Kathmandu:

As D-day approaches near, all the 20 participants of ‘Clean and Clear Miss Teen Nepal — A Cultural Talent Show 2007’ are working hard and gearing up for the event. The finale to be held at BICC on September 7 is being organised by JCI.

These five bubbly and outspoken participants of the pageant love glamour and glitz but are also aware of their responsibilities.

Question hour

Here’s a mock question-answer session with the Miss Teen Nepal hopefuls

One of you are going to be crowned Miss Teen Nepal 2007, with so many beauty pageants happening do you think this is an advantage or disadvantage?

Contestant # 16-Aayusha Karki

Youth today know what they want and want to be the best in it. Once you are crowned Miss Teen to some extent you will not have a private life, so one has to be careful maintaining the prestige of the crown. If many girls are proclaimed as beauty queens than the value of the contests will decrease, so there should be one beauty contest.

Contestant # 17-Juni Kasthakar

I think youth today have to be aware of their country’s political and social situation and make others aware as well. I think Miss Teen Nepal is a national level pageant so this should be the only pageant to choose the Teen Queen.

Contestant # 18-Anisha Thapa

I know how teenagers think, what their priorities are and so I can represent them. I think if there are too many pageants

then no one will take any title seriously and it will be just a tag you carry around. If there is only one contest then it will be more prestigious.

Contestant # 19-Ashmita Agrawal

I think one should be able to do their best in any field they choose, that itself will make a lot of difference in society. Rather than making pageants a medium to make profit, it should concentrate on searching real combination of beauty and brain.

Contestant # 20-Sodina Shrestha

I am a very confident person, who is aware of her duties and responsibilities. But I also have my own identity and so the youth can identify with

the person I am. I don’t think pageants should be used as a means of competition between different communities, a winner should be chosen from whole of Nepal.