pageant to be held alongside each other.

It was aimed is to showcase the diversity of Indian culture across the globe.

The winner from both categories will represent Malaysia at the Miss and Mrs India Worldwide pageant later this year where they will compete against 40 other contestants to win the coveted titles.

Jeya Priya, a mother of one from Subang Jaya who works at IBM told Malay Mail a week before the pageant she wants to raise awareness about child sexual abuse.

The pageant, which originated from the United States has been running since 1990.

Organised by Golden Grand Glam Sdn Bhd, some 500 guests attended the grand finals, including reigning Miss India Worldwide USA 2017 Shree Saini who captivated the audience with a dance routine.

Also in attendance were local celebrities, charity foundations and associations, influential figures, those from the corporate sector and special guest Datuk Seri Gnanaraja.

The 21 finalists wore evening gowns by Bhawna Navneet, jewelries by Ceres Jewels, shoes by Notting Heels, sarees by Avalon and accessories by Padmavati Jewellery.

The ladies were also required to complete 12 hours of charity and social service.

The judging panels comprised of Sarawakian fashion designer Datuk Raymond Jolly, Malaysian Punjabi Chambers of Commerce and Industries (MPCCI) president Datuk Daljit Singh Dhaliwal, Ceres Jewels Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Seri Navneet Goenka, Homme magazine’s Datuk Nicholas Pinder, model Carl Graham, Mrs Universe 2013 Carol Lee and former beauty queen Kavita Sidhu.

Subsidiary titles accorded during the evening include Mrs Social Media (Gaithri Cheran). Miss Congeniality (Jeyabarathi Rajagopal), Miss Beautiful Skin (Shakila Saiful), Mrs Beautiful Skin (Kiron Jeet Kaur), Miss Makkal Osai (Haaswani Subramaniam), Mrs Makkal Osai (Kalaichelvi Shanmugam), Miss Holiday Villa (Felena Eva Jesu Kumar), Mrs Holiday Villa (Sabiah Haasan),Miss Photogenic (Dhurghesswary Uthamaraj), Mrs Photogenic (Sivasanggari Naidu) Miss Catwalk (Shemini Rama Rao) and Mrs Catwalk (Jeya Priya Pandian).