The Miss India contest in the year 1994 holds a special place for the country as it gave us two of the most stunning divas ever, Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai. Incidentally, both of them lifted trophies at different levels and had been competitors from the very initial stages of the pageant. Nevertheless, being competitors did not mean that they were ruthless about one another, and in fact, the duo had a lot of mutual love and respect for each other. Moreover, fast forward to today, both the divas-turned bonafide actresses seem to share a great bond with one another whenever they meet.
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Nearly 29 years have passed since Sushmita Sen was crowned Miss Universe and Aishwarya Rai was titled as Miss World. However, even today people find it difficult to imagine anyone else in the position of these actresses as they seemed perfect for the titles. However, things would have been utterly different if Sushmita Sen would have not participated in the pageant in the first place. Proof of the same was found in an old interview where Sushmita once recalled how she contemplated withdrawing her name from the pageant ever since she got to know that the gorgeous beauty, Aishwarya Rai was also going to be a part of it. Moreover, she also highlighted how in that year, nearly 25 girls had already walked out fearing Aishwarya’s competition. Recalling how someone asked her to rethink of her decision, Sushmita recalled:
“They said, 25 ladkiyan Miss India se naam nikal chuki hai, soch lijiye. I said, kyu, kyu aisa kyu? Kehte hai nahi iss bar Aishwarya Rai Miss India mein jaa rahi hai. Maine kaha bhai mera bhi form le lijiye, wapas nhi jana mujhe, main to nhi jaa rahi.”
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Going further in the interview, Sushmita also revealed how quite later in time, she had recounted this entire episode to Aishwarya, and told her how she was totally more beautiful than her, and that she was afraid of ever building confidence to compete against her. In her words:
“Aish ko maloom hai, Ash ko maine baad mein bataya tha, ki maine to apna form wapas le liya tha. Maine kaha nahi bohot khubsoorat hai bhai. Baki saari duniya janti thi usse, mujhe nahi jaana uske saath.”
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However, while Sushmita had backed off due to feeling under-confident as compared to Aishwarya Rai’s unparalleled beauty, her mother back at home was not at all happy with her decision. Revealing how her mother scolded her brutally for giving up before even trying once, she revealed how with a golden advice, her mom motivated her to go ahead with her participation. In her words:
“Toh main ghar aa gayi, and jo joote pade ghar pe, mummy se. Unhone kaha, ki yeh kya tareeka hota hai, tumne matlab koshish karne se pehle hi haar maan li. Toh theek hai, jeetne do. Agar tumhe lagta hai ke duniya ki sabse khubsurat ladki hai to usse haaro na. Aur kisi se haar ke kya fayda? Go give it your best shot. And phir pohoch gye next day, form leke ki bhai, le lijiye last minute entry.”
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Well, since the 1994 Miss India pageant made Sushmita Sen bag the crown over Aishwarya Rai, she has continuosly been asked about whether at any point she felt overtly competitive with the latter, and whether it led to any animosity between them. On the contrary, both the divas have maintained a cordial relationship with one another, and there has never been any hint of ill-will between them. For instance, during her appearance on the celebrity chat show, Koffee With Karan in 2005, Sushmita was once asked on why did she think to deserve the Miss India title over Aishwarya Rai. In her response, she mentioned:
“I don't compare myself to Aishwarya's performance. I think she was fabulous on stage. I do believe in two things: One, that night, I was the best and that's why I deserved to win, not because I was better than someone else. It is only because I was at my best.”
What do you think about Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai competing with each other at the Miss India contest, 1994?
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