Contrary to popular belief, 2025 was an astonishingly pleasant year for Indian pageantry.
It is widely believed that Indian delegates across competitions deserved better placements than what they received. While that sentiment is understandable, the truth is that many of these competitions were never fair to begin with. So my personal assessment is this: India, despite not being at the centre of any major conspiracy, had a decent stint at beauty pageants this year.
Allow me to explain.
Miss International 2025 – India’s Unexpected Win
There’s no way in hell I ever imagined starting a pageant list with anything Miss International, but like I said – this year was astonishingly pleasant for Indians, whether they see it or not.
Miss International has been mugging India since 2012. There have been girls who have done unexceptionably well throughout the competition and still not placed, let alone won.
I’ll be honest – our best bet was Zoya Afroz at Miss International. She was everything this brand looks for – fair-skinned, doll-like face, poise, discipline. The only issue was that she was twenty-six and looked much older.
Before and after her, the girls sent to Miss International were pretty much just contestants. They weren’t handpicked for the pageant, and therefore the chances of them placing were always slim.
Until this year.
Glamanand announced they bought back the Miss International franchise for India exactly when Roosh Sindhu was competing at their national pageant. A blind person could have seen who was going to win the Miss International India crown after that. The crown for Miss Universe India had competition. Miss International India didn’t. We knew it had to be Roosh even before we knew the organisation was looking to buy back the franchise.
But another thing that needs to be said is her styling at the competition. While she was professionally guided by experts, her shoots and looks were fabulous. The moment she reached Japan and her styling was in her own hands? Disaster. I’m not a makeup expert, so I won’t say much about what was off, but the truth is, we all knew something was.
Her walk and the way she carried herself were immaculate, but like I said, this was Miss International. You’re either a doll or a flop.
So very honestly, while my gut told me Roosh would place, there was no evidence to back that up. When she did get us a placement, I was over the moon. When she couldn’t make the next cut, I wasn’t surprised.
Another important thing to note is that no matter how perfect she could’ve been, she would’ve reached Top 8 at best. Your country doesn’t suddenly win after unplacing for thirteen years. Someone needs to put you “up there”, especially if you’re a country with the sash power of India. The way Vartika Singh did for India at Miss Universe in 2019. And Roosh did the best possible job under these circumstances. She gave us Vartika for this competition.
Miss Universe 2025 – Politics Over Performance
The truth is, Miss India Manika Vishwakarma at Miss Universe 2025 was everything Miss Universe looked for in a girl… five years ago. And the difference between five years ago and today is simple – it’s not five years ago anymore.
Indian pageant fans often forget the reality of pageants while deciding how high their expectations should sit. In 2025, when Miss Universe announced Nawat as Thailand’s National Director, India’s first reaction was fear. This came almost immediately after his very public feud with India’s national director, Nikhil Anand.
A section of fans didn’t see this as a problem, considering Nawat and Nikhil were both national directors, until MUO announced Nawat as an Executive Director at the organization, a position far more powerful.
At this point, Indians feared losing their Miss Universe placement streak (India has placed every year since 2019). For almost an entire year, before and after Manika’s crowning, the fear stayed. Manika was well-prepared from day one, yet the fear remained.
When she arrived in Thailand, people suddenly decided we needed to watch out for her. She was the “it” girl.
And she was.
But she was the same girl she had been in India. The only difference was that the competition had begun and international bloggers were hyper-focused on her, which is good, but it made us forget the first rule of Miss Universe: politics.
So when India didn’t make the Top 10 at Miss Universe 2025, I was heartbroken, not surprised. We saw it coming a year ahead. Manika securing a placement itself was beyond expectations, because Nawat held the same power then as he does now – controversy or not.
Miss Grand International 2025 – No Shock, No Hurt
Speaking of Nawat, next is Miss Grand International 2025—the one and only.
India didn’t place, and unlike every other competition this year, this result hurt nobody. We knew it was coming. The new national organisation had less than zero fan support, the girl wasn’t Rachel, and the controversies from 2024 were still fresh.
That said, while India was ignored as a contender on finale night, the entire show was Bollywood-themed. The reigning Miss Grand International (assumed winner CJ Opiaza of the Philippines) danced to a remixed version of Dhoom Machale. In my opinion, what better way to pay tribute to the real reigning queen?
India also won Best National Costume at Miss Grand International 2025, and reports suggest India may host Miss Grand International 2026—so there’s that.
Miss Earth 2025 – A Placement That Matters
Miss Earth’s criteria is all over the place – natural beauty, eco-warriors, speeches, everything.
That said, Miss Earth India 2025 remains one of the few competitions, alongside Miss World, that actually makes sense.
They’ve historically ignored India since Nicole Faria won our first crown. We’ve had girls win multiple side awards and still not place. With that history, Komal’s placement at Miss Earth 2025 feels like a victory, not a let-down.
Miss Supranational 2025 – Managing Expectations
India has won Miss Supranational twice, and we’re the only country to do so.
Ayushree, despite winning the Supra Chat Challenge, stopped at Top 24. Heartbreaking as it may be, past editions exist to help you understand the competition, not rewrite it.
You can go to sleep knowing the Earth revolves around the Sun and wake up hoping it doesn’t. That’s not happening.
If I ran a pageant, I wouldn’t let India dominate presentation rounds either. India wins talks. Ayushree stopping at Top 24 did more good than harm, it prevented another Sonal-and-Ritika situation. Indian gods saved us this year too.
Miss World 2025 – Fair Is Fair
Years ago, people made fun of me for calling Miss World my favourite pageant. Who’s laughing now?
“Nandini deserved better.”
Who exactly would you remove from the Top to put Nandini in?
Exactly. No one.
Detached from national bias, Miss World 2025 was fair.
All in all, 2025 was a hit for India at international beauty pageants. Even emerging competitions like Miss Cosmo and Miss Charm gave placements to India. While stronger results were possible, both pageants are still evolving and deserve some benefit of doubt.
As we enter 2026, let’s pray the pageant world moves toward fairness and away from politics.
May the best women always win.
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