Miss World 2014 vs Miss Universe 2014
Miss World 2014 vs Miss Universe 2014
The battle of Miss World & Miss Universe pageants is old and rather boring, because no party wins! While Miss World fans claim that their show is grander with higher production value, Miss Universe fans speak about entertainment factor and how the Miss Universe finals are more fun to watch. While Miss World fans say Miss Universe is sexist and hollow, Miss Universe fans called Miss World a tea party. The bad-mouthing goes on endlessly. However, 2014 has to be one year where Miss World clearly registers it’s strength and credibility as a pageant over Miss Universe pageant. And we have four good reasons to claim this.
1) Character of the pageant
Miss World pageant has given up the bikini round this year. Of course, we do not say bikinis are bad. However, the change is a part of many other things that have shaped up the perception of people towards Miss World and the current popular perception is that Miss World is a pageant with strong character. The girls are judged not just on the basis of their beauty, glamor quotient and attractiveness; they are also tested for their talents, fitness, skills in sports, communication skills and intentions to do good for the society. Miss World is looking for a woman with substance. Under the aegis of Ms. Morley, the show has boldly moved away from the conventional definition of a beauty pageant and shaped it’s own identity. On the other hand, Miss Universe is still the same. In fact, few years ago, the girls were tested rigorously for good personality. But now it’s mainly about the swimsuit and evening gown rounds. Personality is just tested in the last round (two rounds in 2014) and the results are based on overall impressions, not just the answers of the girls. In 2014, Ms. Paulina Vega won the pageant simply on the basis of her strong performances in swimsuit and evening gown rounds. She was just about okay in the interview rounds. The girl who gave the best answer in the last round (Ms. Kaci Fennell of Jamaica) ended up finishing last! Girls with magnificent personalities like Ms Argentina, Ms Costa Rica, Ms Lithuania, Ms Philippines, Ms Indonesia, Ms India did not find the successes they deserved in Miss Universe. Thus, Miss World as a pageant has establised a strong character, a stronger personality & at the end of the day, character is what counts!
2) Superior “Top 5”
Recently we made a post comparing Ms. Paulina Vega of Colombia, the eventual winner of Miss Universe 2014 with the Top 5 finalists of Miss World 2014. And we ended up concluding confidently that at least 4 of the 5 girls in the Miss World final circle were clearly better than her. The girls in Miss World 2014 Top 5 were not just pretty faces. They looked great in their dresses and were very presentable. They were bright and confident women. They were attractive and had positive presences. They were highly well-spoken and smart. This is because of the rigorous judging criteria of Miss World pageant that allows only women who are good in all ways to make it to the Top 5. On the other hand, Miss Universe pageant is selecting the Top 5 from Top 15 solely based on physical beauty and stage skills. Hence the runner-ups of the show often end up being women who are having weak personalities. Personality & confidence form the essence of any person, any celebrity. If these aspects are lacking, physical beauty just cannot make up for them.
3) Beauty With a Purpose
“Beauty with a purpose” is the charity associated with Miss World pageant. In the recent years, it has emerged out as the essence of the pageant. Hundreds of millions of pounds have been raised as part of the movement and have been donated to international and local organisations in aid of children and the needy. All the participants have been submitting projects in Miss World pageant and thus doing social work activities in their countries. The girls who give best projects generally make it high in the contest. This one point alone puts Miss World in much higher position that Miss Universe. The winners of Miss Universe pageants have been associated with charity work, but that is definitely never been the main focus of the pageant. The momentum of the charity work done by Miss World organization and their winners is way stronger than work done by majority of Miss Universe winners. Miss World 2014 saw some really good projects by the contestants. The winner Rolene Strauss has been touring since her crowning to different countries and her social work activities are being actively noted by the world at large. Claims that she is “making difference to the world” have to be taken seriously!
4) Rolene Strauss
Ms. Rolene Strauss of South Africa is one of the best international pageant winners of all times! Her face is full of beauty and charm. She has an easy and likable presence. She seems to be a nice, sweet approachable person. Her being invites respect and admiration. She is eloquent and the way she presents herself totally sets her apart in a good way, from majority of international beauty queens by far. Her class, her elegance, her style – she is easily one of the most loved and accepted beauty queens of all time! On the other hand, Ms Paulina Vega just doesn’t manage to give any competition to Ms. Strauss. She is pretty and physically attractive, but the aura, the presence, the eloquence just don’t compare. One can easily find many girls as good looking as Paulina, but someone like Rolene is a rare find!
To those who say that Miss Universe finals are more exciting and fun to watch, the Miss World supporters will rightly argue that Miss World 2014 as a pageant was more entertaining because of the challenger events. And anyway, finding truly beautiful girls is definitely more important than having just an entertaining finals show!
Generally we avoid taking a stand in Miss Universe v/s Miss World battle, because frankly we have appreciated both the pageants in the past and we acknowledge that their differences add a lot of variety for the audiences to enjoy and relish. However, this year Miss World 2014 just easily beats the Miss Universe 2014 pageant.
Image credits: Miss World site, Youtube video screenshots