The Final Contest...

As the Mediterranean sun rose over this sleepy island-state, a star shot up on the Indian horizon. It was 6 am IST, when Lara Dutta walked away with the Miss Universe 2000 crown after dazzling the jury and millions of people all over the world who were watching the live telecast.

India's secured moment came after the jury's final question : "Right now, there's a protest group outside the stadium, against this pageant. Convince them that they are wrong" At this Lara responded with the same confidence and poise that had long set her apart from the 78 other contestants, "Pageants like Miss Universe give us young women a platform to voice our opinions and help us forge ahead in various fields, be it entrepreneurship, the armed forces or politics"

As soon as Lara gave her answer, the stadium was full of clappings by the audience. The members of the jury, who included television stars, VJs, and actors from the US, were also seen throwing their hands up into the air, as if declaring that she was the explicit winner.

Lara stood ahead in most of the rounds throughout the contest. But the last 3 categories - swimsuit round, evening gown round and the 1-on-1 interview round gave her what she wanted, as she was ahead of the other 9 contestants, in all the three.

The winning round saw her in a glamorous red gown, which was apparently different from the other 9 contestants' pastel shades.

The one-on-one interview made her stand out once again. When the American comedian and actor Sinbad, asked her what distinguished women politician from men. Her answer was :"A certain amount of sensitivity". She also won a good round of applause when she was asked to demonstrate some steps of Bharatnatyam (one of the most famous dances of India). Without thinking twice she replied, that she could not, because her gown did not permit her to squat. However, she quickly did some hasta mudras (hand gestures).