June 8 (PTI) The much-talked about Miss Pakistan World pageant may be frowned upon by conservative forces in the country but the event's spirited organiser says the day is not far when it will be held on Pakistani soil.
Having held six successful editions of Miss Pakistan World, Sonia Ahmed, the Toronto-based founder of the pageant, has set her eyes on holding the show in Pakistan.
"Yes, that is definitely the main goal. We have paved the way for it already, so why not have a Miss Pakistan on Pakistani soil?" Ahmed said in an interview to PTI.
"The great thing is that I have got a lot of support from people in Pakistan. They make long distance calls and always say that we are doing a great job for Pakistan and Pakistan's image. Our major sponsors are mostly from Pakistan."
The going may not be easy for Ahmed -- who moved from the port city of Karachi to Canada -- but she is confident of dealing with the "few bad seeds" in Pakistan the way she did in the past.
"No one has threatened us at all, but some people have sent emails saying negative things and trying to convert us to Islam. What I don't understand is that how can they convert born Muslims into Muslims? That I have yet to figure out," she said when asked if she or the participants in the pageants had ever been threatened.
The pageant was recently in the news when last year's winner of the Miss Pakistan World crown, Mahleej Sarkari, said she wanted to date President Pervez Musharraf. Her comments were criticised by conservative elements in the country.
Apart from conservative forces, Ahmed will have to deal with some sections of the local media that have been "making up stories". She said: "My aim with this pageant is bring out Pakistani women and make them bold and strong so that many other Pakistani women look up to them."
Ahmed is not cowed down by people who ridicule her efforts. "Whenever there is an extreme change introduced to people, some do ridicule it only because they are sadists. Our purpose of Miss Pakistan would die down if we did not have people who were opposing it. "We are very strong people and we want Pakistan to change and hence some of these people will have to come to terms with it," she said.
Interestingly, the participants are all well educated – a fact that is never highlighted by the local media. The first title winner, Zehra Sheerazi, is a corporate lawyer, her successor Batool Cheema is a forensic science student and Sehr Mahmood is studying business. The much-talked about Mahleej Sarkari is a business college graduate and the newly crowned beauty queen, Natasha Paracha, has studied politics and is a director of communications at the United Nations.
Some of the beauty queens also want to give a career in Bollywood a shot. Paracha told PTI, "I have been an avid Bollywood fan even before I could walk or talk. I am not only a fan for its role in entertainment, but also because the industry has done a lot for the people of the subcontinent in promoting cross-border friendships between India and Pakistan."
Sarkari too is hopeful of making a career in India's film industry. "Yes, India is a market that I will definitely try out. Whether I make it or not is something I cannot predict at the moment," she said.
Though Sarkari got pulled up by a local channel recently for "bringing a bad name" to Pakistan, she is willing to take the conservative forces head on. "The more they are conservative, the more people like myself will retaliate. We want our Pakistan to be free of all these conservatives, fundamentalists and extremists. When other Muslim countries like Turkey or Dubai can be modern, then why can't Pakistan?" she asked.
Asked if Pakistanis live with double standards, she said, "It is such a pity that they will never know the feeling of freedom. I am free wherever I go, whether it is Dubai or Canada...I proudly said that I love President Musharraf."
Paracha does not fear a backlash if she flaunts her new status as a beauty queen in Pakistan. She said, "This pageant provides an international platform for Pakistani women to illustrate their strength, ambition and good will efforts for our home country. Pageants are not about flaunting yourself alongside a dozen other girls, they are about representing your nation to an international audience and being a positive role model."
The articulate Paracha also said she compares well with Miss World and Miss Universe contestants and hopes that Pakistani women are able to represent their country at such top pageants. "Miss World or Miss Universe contestants not only need to be beautiful and intelligent, but also environmentally responsible, physically fit, politically aware, excellent public speakers and emotionally strong. I have all these qualities and look forward to representing Pakistan in Miss Earth 2008," she said.
"I hope one day in the near future, Pakistani women are able to compete alongside their regional neighbours in the Miss World or Miss Universe pageant." PTI RHL
