Dabur Miss Nepal now ready to take on Maoists

KATHMANDU: With a year gone since the fall of the Maoist government and the chance of the former rebels returning to power growing slender, Nepal’s First Damsel in Distress - Miss Nepal or rather Dabur Miss Nepal - is now feeling bold enough to step out, head held high, once more.
Overcoming the scare of 2008 when the ex-guerrillas led the government and allowed their women’s organisation to block Nepal’s oldest and most popular beauty pageant, the contest is back again along with its main sponsor, Dabur Nepal, that was the actual target of the Maoists.
The Hidden Treasure, the event management company that holds the Miss Nepal shows, announced that the new edition would be held in August and the screening and training would start next month. With the 21-party government of Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal holding out against the protracted Maoist onslaught to pull it down and turning a year old against odds, the organisers have been emboldened enough to also announce the name of Dabur Nepal, Dabur India's wholly owned subsidiary, as the main sponsor.
Last year, though the contest was held in September after the fall of the Prachanda government in May, its organisers and sponsors decided to be cautious. Instead of Dabur Vatika, that used to be the main sponsor of the event, the pageant was re-positioned as the Fem Miss Nepal contest banking on the fact that few people in Nepal, including the Maoists, were aware that Dabur had acquired the fairness cream.
With the prime minister now continuing to rule out the possibility of his resigning under Maoist pressure and his allies continuing to support him, Nepal’s state-run Nepal Television is also ready to air the show live. Two years ago, when Maoist MP Krishna Bahadur Mahara was the information and communications minister, it was compelled to decline the honour.
Since its inception, Miss Nepal has been at the centre of the usual debate, much as elsewhere. However, the difference in Nepal is that the anti-pageant protesters have allowed dozens of other beauty contests to proceed unprotested while Miss Nepal triggered violent protests and a systematic campaign against it, especially when the Maoists were in the government. The actual reason for their wrath was then traced to the sponsors after the Maoist women’s groups hinted to the organisers that they would do well to seek the support of Nepali companies instead of Dabur Nepal.
The event is strongly defended by former Miss Nepals, who say it gives them a platform and opens new vistas. One of them is now a pilot, another an actor while a third an emcee. Nepal is also probably the only country where the contest does not have a swimsuit round.