The Miss Universe 2021 pageant contest ended with South Africa’s Lalela Mswane as the second runner up in what turned out to be an impressive showing considering the mounting pressure and condemnation she faced.
Who won Miss Universe 2021?
The title once held by South Africa’s Zozibini Tunzi in 2019, was handed to India’s Harnaaz Sandhu, who ended her country’s 21-year-long drought in the pageant competition.
This was the moment Sandhu was crowned by her predecessor Mexico’s Miss Universe 2020, Andrea Meza:
From what we know so far, Sandhu is a 21-year-old model hailing from Chandigarh, a union territory in India and joint capital of the two neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.
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Sandhu enjoys a great deal of popularity in her home country and, from what we understand, she has starred in a number of Bollywood films, including Yaara Diyan Poo Baran and Bai Ji Kuttange.
Part of what made Sandhu’s bid for the crown successful is her prolific work in advocating for women’s rights in a society that, for the most part, champions patriarchal norms.
Lalela Mswane reacts to Miss Universe 2021 performance
Against all odds, Mswane forged ahead to achieve her lifelong dream of competing in the pageant world’s biggest stage. She was the first Miss South Africa to enter the universal contest without the full backing of her country. Even the ministry of arts and culture publicly denounced Mswane’s Miss Universe 2021 bid, citing its disapproval of Miss SA’s push to participate in the contest that was hosted in Israel.
Still, with all the pressure mounted on her back, and little-to-no support from her country folk, Mswane came out as the top crop at Miss Universe 2021.
No official statement has been released by Mswane on her third-place finishing. However, Miss SA took to Instagram to congratulate the pageant queen on her brave showing.
