India's Harnaaz Sandhu was crowned the 70th Miss Universe, leading about 80 contestants in a pageant hit by politics and the pandemic.
The 21-year-old from Punjab represented India at the 70th edition of Miss Universe 2021 held in Eilat, Israel. She won the crown, 21 years after Lara Dutta won the title in 2000.
He bested competitors from Paraguay and South Africa to take the crown.
Sandhu was presented with the crown by Andrea Meza, former Miss Universe 2020 from Mexico, in a ceremony broadcast live around the world.
The second and second place winners respectively were Paraguay and South Africa.
As part of the competition for the first three places, the following question was asked of the candidates: “What advice would you give to the young women watching us so that they can cope with the pressures they are facing today?”
Harnaaz replied, “The biggest pressure facing the younger generation today is self-confidence. Knowing that you are unique makes you beautiful. Stop comparing yourself to others and let's talk about the more important things going on in the world. Come out, speak for yourself, because you are the leader of your life. You are the voice of your own life. I believe in myself and that is why I am standing here today.”
