Kathmandu :

Sixteen-year-old Khusbu Oli was crowned Miss Teen Nepal 2006 on August 30.

The pageant was organised by JCI Kathmandu Nepal, a known name on the list of organisers of various titles like Little Lady Beauty Pageant, Master Nepal, Miss Teen Nepal and Miss Nepal.

Oli was crowned the winner in a tough competition that saw Swekshya Adhikari and Samriddhi Rai as the first and second runners up respectively.

A total of 38 girls had participated in the contest, out of which 24 were selected for the Miss Teen boot camp.

The grand finale commenced with a group dance by all 24 contestants followed by self-introduction round.

In the Cultural Dress round, contestants walked the stage in the outfits of their choice most of which were a mix of the traditional with a modern touch, while the jewellery were traditional.

The names of the top ten were then announced on the basis of their performance on the prejudging and training round, and seven finalists were then chosen on questions asked by the judges, which were political, social and cultural with a few hypothetical ones. All seven semi finalists then had to answer in writing to the question asked by the chief judge.

Termed as a cultural talent show, contestants generally demonstrated their cultural talent through singing, dancing, playing musical instruments and even flower-making, karate demonstration, and speaking on various topics in a preliminary show organised at Russian Cultural Centre on August 16.

Arpana Rayamajhi was crowned Miss Talent.

With many similar contests taking place, the question that many may ask is if such pageants really help?

The participants believe such contests provide them name, a platform to bring out their talents and help to boost their confidence.