Saturday, January 18, 2003
M A I N   F E A T U R E


Glamorous girls’ day out

THEY were all tall, lean and attractively attired (some wee unwisely considering that the temperature in the valley tumbles with the sinking of the sun). With stretched smiles adorning their faces, these glamorous butterflies flitted from one picturesque locale to the other, only too eager to strike poses for the hovering lensmen.

This was Femina Miss India contestants’ day out at Amby Valley Sahara Lake City — a day out of their rigorous month-long training before the final day — when the reigning beauty queen of the year will be chosen — later this month. The trip came as a welcome change from their tight schedule at Grand Maratha Sheraton in Mumbai, where their each day stretches from 5.45 am — when they get woken up to a glass of juice or nimbupani with a dash of honey — till dinner time at 9 and then pack up at 11pm. In between, they sweat out at the gym for at least two hours and are kept busy for the large part of the day with at least two 3-hour-long sessions touching different aspects of grooming like tips on skin and hair care, diet-related instructions and lessons on ramp walking and improvement in their diction and language.

 


The lessons seemed to have gone down well with the girls for they all — 26 of them — appeared to be immensely content with the small helpings that they partook of the sumptuous and grand lunch laid out on the lush meadows of the valley. Even as they happily held their hardly touched plates and stuck to foods suited to their skin and body types, they hotly denied that they underwent any form of starvation during the training period.

Their argument came thus: "We are not made to starve but made to eat the right kind of stuff."

Here the trainer (who did not wished to be named) was quick to chip in, elaborating on the remarkable results that come out of the 30-day regimen: "I have seen the girls change. Seen their skin and texture of hair improve just by the introduction of some diet regulations. Besides enhancing their physical beauty, the training gives a boost to their confidence and makes them learn to love themselves and be proud of what they are."

The girls vigorously nodded in agreement, lending authenticity to the assertion. And not for once did these enthusiastic aspirants show any signs of discomfort or irritation as they were herded in and out of luxury coaches, which took them from one striking location to the other in Sahara city. Giggling and whispering to each other, the contenders seemed to be making the most of whatever freedom they enjoyed.

But beneath all the cheerfulness, you could detect a certain tautness that comes with not letting your guard down. The effort invested in putting your best foot forward every time, keeping the right expression, holding the correct posture and maintaining an attractive gait can leave you drained. To be aware of being watched all the time, can never allow you to unwind yourself.

But let’s leave it to the young beauties to decide how they fared on their day out. As an onlooker you couldn’t help but admit that they made perfect models for a model setting!

— G.S.