Pond's Made Femina Miss India Pune 2013 "Gorgeously Alive"

Those of you who follow me on Twitter and like my Facebook Page would know that I was invited by Ponds to attend the Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2013 event held at the Marriott Hotel and Convention Center yesterday evening. You can imagine my excitement and the hustle bustle that must have gone in rushing back home from office, getting ready in my "beauty blogger" avatar and of course trying to control the pati's over excitement about watching gorgeous models strut their stuff on the ramp :D Yup! I took him along too and well I guess he is now a fan of my beauty blogging hobby for life ;)

I did some research and found that this year the Miss India contest would be held in laps and folds, with auditions taking place in 12 cities, followed by pageants in 7 cities and finally the winners of the pageants being given direct entry into the Ponds Femina Miss India 2013 final contest to be held in Mumbai. I was invited to the Pune pageant leg and well the rest as they is history :)

We Just Got Seated :)

Loved The Lighting!

From the entrance of the hotel to of course the hall where the event was held, Pond's presence was commanding. The title sponsors of the event, Ponds was everywhere and it made me realise how the brand had evolved over the years from just a cold cream name to a premium skin care range today. They had a stall showcasing their revolutionary products from Anti-ageing Gold serums to night creams, from fairness solutions to daily care.

Quoting the Hindustan Unilever Vice President, Arun Srinivas said "Ponds believes that a woman is born beautiful and the Ponds product helps her maintain it." He further added that Ponds as a brand helps women understand their beauty and give them more confidence. Thus collaborating with Femina Miss India is like coming together of two powerful brands to host one of the most prestigious beauty pageants in India.

The event started on a nostalgic note with a slideshow video of all Miss India's from the start to the latest. A special feature was done on Meher Mistry who was crowned as the first ever Miss India in 1964. She still looked so graceful and came out as elegant and sophisticated :)

After the slideshow, they had a beautiful Ponds ad which had a soothing song playing in the background depicting on how Ponds made women "Gorgeously Alive" by their revolutionary products... I don't know about the message but I totally loved the song and I have been trying to find it on youtube but in vain :( If I get it, I'll share it with you guys...

The Judges Panel

The chief guest of the evening was none other than Randeep Hooda... Yes ladies, he really is very handsome in person! I was dying to take a closeup pic with him, but honestly, I was too shy to do it, so I was happy clicking pictures from 4 rows behind :P Then there was Manjiri Phadnis ( of Jaane Tu Na Jaane Na fame) in the panel of judges and well the pati went all ga-ga over her :P
The entertainment was provided by the Bollywood composer and singer duo Sajid-Wajid and a dance troupe called Sharp Shooters! One word to describe them... F.A.B.U.L.O.U.S.

Sun Dresses by MAX

Black Cocktail Dresses Designed by Jaya Mishra

Arun Srinivas, Vice President HUL crowning Ponds Miss Glowing Skin, Apoorva Lonkar

In Red Evening Gowns Designed by Jaya Mishra

In Red Evening Gowns Designed by Jaya Mishra

Randeep Hooda crowning the Winner

Randeep Hooda with the Winner Saniah Baig

 The events started with Apoorva Lonkar being crowned Pond's Miss Glowing Skin and Manasi Moghe being crowned as Lakme Miss Eyeconic eyes and felicitated by Mr. Arun Srinivas, Vice President Hindustan Unilever Ltd. Finally Saniah Baig was crowned Ponds Femina Miss India Pune 2013 and felicitated by Randeep Hooda himself! Lucky Girl! ;)

All and all a beautiful evening and my moment of pride of being a beauty blogger :)

I will be doing a separate post for my outfit and look of the evening :)