Gorgeous Gamya

Being graceful and gracious is key to success:

Suharshi Perera

Though she is crowned for beauty, she calls it “subjective”. Gamya Wijayadasa does not sit on her laurels but believes this subjective element should be used to bring about a change.

“A blend of experience, knowledge and confidence perfects beauty,” says Gamya Prasadini Waidurya Wijayadasa who was crowned Derana Miss. Sri Lanka this time to contest the Miss World pageant to be held in South Africa in December.

Beauty is not a stand alone factor but only one of the many reasons to win, the vibrant 22-year old vying for the Miss World title noted. Change of attitudes may take one a long way and in the pageant history this change is vital, Wijayadasa said.

The conventional thinking is that beauty is the decisive factor in selecting a beauty queen but it should not be mere skin deep but be well laced with intelligence, fortitude and talent, she elaborated. “I would like to see a change in conventional pageantry and it would open doors in this arena for even less privileged to reach the helm,” the Melbourne based Sri Lankan noted.

“Many people see beauty pageantry as branching of fashion modelling which is not right,” she said noting that this view should be treated with care to have more Sri Lankans on the top row in international beauty pageantry.

It is the dynamic training and a resultant complete individual that wins the day, Wijayadasa elaborated.“Most countries in the forefront of beauty pageantry pay attention to all these aspects when producing beauty queens. They invest billions of dollars to set up those organizations dedicated to grooming and pageantry.

Sri Lanka can not finance such process but the only thing we can do is to choose the right candidate to represent the country,” the Sri Lankan beauty remarked. As the Sri Lankan candidate contesting the global contest Wijayadasa believes in reflecting of authentic Sri Lankan identity would win her a place among the highly prospective contestants as manyas 100. “If we try to be more ‘international’ than Sri Lankan there would not be any difference. So how can we show them that we have special attractions?

There are so many qualities that make us different from others. One such quality is smile. In the current scenario Sri Lankan smile indicates the grace under pressure.

As a country, we have gone through many painful experience but we have overcome insurmountable challenges. That strength and resilience should be reflected. And the other aspect is creativity. We are an artistic nation. So we ought to prove that quality to secure a place globally,” Wijayadasa observed. Wijayadasa’s skills and experience in diverse spheres helped mould her personality and shaped confidence. She has worked as a voluntary journalist in Melbourne and mastered both Up Country and Low Country dance traditions which helped her grow close to her native roots even though she grew up in a foreign land.

She was in her final stage of her Masters degree in Applied Commerce at the University of Melbourne when she applied for the Derana Miss. Sri Lanka pageant in February this year. Wijayadasa read her Bachelors in Psychology at the same university and studies fashion design as well. She attended Musaeus College, Colombo till Grade six before moving to Singapore and later Australia. She is the only child born to a mother who is a software engineer and father, a businessman.

“I used to watch with outpouring enthusiasm when Ashwarya Rai was crowned Miss. World. It was heartening to watch how the crowds welcomed her. Though I was around eight years old then, it inspired me to come to the spotlight later in life,” Wijayadasa recalled. “I believe we get only one chance to create a difference and I got to make the best use of this. I’m confident to face the challenge,” the young enthusiast vows.

She says she adheres to a rule by Napoleon Hill- What the mind can conceptualize can be achieved. “I go by that rule. I believe we need not compete. What we got to do is to be determined, set a goal and reach there. You would not be exhausted or pressurized but can achieve the goal.”