By Dia Mirza was only 16 years old when she was scouted by a modelling agent, and she started on a journey which finally led to the Asia Pacific International pageant, something that changed her life completely. Two years later, she was crowned the winner in December 2000, in Manila, Philippines. The then 18-year-old brought home the crown 27 years after Tara Anne Fonseca.
On completing 20 years of winning the coveted title, the actor took to social media to share memories from the pageant. “I was a wide-eyed 18-year-old when I was crowned Miss Asia Pacific International and in an instant, my whole world changed,” read the script in a video that she shared on Instagram.
“Looking back, winning felt like a transitioning from my old life to a new one. I was still the same but everything else had changed…it seems like it was all meant to happen,” it further read.
The Thappad actor recalled how she kept a card penned by her father on her bedside table during the contest. The card contained couplets from Robert Frost’s popular poem Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening that has the famous line, “miles to go before I sleep”.
“I would read these words every night before I slept. These words have continued to motivate me till this day,” Dia recalled.
“Believe in yourself, be authentic and trust life. Always know that a bigger force is at work to take you towards a higher purpose where you can make a positive difference somehow,” she added.
