Meet Anjana Mascarenhas: The Game Changer of Indian Pageantry for Married Women

Beauty pageants for married women were often ignored or sidelined in the sea of pageants for unmarried girls with each city having their only multiple pageants by the name of Miss India. The rise of this sector came into highlight when Anjana Mascarenhas entered this domain and had continued to handle it extremely well. She has been an influential person in providing a genuine and reliable platform to the married women that the category of Mrs India was no more just a small sector or a sector where money bought crowns. She runs 3 pageants, Mrs Maharashtra-Empress of Maharashtra, Mrs West India-Empress of West India, Mrs India-Empress of Nation. She is also an international pageant coach and runs her brand by the name of Diva Pageants. Let us know Anjana in depth through exclusive interview TGPC got to do with her.

TGPC: Hi Anjana, can you give us a brief about how you got into pageantry? How has journey been so far?

Anjana: One of the main factors that inspired me to enter into pageantry was the need to empower women of all ages in India. Another reason was the fact that there were not many high quality pageants, giving women the right platform to showcase their talent. The journey thus far has been totally enriching.

TGPC: How does it feel when your pageants under Diva Pageant group are touted as best and most trusted pageants for married women?

Anjana: It fills my heart with pride knowing Diva Pageants are touted as the best and most trusted pageants for married women as honesty, integrity, and hard work is my secret of building the DIVA brand.

TGPC: Since you mentor contestants for pageantry, what is you find most rewarding and what is it you find most challenging in this job?

Anjana: I believe Pageantry changes lives and my passion towards transforming lives and helping women carve an identity for themselves is the most rewarding factor, balancing my personal and professional life sometimes becomes a challenge but effective time management helps me be more productive.

TGPC: What are the successes Diva Pageant winners have got in pageantry?

Anjana: Many Diva girls, not only the winners, have gone on to shine on many international platforms and brought the winner’s crown home.

• Farha Anwar represented India as the prestigious MRS UNITED NATIONS INTERNATIONAL 2018 and brought home the 1st Runner up Crown.
• Jasmine Jadhav was crowned MRS QUEEN OF THE WORLD 2018.
• Anjali Verma bagged the MRS INDIA INTERNATIONAL 2017 title.
• Simran Godhwani struck gold winning the crown of Lady Star Universe 2018 in Portugal.
• Recently Neha Amit Chauhan and Mona Borse won QUEEN OF THE WORLD 2019, in their respective categories.
• Madhavi Ghosh went on to win MRS TOURISM INTERNATIONAL QUEEN OF GLOBE 2018 in Myanmar.

TGPC: How is Mrs. Category different than Miss. Category in terms of pageantry for you?

Anjana: MRS Category is hugely different compared to MISS as being married and with so many obligations to comply with. Married women sometimes let go off their dreams and aspirations. Getting them out of their comfort zones and helping them make a name for themselves through Pageantry is my forte.

TGPC:. Who are the key influential people that helped you get at such concrete position?

Anjana: For me, the mantra to success is teamwork. My key influential people are my Family, Friends, my awesome DIVA team and all my DIVA Queens.

TGPC: What is the vision of DIVA Group? Where do they want to be in coming 5 years down the line?

Anjana: The vision is to make more people believe in pageantry and make it such a life transforming program that it becomes a must for all women. 5 years down the line, DIVA should become the most prestigious pageant for married women.

Anjan

TGPC: How is Anjana in personal life apart from Anjana we see in pageantry?

Anjana: In Pageantry, I lead a very hectic social life than in personal life. Therefore I love to spend time with my loved ones watching a show on Netflix or reading one of my favourite books.

TGPC: What are the 3 tips you would give to a pageant aspirant who wants to be winner of Mrs. India under DIVA group?

Anjana: 3 tips to all Pageant Aspirants are:

• Be confident in what you do.
• Never give up for some dreams take time.
• Stay motivated and persevere to win against all odds.

TGPC: You have been a jury to India’s Miss TGPC, an online pageant. Any thoughts about the contest?

Anjana: India’s Miss TGPC is the first and most authentic online pageant for the MISS CATEGORY. Being on their jury panel I got to see how transparent their whole system of judging is and the passion in which TGPC team works, no wonder some of their winners and girls have won the Femina Miss India, Miss Diva titles later on.

TGPC: Who is your most favourite beauty queen of all time?

Anjana: My most favourite beauty queen from all times is Sushmita Sen, for she proved to the world that victory is achievable despite all the odds.

TGPC: Any message to the readers of TGPC?

Anjana: My message to all the lovely readers of TGPC is let’s encourage platforms such as TGPC which encourage and bring good talent to fore from all parts of India.