Anushka Shrestha, Miss Nepal Oceania 2018, is all set to compete in Miss Nepal 2019. She is a 23 year old Commerce graduate, currently working at one of the biggest financial institutions in Australia CBA (Commonwealth Bank of Australia) – a job she has resigned from to participate in Miss Nepal 2019!
Anushka graduated from the Australian Catholic University in Sydney with the Executive Dean’s Commendation in 2017. She has worked within the International Education sector in Sydney as a Finance Officer as well. The gorgeous Nepali beauty came to Sydney to pursue her higher education from Kathmandu in 2014, wanting to explore her personal potential and at the age of 19 was selected to do an internship at the Vatican City. She spent 3 months in Europe living in Rome, working in the Vatican City and backpacked to Venice, Paris and Sicily during this time. Anushka also enjoys public speaking, watching crime thrillers and television dramas.
Here she is, talking about her dreams, future aspirations and her guilty pleasures in an exclusive interview with Angelopedia –
Q. How does it feel to be a delegate of Miss Nepal 2019?
It feels surreal, exciting, nervous and overwhelming all at the same time. The title is so big and the expectation even as a contestant is very high from myself, family and friends and well-wishers as well as critical onlookers - so a curry of feelings would be a good expression of how I feel about being a delegate, but a delicious curry.
Q. What inspired you to the world of pageantry?
The audience. Growing up as an audience to pageantry I found it fascinating how powerful the platform was. Especially in developing nations like mine, the attention pageantry garners to relevant causes, while engaging with creative teams in the media is something I find extremely interesting and impactful. I never thought though that I had the oomph factor that pageant queens do, and it was ultimately my close support group that inspired me to actually go ahead and participate in a pageant.
Q. How would you like to represent yourself at the stage of Miss Nepal 2019?
As an individual, I plan to present my honest self – a confident yet humble person, passionate about creating a positive impact in the society around me, a work-in-progress, a person not afraid to accept my shortcomings and work on them with sincerity and dedication. I also have an additional responsibility to represent the thousands of Nepalese living within the Oceania region as Miss Nepal-Oceania at the national pageant, so I plan to represent the tenacity, passion and love for Nepal that is in the hearts of all Nepalese in this region.
Q. If you win the crown, which international pageant would you like to represent Nepal in?
Miss World. The beauty-with-a-purpose theme of this title is the one that resonates most closely to me.
Q. Who is your role model, if any, and what values of his or her do you wish you could inculcate in your own life, and teach the next generation?
As cliched as it may sound, hands down my role model is my mother, and as I grow older I am more and more sure that she truly is the woman I aspire to become. I find her willingness and adaptability to change a great virtue. She holds her values of integrity, honesty and sincerity to all her personal and professional commitments close to heart and does not let any negativity around her dull her sparkle. I work towards applying these in my day to day life and definitely wish to pass in on to the next generation.
Q. What is the one thing that keeps you going and inspires you to be the best version of yourself?
I remind myself of how uncertain and sudden life can be – and even at best I have what 50-60 more years at most! This inspires me to be my best and do my best to live life to the fullest at all times.
Q. Would you like to share your most special childhood memory with us?
School vacations during winter. Basking in the winter sun on the terrace, eating sweet mandarins and having roasted peanuts while getting my hair oiled by mum – it involved my three most favorite things – food, family and head massage!
Q. If you could be invisible for a day, how would you like to spend it?
I’d probably spend it shadowing a spiritual leader – I find their personalities quite intriguing. I’d like to see if they are what they appear to be behind the cameras as well.
Q. What or who empowers you to be yourself and work hard every day?
My closest support group that comprises of my immediate family, my closest friends and a handful of people I have been fortunate enough to cross paths with during my lifetime are my source of strength.
Q. What is the one thing you can label as your guilty pleasure?
FOOD. And not “guilty” because it adds to the waistline, guilty because I actually have a sensitive tummy that does not really appreciate all I eat, and yet, I will never say no to eating out.
Q. We’re sure that this competition is another milestone in your life. What is that one thing that you ultimately want to achieve?
The ultimate goal is to empower people. And I do not mean vaguely. I truly believe that I, or anyone can teach only what we know, but enabling personal leadership empowers people to live to their true potential – empowers them to achieve far more that what I, or the “teacher” would or could know. I plan to do this with a sustainable personal leadership program.
Q. If you are granted three wishes right now, what would you ask for?
On a world-level –for world hunger to end; for sexual assault to never happen again and for the idea of discrimination to be removed from the minds of all humans.
On a personal level – for my family’s good health, for me to win the Miss World crown and money to repay my education loan.
Q. Lastly, is there any message that you would like to give to your fans of Angelopedia?
I’d like to say thank you to the time and positive energy to put into us contestants and towards the causes we support. It is because of an audience like you that we are able to create the impact that we do, and I hope I can do you proud fam!