Being Sadichha: The new Miss Nepal

Rosy-cheeked, dreamy-eyed and dressed in traditional Newar attire, little Sadichha smiles out from an old photograph, waiting to walk onstage.

“I was studying in Upper Kindergarten then, and we were performing a rhyme in front of our parents,” says the newly crowned Miss Nepal who is now 19. She looks just as pretty and confident as she did then.

Even when all eyes were set on her on Wednesday evening as she walked onstage as the number one contestant in the Miss Nepal beauty pageant of this year, she glowed with confidence and spoke with eloquence. Not once did she stumble or show that she was tired. After winning the title, she smiled, waved, blew flying kisses, and it looked as if she was born to win the title.

The daughter

Rachana Shrestha, 41, kept hiding behind the seats of the Tribhuvan Army Officers’ Club as the moment of the final announcements arrived.

“I can’t watch her on stage, you see. It gives me the creeps,” she kept murmuring. At the same time, she was asking Suvechha Shrestha, 15, her second daughter, and her son Suave Shrestha, 10, to keep their fingers crossed and not stop praying for their sister. Their prayers were soon answered as Sadichha won the title of Miss Nepal. In tears, Suave said, “I don’t know why I’m crying but I’m happy.”

An architectural engineer at the Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City Office, Rachana has always believed in her daughter.

“She’s a mature child who understands her roots,” she says. “She always aims high and I believe that is what makes her successful.”

Her father, Ram Shankar Shrestha, 48, the chief accountant at The Bluestar Hotel, Tripureshwor, agrees and adds, “She’s always been special. Even as a kid, everyone in the neighborhood knew her and admired her looks and personality.”

The teenager

“I know I’m 19 and I don’t pretend to be otherwise,” affirms the new Miss Nepal. “Maybe I’ll never be able to walk freely in the streets in chappals (slippers) from now on, but I rejoice in the responsibilities I’ve been given,” she adds.

Sadichha, a fan of actor Karma, loves to play basketball, listen to peppy songs, dance, and savor American Chop Suey. She recalls watching “Darpaan Chhaya” and “Basanti”, among Nepali films.

Of her college days, rafting on the Trishuli stands out in her memory as the best day.

“I don’t know how to swim but I was able to float with a life jacket on, and the feeling was ecstatic.”

An avid radio listener, she wants to become an RJ herself, and often records her voice. Zac Efron, Daniel Radcliffe, and Robert Patterson stand out among others as her Hollywood crushes.

The achiever

Her academic records from grade one to 10 stand testimony to her excellence as a student. Always first in class, Sadichha visited China and Japan as a student
representative from her school, the NK Singh English Preparatory High School. Recently, she participated at the World Schools Debating Championships 2010 held in Doha, Qatar, from her college, St Xavier’s at Maiti Ghar.

“I’ve always been an ambitious person with big dreams,” asserts Sadichha, whose first modeling assignment was when she was in grade six.

“I modeled for Mayos Instant Noodles and received Rs 10,000 in fees,” she recalls. Since then, she has modeled for Fem beach cream, won the Miss Beauty Lady 2005 beauty pageant, and has also received the Voice of Women Top Ten College Women 2010 award.

Babyface forever

Talkative and bubbly, Sadichha was given the nick name “Baby Face Forever” (BFF) by her fellow participants and trainers at the Miss Nepal beauty contest, she being one of the youngest and cute contestants.

She credits her parents and school for her success. She also recalls her late grandmother with fondness. Speaking about her granny’s passing away, which caused a lot of pain to her, the new beauty queen could not hold back her tears.

“I had gone to talk to her as she lay unconscious, awaiting her death,” she expresses in a somber mood.

Miss Nepal Sadichha Shrestha’s innocence is contagious, and so is her optimism. She will be heading to Sanya in China to compete for the title of Miss World 2010, to be held there in October.

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