
Hello Everyone!
This week's blogpost is dedicated to Sumini Sakri, who I've met when I first started blogging for pageants back in 2015! Also, the fringe events for the Mrs and Classic Mrs Chinatown 2019 Pageant are underway, I can't wait to meet the contestants next weekend during their talent round too!
A little more about the beautiful Sumini, she joined the Mrs & Classic Mrs Singapore Pageant back in 2014 and until this day, has been active in various pageant events such as judging for the talent rounds in the various ERM pageants. She's been doing Bellydancing for over 10 years and is also an active member of Bella Raqs Sharqi, which I blogged about earlier last month.
"I was 52 years old in 2014 and was looking for a platform to allow me to do more charity for meaningful causes. Besides, I wanted to correct the misconception that life stops when women turn 50 years old. I believe that mature women still have much to offer, we can make use of our experience in life to help others. Moreover, as long as we maintain ourselves well and keep ourselves fit, we are still able to look well-groomed and confident. As Mark Twain said, “Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” Thus, I hope to embrace life with an open heart, regardless of age, and enjoy the pageant to the fullest. "
I think this mentality is important for the mature woman. A lot of women tend to feel that there's no need to maintain themselves or feel a less inclined to care about their appearances once they're past a certain age. A lot of us out there aren't even aware that pageants for married women exist, which has inspired me to start this series to share the various journeys of beauty queens so that people get an insight!
Of course, the pageant journey wasn't an easy one! Sumini shared that her experiences were intensive and challenging as there were so many activities packed into a short time frame. As most pageants do, they had their visitations to their various sponsors as well as various fringe events such as their talent and cooking showcases on top of their grooming/training sessions. However, she did mention that she fell in love with the shoes from RicciNo, the shoe sponsor for the pageant, and has collected numerous pairs since!
Being a performer herself, she shared that she enjoyed preparing for her talent round as well as watching the fellow contestants on stage!

Other than winning Classis Mrs Singapore Globe 2014, she won the following subsidiary awards:
Mrs Fresver Beauty 2014
Mrs Superwoman Glamorous 2014
Her husband also won Best Supportive Husband 2014! Sumini recalled that she felt humbled to have received the following awards as well as proud of her husband for winning the 'Best Supportive Husband' award as well.
She then went on to Classic Mrs Globe in Las Vegas in 2015, where she was the second runner up!

Sumini shared that travelling to Las Vegas for the international pageant was also a new challenge. Having to carry multiple pairs or heels and gowns in order to be prepared for the activities! To her, the experience of meeting the other delegates from all over the world was a priceless experience that she treasures.
Of course, I did ask if she would have done anything differently if she had the chance to change anything about her pageant journey. She admitted that she would have loved to spend more time to better prepare herself for the various segments, as well as getting to know her fellow contestants better, having shared many moments together through the pageant.
" Believe that you can, and you will! You are never too old to set another goal so please step out of your comfort zone and take up the challenge, you will be surprised how much you can achieve! Have confidence and do yourself and your family proud! "
I thought of my mother when I looked at that quote from Sumini, I've been trying to get my mum to join the pageant for a while but she doesn't seem to have the confidence to, but that's okay! Pageants aren't everyone's cup of tea. If you know any married women between the ages of 24 and 65, do encourage them to audition for next year's Mrs Singapore & Classic Mrs Singapore!

Prior to joining the pageant in 2014, she admitted to sharing the same stereotypical thought people had about pageants: that the participants only needed to look good on stage in order to win. Of course, after completing her pageant journey, her views have since changed. The effort put into look presentable is one thing, but making sure that they are able to fulfil their duties for their platforms as well as their own duties as the reigning queens brought the responsibility to a whole new level!
"I strongly advocate what our organiser ERM believes in – Beauty with a heart! It is fulfilling indeed to give back to the community and serve the underprivileged."
The pageant has definitely broadened Sumini's circle of friends, as well as opened doors for her to meet various people from different industries who have left nothing but positive impacts on her life. As mentioned before, she is active in the various on-going pageant activities and also provides support at various volunteering or dance events. She is also an ambassador for Bionn International, and has been for the past 5 years, which is amazing! She sees this as a way to encourage mature women to continuously take care of themselves and look their best no matter what age they are.
I hope you guys have been inspired by this amazing queen, and that you'll be looking forward to the upcoming events for the Mrs & Classic Mrs Chinatown Singapore Pageant 2019! I'm definitely excited! I'll see you guys in my next blogpost!
xx
Shayne