Amidst all the craziness at the on-going 69th Miss Universe, the delegates cleared past their closed-door interview which is considered to be the most important part out of all the pre-pageant events and activities. It is very important for the contenders to give an exemplary performance at the interview round as well as the preliminary competition. The closed-door interview is the deciding factor for the Top 21 finalists. The contestant’s scores are accumulated with a 60% weightage of closed-door interview performance and 40% weightage of the preliminary competition.

It is one of the most nerve-wrecking experiences that the queens go through, which makes it even more intriguing for the followers to know what happens behind the closed-doors. We bring you some insights from the experience of some of the present as well as former delegates of what happens at the closed-door interview.

When you are at Miss Universe it is very stressful, there is a lot of headwinds. The crown looks for a resilient and flexible candidate for the title. When there are more than 90 candidates fighting for 20 spots, you have to be exceptional in every area but specially in the interview.

Why the interview round holds so much importance is because if you cannot communicate and cannot answer questions that you might be asked during your year as a title holder, it is totally a losing point. Until the last year, two girls walked in at the same time facing two panels of judges parallel to each other and each girl went to a different panel.

The girls have three to five minutes to face each panel as they ask her questions and a bell rings as a sign for the girls to switch the spots and face the other set of panelists and repeat the process. Each panel consists of three to five judges and the room is also attended by interpreters. President of Miss Universe Organization, press and media and other members of the organization are present to see who is going to be the best woman to fill in the job of being Miss Universe.

The judges’ panel is very well trained in sensing who’s genuine, real and authentic. The kind of questions asked in the interview vary at a vast range, but some of them will always be around some specific things. For example, why do you deserve to be the next Miss Universe, why do you have what takes to be the Miss Universe or what in your life has prepared you to be the next Miss Universe.

The judges also often ask about the delegate’s personal journey, about their education and experiences. Political questions or challenging environmental questions are also a part of the interview, maybe if your country is facing any issues, but not always since the interview is the time the organization focuses more on getting to know the delegate, the woman and whether she will be a good title holder, a good Miss Universe or not.

Some of the Miss Universe 2020 delegates also shared their experience from this year’s closed-door interview. This year’s interviews were basically around the contestant’s bio and all about them. There were two panels of four judges each, all women, this year. The contestants were asked about what their outfit meant and signified. They were also questioned about their creative and professional lives running a deep dive into their personal lives, their likes, passions, hobbies and a lot more.

The entrancing panel brought excitement, energy and magic and every single girl that came out of it felt positively joyous. The all women panel felt to be very ground-breaking and empowering for the beauty queens representing their countries at this platform, helping them to be comfortable with what they stand out for and why.

The interview round being done, the contestants are in their game-mode again as the divas from all around the world are gearing up to represent their countries at the Miss Universe stage. The 69th edition of Miss Universe i.e., Miss Universe 2020 is all set to be held on 16th May 2021 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, USA where Miss Universe 2019 Zozibini Tunzi of South Africa will crown her successor at the end of the event finale.