Ekta Choudhary Is Set For Miss Universe Pageant Ekta Choudhary and Ritu Kumar

Miss India Universe Ekta Choudhary is nearly set to take part in the Miss Universe pageant to be held on August 23 in Bahamas. She will be one of 75 contestants from different parts of the globe. Fashion designer Ritu Kumar is designing Choudhary's outfits and says she is a perfect combination of Indian beauty and international style.

"Every contestant is different and so is Ekta. She is tall, beautiful and confident enough to bring the (Miss Universe) crown back and make us proud," Kumar said.

At 5 feet 9 inches, Choudhary has short hair and has got five tattoos, but Kumar says that it goes very well with her look.

"In Indian attire, she looks like a royal princess of the 1960s. She has a perfect mix of Indian beauty and international style and I don't have any problem with her short hair," Kumar maintained. Most of earlier Indian contestants had long hair and a more conventional look.

Kumar has been in charge of the Indian contestants’ wardrobes in international beauty pageants like Miss Universe and Miss World since 1994. The first time she dressed Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai for the pageants, they came back winning the Miss Universe and Miss World crowns, respectively.

India has not won this title since 2000 when Lara Dutta won the crown. Kumar says that almost every dress, including western wear, will have an Indian touch.

"Just by looking at the outfits, people should feel that it is from India. I can assure you that it would be exotic but not at all gypsy", she said.

"At the pageant the national costume has always been appreciated and has managed to remain in top position because of our rich traditional culture and fine craftsmanship."