Pooja Chopra wins Femina Miss India '09

capturing in a sentence the essence of an evening that culminated in three new beauty queens being coronated amid loud applause. The Pantaloons Femina Miss India 2009 pageant seemed to have hopped onto the Deccan Queen Express, although its route included a significant Delhi detour. The three winners were: PFMI Universe 2009 Ekta Chaudhary from Delhi, PFMI World 2009 Pooja Chopra from Pune and PFMI Earth 2009 Shriya Kishore from Mumbai.

This year, the traditional pecking order of the titles was given a tweak: PFMI Universe and PFMI World shared top honours—both are No. 1—and were followed by PFMI Earth. Aflush with excitement, the UWE trio said they were dying to fall on chocolates and "ghar ka khana" and one said that all she wanted to do was "hug mom".

Easily the most anticipated lookfest of the year, the PFMI finale was held in the open-air setting of the Andheri Sports Complex on Sunday evening. The action played out under a large circular canopy on sets kitted out in a bold geometic pattern.

The venue was packed out with only standing room at the back. Without so much as a whiff of breeze by way of relief, the muggy April air probably had even more moisturiser than collectively used by the contestants.

The common question posed to the three finalists was: What was the one thing you would ask God if you met him, and why? All three were earnestness personified in their replies. Chopra, who has been brought up by a single mom, said she would ask why certain children were deprived of the love of a mother.

The spunky 23-year-old, with a relish for kickboxing and paragliding, also quoted the much-flogged Mother's Day line that since God couldn't be everywhere, he created mothers. Choudhary, also 23, who has given up a graduate degree in business administration, said she would ask the almighty why, if we had all been created equal, we fought each other in his name.

The third girl, Kishore, a 22-year-old from the Mumbai suburb of Kandivli, who is awaiting her hotel management degree, wrestled with the issue of mortality, but in a rather confused way.

The new beauties were crowned by last year's title holders, PFMI World 2008 and Miss World first runner-up Parvathy Omanakuttan, PFMI Universe 2008 Simran Kaur Mundi and PFMI Earth 2008 Tanvi Vyas.

One of this year's finalists was Harshita Saxena from Goa, who was disqualified last year after she won the PFMI Earth crown because of her contractual obligations to a rival show. The re-try proved lucky and Saxena, who was among the last five standing, also walked away with the Agile Femina Miss 10 title.

Femina Health

As the world around us becomes more computerized, automated, and generally more impersonal, we all sometimes feel neglected as human beings. Even healthcare seems to be “mass produced” these days, as HMO and prepaid plans become larger and paperwork abounds. We share your frustration with these trends, and are committed to resisting them as much as possible. We do this by taking the time to listen and address your concerns.

While no physician has the power to guarantee perfect health or a perfect pregnancy, we promise to work with you through health maintenance and prevention as well as active treatment of problems. This will make sure you have the best possible health. The key ingredient in this endeavor is your active participation.

We would like to help you make the best decisions about your health that you feel are the best for you and your life. We are here to help you learn about yourself, your body, and if your pregnant about your new baby. We have a variety of educational materials that we will give you, or you can browse through the literature in our library. If you do not understand something or want to know more just ask! We may not always have an answer, but we can often direct you to an answer. Remember, there’s no such thing as a silly question.

We are always looking for ways to improve Femina Healthcare: we welcome your suggestions and constructive criticisms. We also enjoy hearing about the things you like.

and Amrita Rao walk the ramp jewellery from leading brands like Nakshatra, D’damas, Gili and Asmi from the house of Gitanjali, that took centrestage at the Fashion Extravaganza there.

In the limelight were stunning pieces from the Nakshatra and D’damas collections, strikingly offset by some amazing creations from designers Shane and Falguni Peacock. Their international interpretation of the traditional Indian sarees and lehengas, using the open neck and off-shoulder look of an evening gown, highlighted the diamond-studded necklaces and earrings to perfection, and achieved a scintillating crescendo in the final sequence where Raima Sen and Neha Dhupia walked the ramp.

As the evening moved on, the audience was further wowed by the models in specially designed, vibrant Wendell Rodricks’ creations displaying jewellery from Gili and Asmi. The designer had come up with a heady mix of urban cocktail gowns in pure silk, wool, crepe, satin and georgettes that reflect the energy, vibrancy and urban chic of the modern Indian metro. The excitement peaked as Arshad Warsi and Amrita Rao added their own luster to the glittering evening. Fashion scored with Bollywood, and how!