FORDS, NJ(TIP): Kim Kumari was crowned as Miss India New Jersey 2018, while Esha Kode was crowned as Miss Teen India New Jersey 2018 and Ruchita Modi Shah was crowned as Mrs. India New Jersey 2018, at the 2018 Miss India New Jersey beauty pageant held on Sunday, September 30 at Royal Albert’s Palace, in Fords, NJ.

The 37th Miss India NJ 2018 was officially powered by Albert Jasani from Royal Albert Palace, with State Director Shobhana Patel.

The celebrated beauty pageant is the premier platform to promote women empowerment and Indian culture, in New Jersey. Showcasing compassion and connection, the event celebrated Indian American women and their identity through talent rounds, ramp walks, question/answer segments, and more.

Kumari is a trained Bhangra dancer who has had the opportunity to dance with Bollywood choreographer Saroj Khan.

She is the co-president of the International Human Rights Club at JFK Memorial High School, where she is a senior and actively works to serve the local community.

Kode loves be onstage and has been trained in classical as well as Bollywood dancing. She has also performed at various Bollywood events and desires to pursue a career in the medical field.

Shah is an IT Professional who is currently working for the New York State Department. She is trained in Indian Classical music and loves cooking, Do-It-Yourself crafting, photography, digital arts and travelling.

The evening consisted of 45 contestants with 12 in the Miss Category, 11 in the Miss Teen Category and 22 in the Mrs. Category, all of whom dazzled in their ethnic wear in the first round and kept it simple yet elegant in their evening gowns in the following round.

The third round featured the talent of the top seven contestants in the Miss & Miss Teen category, and top five contestants in the Mrs. Category.

The contestants then went on to Question-Answer round, where each was given a different kind of question to answer.

Talking about the essence of the pageant, Shobhana Patel stated that, “Miss India NJ provides a place to these young girls and women in which they can truly empower each other and see beyond beauty.”

Community pioneer Albert Jasani has supported this event whole heartedly every year saying that, “We want to bring more women to the forefront and have them succeed in whichever manner they look at success.”

The judges’ panel consisted of entrepreneur and State Director of Miss India Connecticut Sumathi Narayanan, physician & cosmetologist and wellness advisor Kavita Payyar, founder of the South Asian Spelling Bee and CEO of Touchdown Media Rahul Walia, actor Javed Pathan, Bollywood fashion designer Deepali Shah, entrepreneur and Mrs. India Worldwide 2017 Sarita Patnaik, classical dancer Bina Menon and promoter of Bollywood shows in the U.S. Kanu Chauhan.

At the beginning of the third round Bollywood star Dia Mirza walked the Miss India New Jersey ramp for the first time, to join the judges for the remainder of the show.

Mirza also crowned the winners of the Miss India New Jersey 2018 pageant.