Indian News Qld - June 2020 Vol 3 Issue 9

from Indian News Qld - June 2020 Vol 3 Issue 9

Towards a Healthy Heart

Prakruthi Mysore Gururaj of Queensland wins Mrs Karnataka 2020 crown of APF Quarantine FB Queen

The finale of the Quarantine FB Queen 2020 virtual pageant under the APF Mrs Karnataka banner from India was held on May 17, and Australia’s Prakruthi Mysore Gururaj was declared the crown winner and was titled as Mrs Karnataka 2020 along with two other subtitles Mrs Confident and Mrs Rampwalk.

The contestants took part in the pageant via a virtual meet, and after two weeks of Facebook rounds, the finale and the Q&A round was conducted virtually over Facebook.

After four rounds of Introductory, Western Gown, Traditional Wear and 150 mins of virtual Q&A round, winners were announced.

The title was jointly won by two contestants: Prakruthi Mysore Gururaj from Queensland and Vinitha Nataraj from Bengaluru. Pavithra Avinash emerged as the 1st runners up and Ranjitha Gowda bagged the 2nd runner up title, all from Bangalore. Besides the main awards, there were 17 subtitles, including Mrs Congeniality, which was won by Pavithra Avinash, Mrs Beautiful Smile, which went again to Vinitha Nataraj, Mrs Glamorous look, won by Shwetha Pavan Singh.

This pageant, first of its kind in the world, was not solely on looks or beauty rather it was about the achievements of women and their contribution to the community. The chairwoman and director of APF Mrs Karnataka, Dr Asha Kiran, organised the virtual pageant with the intent to empower the women of Karnataka and India with the motto “Say no to body shaming” and “Say yes to self-confidence”. Along with

Dr Asha Kiran, Major Aditi Mohan (ex-Indian Army officer) and Mr Santhosh Reddy (actor, model) were the judges.

When asked how she manages to juggle so many activities and how she feels about winning, she said, "Winning this title means a lot to me as it has set an example of no age limit for achieving our dreams. I always advocate thinking wise, dreaming big and making sure you follow your dreams by being committed, consistent, putting all your effort and being honest. It’s also about staying connected to your roots. I am grateful to my parents, in-laws, husband Dr Madhuchandra, children and friends for all their support and encouragement.”

Prakruthi, who strongly believes in serving the community and making a difference in people’s lives, has earned the respect from people

in the community for her contribution to multiculturalism. She has been able to achieve this through her abilities and skills in leadership, public speaking, writing and entertainment. While she enjoys her community engagements, she's also a business analyst by profession and a mother of two.

Prakruthi began working hard at the age of 12, when she started choreographing dances for underprivileged children in schools. She later went on to represent Karnataka State twice at national level dance competition. She entered into fashion when she was 18 and walked the ramp as professional model for four years. Later, she went on to be a judge for many beauty pageants back in India and now in Australia as well.

She has since grown into an enterprising woman winning numerous

awards and accolades across multidisciplinary domains in India, the Middle East and now her home in Australia. She now takes part in Red Carpet Fashion shows, both as a model and predominantly as master of ceremony. She also volunteers to photo-shoot for emerging photographers and designers.

Having served at Federation of Indian Communities of Queensland as vice president and PRO, and president of Kannada Sangha Queensland Inc in the past, she is now a part of Damini Woman’s Association and Fiji Senior Citizens Association and Queensland Multicultural Network Group. To expand on her community involvement, she currently serve as the multicultural ambassador for Red Carpet Functions and, as one of the community leaders in Queensland, works with many multicultural communities.

Pavithar Avinash (1st Runner Up)