KATHMANDU: The starry evening of July 3 got even more glittery with the presence of dazzling beauties all dressed up as blushing brides for the Lakme Bridal Make-up Competition 2009. Leading cosmetic brand Lakme had provided a platform for beauticians all over the nation to come forward and showcase their talent and skill. A total of 223 beauticians from Biratnagar, Bhairahawa, Pokhara and Kathmandu had participated in the competition from which 20 finalists were chosen by Santu Tamang, renowned make-up artiste of the Nepali film industry. The grand finale took place at the Megha Malhar Hall, Soaltee Crowne Plaza. The panel of judges consisted of make-up artiste Sneh Rana, actress Jharana Bajracharya and designer Anuradha Bindra who judged the participants according to the make-up, hair style and bridal attire. With various ethnic groups present in the country, every group has their own unique style in which the bride dresses and is made up. For the finale, the finalists were divided into four different groups — Himalayan, Aryan, Newar and Terai — and were given the challenge to demonstrate their make-up skills according to the ethnic group. Using various products of Lakme, all participants skillfully gave contemporary bridal looks to their models yet keeping the traditional feel of the ethic look intact. Apart from the beautiful brides walking the ramp, the show also had dance performance by Hema Shrestha and group in two very popular numbers Mai thuli bahi chu re and Baan ma phulyo phul. During the event well known beautician and President of Saundarya Kala Byawasasyi Sangh Kamala Shrestha gave live demonstration of bridal make-up to the audiences consisting various media personalities, corporate honchos and who’s-who of the social circuit. Second runner-up of the competition was Meera Shrestha for her bride from Terai region; Shrestha took home a cash prize of Rs 10,000 and got an opportunity to become a make-up artiste of the model for the cover page of a leading magazine. Reena Maharjan for her Newari bride was the first runner-up and took home cash prize of Rs 25,000 and a chance to demonstrate her skill on a national television channel. And the winner of Lakme Bridal Make Up 2009 was Rajesh Lama for his outstanding yet subtle Aryan bridal make-up for which he got cash prize of Rs 50,000 and an opportunity to get first hand experience of make-up tips and tricks at the Lakme Salon in Delhi. The event was organised by Unilever Nepal in association of Saundarya Kala Byawasayi Sangh.