India to host Miss World 2023 after 27 years. Sini Shetty to represent country

Miss World 2023 in India: Karolina Bielawska, Miss World 2022, and Sini Shetty, Miss India World 2022, accompanied the organisers for the press conference in New Delhi. (Image credit: missworld/Instagram)

India will host the Miss World 2023 the end of this year, 27 years after beauty pageant was held in the country. The decision to pick India as the host nation this year “recognises the nation's rich cultural heritage, its commitment to promoting diversity, and its passion for empowering women”, the Miss India Organization said.

Karolina Bielawska, Miss World 2022, and Sini Shetty, Miss India World 2022, accompanied the organisers for the press conference in New Delhi on Thursday. It was Bielawska’s second visit to the country.

“There is so much more to see here, and bringing the whole world here for a month and showing everything that India has to offer is the best idea," said the Miss World 2022.

Bielawska was crowned Miss World in 2022, beating contestants from other countries in the pageant held in Puerto Rico. India’s Manasa Varanasi had made it to the list of top 13 contestants.

Shetty, 21, who is from Karnataka, will represent India at Miss World 2023.

"I am so excited to meet all my sisters across the globe to welcome them to India to show them what India truly stands for, what India is, what is the diversity in India... I am really excited and looking forward to this journey. I hope you guys have the best time here in India," she was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

India has won Miss World title six times - Reita Faria (1966), Aishwarya Rai (1994), Diana Hayden (1997), Yukta Mookhey (1999), Priyanka Chopra (2000), and Manushi Chillar (2017).

“Wohoo! Super excited to welcome @themissworld competition to India,” Chillar wrote on Instagram.