Dethrone Miss India SA, say losing contestants
FEATHERS flew as contestants in the Zee TV Miss India South Africa pageant accused the organisers of rigging the contest last Saturday and demanded the teenage winner be dethroned.
Four women, who did not want to be named, said they were used as “pawns” in a game of chess and never stood a chance of winning the coveted crown.
The pageant, in its 27th year, was won by 19-year-old Kiara Rampaul, a second-year bachelor of social science student at the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
The teenager, from Izinga Ridge, uMhlanga, who will compete in the Miss India Worldwide contest in New York next year, responded to her detractors by saying it was important to have proof before making accusations.
Fifteen contestants, who were already in the thick of rehearsals, were allegedly scheduled to participate. Rampaul joined a few days before the pageant.
“She was not a part of the regional competitions in Durban and Johannesburg; nor did she attend rehearsals, meetings or photo shoots,” said a Durban contestant. “As a first-time entrant, this has put me off competing again.”
Another contestant said: “We can’t even call it a pageant. It was like a debs ball. Those who raised the most money, through sponsorships and ticket sales, got the top spots. I don’t think the winner deserves the crown. I feel she bought her place.”
She said they were speaking out because they did not want others who were not well off to expect much.
“The pageant was supposed to inspire and empower women but left many feeling diminished because they had been measured by money, not character.”
Another felt they had been wronged.
She claimed first princess Dheruska Budram 25, an assistant teacher from Mountain Rise, Pietermaritzburg, was not frank about her relationship with a pageant judge.
“At the beginning, we were asked to sign forms stating we had no relationship with the judges. But in the pageant’s brochure, for which we secured adverts, she had an ad from Minority Front leader Shameen Thakur Rajbansi, who sat on the panel of judges.
“She also thanked Rajbansi on Facebook after her win for supporting her.”
A Johannesburg entrant said she e-mailed the chairperson of the worldwide pageant about the alleged irregularities, including a contestant having prior knowledge of questions before the question-and-answer session.
She also questioned how Zee South Africa could “put their name on something like this”.
Zee TV South Africa’s chief executive, Harish Goyal, said the contest was not organised by them but by the chairperson of the Miss India South Africa Pageant, Farook Khan.
“It has been around for 27 years, long before Zee was introduced to the country. We are the media sponsors. We sponsor 70 events a year, from pageantry to charity,” he said.
“It’s very easy to drag people into controversy. When we donate to schools, we do not interfere with the education. Similarly, when we sponsor a pageant, we do not make any call as to who should win.”
Khan said although Rampaul was not part of the regional rounds, she had won a previous competition of his, Miss India South Africa International.
“The rumours are not true. No one was given preference. We have a reputation that goes back 27 years and we always choose high-calibre people. It is not true that women who raised the most funds made it to the top because the person who sold the most tickets did not come anywhere.
“As for sponsorships, I do them all on my own,” said Khan. “Regarding the relationship between the judge and the contestant, I was not aware and did not see anything wrong with the sponsorship.”
Rampaul said she did not unfairly enter the contest.
“I entered months before the pageant. I used my knowledge, culture, experience and past pageant as a stepping stone to the final. Like every other contestant, I worked extremely hard and it is unfortunate that there had to be only one winner.
“All the judges were of a high calibre and I don’t think they would want to compromise their integrity in their judgements. It is important to have proof before making accusations. “
Budram said the allegations about a relationship with Thakur Rajbansi were false.
“We were allowed to go out and get any sponsors. I approached the Minority Front offices in Pietermaritzburg and they sponsored me. I do not know Rajbansi personally and only thanked her on my post because I thanked all my sponsors. It was a general message,” she said.
Rajbansi said she had been sponsoring contestants for 18 years and it was by chance that Budram had been placed in the top 3.
“And when I judged, it didn’t cross my mind that I sponsored the lady.”