LONDON, Dec 5 (PTI and Reuters) — India’s Yukta Mookhey was crowned Miss World early today in the last Miss World contest of the millennium.

"It is the best day of my life because I had this as a beautiful dream as a child and now it’s come true," Mookhey said after winning the contest.

"It is going to take a very long time for this to sink in. I know that the people at home will be very ecstatic," the 20-year-old zoology student said.

Mookhey, who hails from Mumbai, was chosen for the Miss World title from 94 contestants at London’s Olympia Theatre in a keenly watched contest which saw Miss Venezuela Martina Thorogood (24), and Miss South Africa Sonia Raciti (21), win the second and third places respectively.

When asked whom she would like to emulate as a role model, Mookhey replied she would like to have been born Hollywood actress Audrey Hepburn whom she admired for her "inner beauty, compassion and great aura."

She told the judges that Thai food was her favourite and that she would love to go to France

"It’s a country of models and that’s the place where I would like to be."

Mookhey has just graduated and has worked in computer software programming. Her family is from northern India but she was educated in the Persian Gulf area because her father’s work took the family there. She has studied classical music for three years.

Outside the hall, feminist protesters yesterday scuffled with the police and threw flour bombs at guests, but Miss India was not going to let that spoil her big night.

Mookhey, said she had done her best and "left the rest to god". She said she owed the Miss World title to her upbringing: "It taught me how to be very level-headed and not allow situations to affect me."

Competitors paraded in evening wear before a panel of eight judges, including World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Lennox Lewis and Formula One Racing driver Eddie Irvine, television Superman, Dean Cain and Fashion photographer Terry O' Neill, and answered questions designed to show off their personality.

Mookhey, clad in a pale blue evening gown won the hearts of the judges with her simple replies to their queries and sashayed away with the $ 100,000 prize.

For the beach wear section, contestants were flown to Malta, where film cameras pictured them posing while playing beach volleyball, skimming the waves on jet skis, or scuba diving in skimpy bikinis.

But amid a cacophony of applause from the 4,000-strong audience, boxer Lewis said he was not looking for just beauty or the perfect figure, but wanted to see "personality and poise" among the women.

Protesters outside the show however, were not convinced.

Around 60 demonstrators hurled flour bombs and scuffled with the police, shouting at members of the audience as they entered the West London venue.

They denounced the beauty contest as a "sexist cattle market" and waved banners saying "fat chicks are cool" and "women’s bodies are not for sale".

Referring to violent protests against World Trade Organisation talks in Seattle this week, demonstrators shouted: "Miss World, we’re not cattle, we’ll shut you down, just like Seattle."

Helen Russell, women’s officer for the National Union of Students, who led the protest, said the contest was "irrelevant, sexist and reactionary".

"Women should not be judged simply on their appearance," she told Reuters. "Ultimately this is not about real women at all."

Competition organisers, eager for the contest not to be seen as exploitation of women solely for their figure and beauty, stressed that many professionals, including doctors and lawyers, had come from the ranks of Miss World contestants.

Rita Faria was the first Indian to be crowned Miss World in the sixties. The last five years have seen the crown come thrice to India with Aishwarya Rai and Diana Hayden being crowned Miss World 1994 and 1997 respectively.

Indian beauty reigned supreme in 1994 when Rai was crowned Miss World after Sushmita Sen brought home the Miss Universe title.



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