Femina Miss India 2024 First Runner-Up Rekha Pandey Gets Candid About Her Pageant Journey, Role Model, Future Plans And More

Rekha Pandey from Dadra and Nagar Haveli was crowned as Femina Miss India 2024’s first runner-up on October 16 and she is more than ecstatic. In a freewheeling chat with Times Now, Rekha talks about her childhood dream of participating in beauty pageants, how belief in her abilities propelled her to keep going and what plans she has for her future.“When I was very young, I would watch actresses like Madhuri Dixit on television and wonder why my mom or other women in my household didn’t make it big like her. At a very young age, I was clear that I didn’t want to lead the life like my mom and chachi had,” shares Rekha. Born to supportive parents, Rekha was always encouraged to participate in extracurricular activities like dance, singing, anchoring events, sports, among other things. “So, luckily, from an early age I became confident in front of the camera. I felt at home when I had a mic in my hand,” she shares.Also read: Rekha drew inspiration from actor Priyanka Chopra’s journey. “From growing up in Raebareli to now being a global icon, when I first read about her journey, I was blown away and inspired. It gave me hope that it doesn’t matter where you come from, with the right attitude one can do wonders in whichever sphere of life they want,” she shares.On being asked what drew her towards beauty pageants, Rekha shared that she used to maintain a diary, at the age of 9 or 10, where she would note down all the qualities one required to be a Miss India, or Miss World. She would then work actively towards imbibing all those qualities to become the best version of herself. What worked in Rekha’s favour was her go-getter attitude and belief in self. “You know my dad has been really supportive. I remember asking him back in the day if anyone from a Union Territory had ever participated in beauty pageants. He did the research and told me while nobody had really made it to the beauty pageants, if I truly wanted to pursue my dream, he would support me wholeheartedly. In fact, together as a family, we have watched all the editions of Femina Miss India so far to boost my confidence,” shares Rekha.Also read: “People have some really outdated misconceptions about beauty pageants. It’s no longer just about one having a beautiful face, but it’s so much more. From how one carries oneself, treats other people, what the personality of the person is, how purpose-oriented a person is to whether a person has the ability to take a lead and take initiatives, I feel all these things are also equally important. There’s still a long way to go, but we need to appreciate how far we have come at the same time,” she shares.Rekha shares she had participated in the pageant last year too, but she had not made it to top 5. “When I participated this time, it was the first time when I was posing for pictures. Many other girls around me had done that before. So, I was a tad nervous, but anyway gave my best shot. What gave me a fresh perspective then was when I won the title of Miss photogenic. It dawned on me then that one must not ever compare oneself with others and just keep believing in oneself,” shares Rekha.On her experience of playing pickleball recently at Bennett University, Rekha said that since she had played badminton at the Union Territory level, it was easy for her to play pickleball. “After a long time, I enjoyed playing a sport. I feel it’s a lot like badminton. So, playing it was fun and easy-breezy,” she said.Talking about her future plans, Rekha shares she is excited to try and experiment with whatever opportunity that comes her way. “I am someone who wants to do good work to win accolades from the audience. I am open to try acting in films and even take up interesting behind the camera roles,” she says.