Speaker 1:

India produces beauty queens one after another. Young Indians have won the Miss World crown four times since 1999, and Miss Universe twice. A record for a country where in general, women play a subordinate role in society.

What do women from the subcontinent have to offer that others don't?

Speaker 2:

The stereotype is breaking, that it is the Barbie doll which is pretty, or the Sleeping Beauty, long hair, flaxen hair, which is beautiful, no. You could be dark and beautiful. You have black models on the ramp today. This is not a meat factory contest. No girl is pushed into the contest against her will. No one, but no one is allowed to look at that girl, or talk to her in a manner that demeans her personal status.

Speaker 1:

This is where the training takes place for the big competitions. Most of the girls come from wealthy families. Every year the women's magazine, Femina, which organises the Miss India show, spends thousands on advertising. For poor contestants, even paying for the photos is out of reach.

Speaker 3:

We have something which all over the world people don't have. People from all over country, why do they want to get married to Indians? Most of the people from all over country, they want to get married to Indians, because they feel Indian women are full of ethics, values, traditions.

Divya:

They say, well, just one question, and the answer, and they get the crown. It's not that. 35 to 40 days that we spend here, learning every minute, going through the experience, attaining wisdom at the end of the day. Overall personality enhancement, I think if they go through that they visualise that looking beautiful is no easy job.

Speaker 1:

Contestants for the beauty crowns are prepared mercilessly, almost like in a factory. For the glory of the country, for the fulfilment of their ambitions, the contestants study at least eight hours a day. There's almost a military spirit here. Nothing is left to chance. The contestants between the ages of 18 to 23, learn among other things, nutrition and movement, meditation, makeup and fitness. Anyone studying or with a job has to put everything else on hold. Visits from family and friends are discouraged.

Speaker 5:

By and large, what I hear from them is probably India would be one of the countries that does a lot more than most countries in the world. We prepare them for the contest.

Speaker 1:

While the curves of the young women delight some, the bathing costume parade of the competition is fiercely controversial in India. Some think it damages morals. But in the preliminary competitions, the judges at least, get a glance at the contestants in their swimsuits. For each of the judges, there are different attributes that catch the eye.

Speaker 6:

Eyes and hair.

Speaker 7:

It does appear to be the striking faces.

Speaker 6:

But there has to be something about the eyes, because always when you look at someone's eyes-

Falan:

... the hair or the ass?

Speaker 6:

And the best part is [Falan's] face.

Falan:

Someone has to say it.

Speaker 10:

I love a good ass. I do. A good ass and good tits is what I like.

Speaker 1:

There are calls for this rampant objectification to end. The organisers worldwide are trying to change the image of the beauty contests away from a flesh market. They want to highlight the intellectual qualities of the contestants, but even so, it's the girl's bodies that still play the most important role. That is what the Hindu Nationalists are completely against. They've extended their boycott to all beauty competitions.

Speaker 11:

[foreign language]

Speaker 1:

[Ankita] is the well brought up daughter of an industrialist. She's studying commerce. Her parents are convinced that she's beautiful enough to take part in a Miss competition. Modern as she is, she doesn't want to make the choice of her life's partner by herself. Her parents are searching for her future husband. Her father sees the beauty contest as just good business.

Speaker 12:

[foreign language]

Ankita:

At the end of the day, I'm proud of myself, and I'm proud of everything around it that I ultimately definitely played the game, whether I was a winner or not, because I believe in the Ganda saying that, you may lose if you try, but you'll be very lost if you didn't.

Speaker 1:

Devya, like the other girls, is nervous. Soon, it will be the provisional selection. The women's magazine has devoted an entire addition to the choice. Circulation has rocketed from 63,000 to almost double, over the last seven years, since they've been involved in the Miss Beauty contests. Over two million readers are informed about the competitions, but there's silence over surgical help used to achieve beauty, even though more and more Indian women are resorting to cosmetic surgery.

Speaker 14:

They look for redoing their nose, mostly it's the nose job, the lips, lip augmentation, or just giving that little extra pout, or they want to do the breast augmentation.

Speaker 1:

After weeks of training, everything is now serious. With studied steps, they parade before the jury and audience. The contestants don't go on immediately to a national title. First, it's Miss Beautiful Skin, a Miss Computer Queen, a Miss Laughter, and a Miss Perfect Body.

Several of the contestants can also present their bodily advantages in a special show. It's meant to show that beauty alone is not enough. Other talents are also needed. T10 of the Misses have at least got a title. The other 16 leave with nothing. For the national title it's even tougher. Only one can win.

Speaker 15:

This is one group that has proved otherwise. The 2002 batch has been a great batch.

Speaker 1:

Devya is not one of the lucky ones. Her mother comforts her with a shopping spree. The 20-year old comes from a modern family. For India, she's unusual. She's an only child. Her father is an Army officer. Her mother is a school principal.

Speaker 16:

Facing background, towards [inaudible]

Speaker 1:

The computer science student interrupted her engineering studies for six months to compete in the Miss competitions. Once again, Devya looks through the photos of the Miss winners. Why they won, and she didn't, she doesn't know. She's very disappointed, but she still believes she learnt something from the experience.

Divya:

That six month of break, what I gave up on my studies, I have definitely learned a lot new things, found new potentialities in me, and have emotional to be a much more confident young lady. I haven't been at any loss.

Speaker 16:

In my heart I feel depressed, and disappointed, because I think my daughter had practically everything. She has intelligence. She has looks. She has glamour. Above all, she has serenity, which I suppose did not catch the eyes of the judges.