Former Miss World Manushi Chillar Celebrates Manya Singh's Win At Miss India

Glass ceilings to shatter: Manushi Chillar on Manya Singh and her inspiring journey: Former Miss World Manushi Chillar hailed Manya Singh after she became the runner-up at VLCC Femina Miss India 2020. Manya Singh is the daughter of a rickshaw driver from Uttar Pradesh. She came second in the pageant finals that were held on Wednesday.

Reacting to an Instagram post on Singh’s big win, Chillar commented, “Glass ceilings to shatter.” The post was liked by Varun Dhawan.

In an Instagram post on the official page of Femina Miss India shared in December 2020, Singh said that she wanted to use the Miss India platform to talk about her journey and hence inspire others. “My blood, sweat, and tears have amalgamated into the courage to pursue my dreams,” Singh said.

Sharing about her struggling days, Singh said that she spent multiple nights without food or sleep. She also revealed that she walked for many hours instead of taking transport, only to save some money. As a child, she used to yearn for good clothes and books to read that were not hand-me-downs, but her family couldn’t afford anything new. Her parents mortgaged whatever little jewellery they had to pay for Singh’s exam fee.  

Singh had also won the Best Student award during her Higher Secondary schooling days. Her journey begins from not being able to pay her school fees, not being able to afford books and being neglected by her classmates for being an auto driver’s daughter to reaching the VLCC Femina Miss India 2020 stage. Read more on Manya Singh's inspiring journey here.

Telangana's Manasa Varanasi was crowned Miss India World at the same pageant, while Haryana’s Manika Sheokand became Miss Grand India. Varanasi is a financial information exchange analyst by profession, and will represent India at the 70th Miss World pageant, scheduled to be held in December 2021. Read more on her here.