Miss World Malaysia – Thanuja Ananthan

It’s second time lucky for Thanuja Ananthan, who persevered with Miss Malaysia after being a finalist last year. She is thrilled at this opportunity and shares: “This has been my dream since I was 5.” A 23 year old law student who speaks 5 languages including Tamil and Malayalam, Thanuja goes onto compete on the world stage, this year in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital, she encapsulates all the qualities of a complete woman, following the likes of Indian beauties Aishwarya Rai, Diana Hayden, Yukta Mookhey and Priyanka Chopra who won previous titles. Her aims in life stem from the desire to “make a difference in people’s lives.”

She describes herself with many words, like meticulous, adventurous, independent and fun and this is evident in the glint in her eye when she flashes that smile of hers. Passionate about animal rights and believes the famous words of Gandhi: “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Her aim is to go into the field of human rights after graduation. Her motto in life is: “Be kind to all beings.”  Her favourite food is curry and her musical tastes include R&B and Jazz.

While she indulges in chocolate, she also fills her day with Yoga and charity work, on top of her law classes. Right now, she’s planning and working towards the big competition coming soon. As someone who enjoys people as a whole, she says: “I’m an extremely sociable person and different cultures and heritage have always intrigued me so widening my network of friends is around the world is something that I truly look forward to.”

Her take on beauty is: “It transcends creed, colour, nationality and gender. It surpasses a beautiful symmetrical being or physical form.” She goes on to add: “Beauty is the power of what we are able to create for ourselves, and in return, utilise it to benefit all beings. Ultimately, it is about being comfortable in our own skin. However there is a fine line bordering confidence and arrogance; it is of paramount importance that empathy be embraced in ensuring confidence is projected in a positive manner. Personally, confidence is power and thus I hold that beauty at one’s best is power!”

Words: Ashanti OMkar