indias fate forever at the 16th edition of the international pageant how would she define beauty looking back she says she wasnt training for the pageant that she entered as a joke a plainlooking person with a nice smile and generous look on the face is more beautiful than a very pretty face with a scowl powell a doctor on duty in ireland watched the pageant and was impressed with the medical students confidence tackling questions the first miss world winner to qualify as a doctor faria turned down modelling and movie offers at the time to complete her medical studies at kings college hospital london i went because reita was going not to listen to the lecture we had common friends but unfortunately they didnt introduce us and that evening was a disaster david recalls faria attributes her height to the fact that she played everything from throwball netball and badminton while growing up for almost every official function during her oneyear tenure as miss world faria continued to wear the traditional six yards of elegance i was afraid my passport would be impounded and the organizers feared the authorities wouldnt let me out again if i visited india says faria who was offered a seat at kings college hospital to continue her medical studies i decided this was the lady he smiles when the organizers of the miss world pageant were not impressed with the undersized swimsuit she borrowed from model and actress persis khambatta or the flattish heels she carried with her for the rehearsals they sent her off to buy her own for the pageant in london i never considered myself beautiful she says before powell pitches in an awful lot of beauty is personality within weeks faria made an appearance at a big fashion store in ireland and was to attend a lecture by a famous heart surgeon at the royal college of surgeons i was unusually tall for an indian girl and was so embarrassed about it that it was difficult to walk straight as extraordinary fate would have it the two ended up at kings college hospital and they married in 1971