recently i had the distinct pleasure of being a special guest at the 2nd miss india new england beauty pageant in lexington ma co incidentally it was on the same night as miss universe 2013 held in moscow who i found out was miss venezuela gabriela isler when i got home it was an evening of glitz and glamour showcasing richness of indian talent and costumes where indian american youth talked about their dreams and aspirations in front of panel of judges and audience a grand diwali mela was also held in museum lobby which clothing jewelry and food vendors contestants belonged to two age group categories miss india 17 to 27 yrs and miss teen 13 to 16 yrs and they participated in evening gown ethnic dress and five finalists were selected on basis of scores and they proceeded to questionanswer segment among the questions asked ann thomas was asked by judge mr joe freeman that what suggestion she will give to president obama to enrich american living she replied that if we promote all kinds of cultures and let people be aware of other heritage and countries then they will be able to understand other communities and live in harmony with one another that would enrich everyones life in america she made it to first runner up in miss india new england teen category and another contestant samantha kakullavarapu miss talented teen received president obamas education award for academic excellence in 2012 and president obamas community service award in 2013 at the end of an exciting evening of walking the ramp and judging the winner of miss india new england 2013 was monica gill from millbury massachusetts and shirin bakre from burlington ma got crown for miss india teen new england miss photogenic was sweta nanavati miss and sulbha patel teen teen winner from state of new hampshire is harika talluri ann thomas was miss india runner up and miss viewers choice were monica gill and aarohi shah miss talented were henal motiwala and samantha kakullavarapu the contest was organized by state director ruchika arora in affiliation with miss india usa ifc of new york winners are getting ready for nationals to be held in new jersey on 23rd 24th november it was truly a unique celebration of indian heritage this is second year of miss india pageant in this area for states of massachusetts rhode island and new hampshire it is impossible to predict who is going to win the only way to go ahead and reach goals is enhance oneself it was a great show featuring wonderful talented contestants and selected performers from new england what i found very special as an indian is that the crown of miss india new england had the figure of a lady in sari in the center and the pallo of the sari was made of colored stones what a wonderful way to celebrate being indian in america especially now that we have the