Proud to be first-ever Bangladeshi participant at Miss International: Farzana Yasmin Ananna

For the first time in history, a Bangladeshi contestant is going to take part in the upcoming Miss International Beauty Pageant in Tokyo, Japan. The name is Farzana Yasmin Ananna - winner of the 2023 Miss International Bangladesh, and the 2021 Miss Universe Bangladesh first runner-up.

Prior to leaving her beloved motherland to create history, the Miss International Bangladesh 2023 spoke to the journalists on Monday, at the residence of the Japanese Ambassador to Dhaka, Baridhara in the capital.

The Ambassador Iwama Kiminori and his wife Iwama Tomomi greeted Ananna at the residence. They also had conversations regarding a handful of socio-cultural aspects between the two friendly nations.

"As the first Bangladeshi to ever compete on the Miss International stage, I am about to make history. Being the first Miss International representative from my nation makes me feel really thankful, and I am committed to myself that I will uphold the glory of my country in front of the world," Ananna said, expressing her state of mind before heading to Japan.

At only 23 years old, she accomplished a handful - became a graduate majoring in Women and Gender Studies from Dhaka University, established her name as a social worker, became a young politician and now waiting to create history.

"However, it was not easy for me," Ananna said. Just a couple of hours before winning the Miss International Bangladesh, she lost her mother. "She left very suddenly, without any illness - but my father stood beside me, motivated me to evolve and win," she told UNB.

It takes more than just attractive appearances to win a beauty contest. The competition's dynamics go far beyond. By emphasizing the value of cultural and behavioural advocacy, beauty pageants endorse the idea of transcending beyond physical attractiveness.

As these competitions use the platform for welcoming significant changes in societies against stereotypes worldwide, they urge participants to highlight the most important causes to them.

The majority of them support causes related to racial injustice, gender equality, and assistance for mental health difficulties - and for Miss International, the theme is centring around promoting peace.

"From the very beginning of my Miss International Bangladesh journey, I kept in my mind that when it will be my turn to light up the stage - I wouldn't be called Ananna, but Miss International Bangladesh. From that perspective, I always tried to help our society, whenever and wherever I went - especially during the Covid-19 pandemic."

Further elaborating on this to UNB, Ananna informed that for the last seven years, she has been actively working as a social worker and promoting advocacy on the grassroots level.

"When there was a massive flood in Sylhet and Khulna, I went to help people. I was also one of the first COVID-19 frontliners, helping about 40 thousand people in the first 18 months of the pandemic. I worked in almost every area in Jessore, my home district where I helped people every single day. Although I kept myself isolated from my family, the learning of resilience from those people is something that made me even stronger." 

Ananna said that both the Miss International and Miss International Bangladesh emphasize the contestant's real-life activism and experiences regarding advocacy and social activities, and mentioning that the world's youngest Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai is her inspiration - Ananna said that she is an ardent advocate of women empowerment, and she will utilize the Miss International platform to promote that.

Describing her Japan schedule for the competition, Ananna said that her time in Japan is scheduled for 26 days, and the preliminary round is the most important for all the 73 contestants. "There will be many challenges such as the 'close door round' where the contestants will be tested based on their speeches and question-answer abilities, and I have been preparing for a while now," Ananna said.

The obstacles of being a Bangladeshi competitor, however, are numerous. Ananna just recently won her crown, unlike the majority of the other winners who were crowned six to twelve months earlier. She had less time to prepare as a result, and obtaining a visa was difficult as well.

"That being said, I feel that I am so blessed that the Japanese Embassy made everything smoother for me and I cordially thank the honourable Ambassador Iwama Kiminori and his wife for their support and wishes."

Mentioning that Japan is a forever friend to Bangladesh, Ananna said, "Japan, the host city of the 61st Miss International, has been our development partner in mega projects such as the first-ever deep sea port, the Metro Rail, the recently inaugurated third terminal of the Shahjalal International Airport and more. I am truly honoured that being the first-ever Miss International Bangladesh, I am participating in the Miss International hosted by Japan, which is sort of a dream country for me."

Lauding Ananna for her accomplishment and journey to the contest, Ambassador Kiminori said, "It is our pleasure to see that Farzana Yasmin Ananna is going to attend the Miss International contest in Tokyo, Japan as the first-ever Bangladeshi participant."

"The development of competent human resources in Bangladesh is a priority for Japanese youth, just as it is for Japan to support Bangladesh's infrastructure. I also support the young people from Bangladesh and Japan who are trying to improve relations between the two nations and further our development. From that perspective, I wish the very best to Farzana Yasmin Ananna for this competition," Ambassador Kiminori said at the event.

"Culturally, Bangladesh and Japan have a rich history. Many people in Bangladesh are interested in Japanese comics and anime-Manga series. Bangladeshi youth are also very interested in learning the Japanese language. I believe Farzana Yasmin will be a great goodwill ambassador between the two countries regarding the cultural aspects, and we would be happy to support her in her future endeavours as well," the Ambassador said.

The world of beauty pageants is relatively new for Bangladesh, but Ananna is hopeful as the maiden Bangladeshi in the Miss International platform. Miss Bangladesh 2017 Jessia Islam was among the top 30 in the Miss World competition that year, being the only Bangladeshi participant to date on such a global stage.

"Miss International's main competition begins with the top 15 contestants. Voting is required to enter the top 15, and I'm now in the top three. People in our country overwhelmingly voted for me and if they show more support, it will be a lot easier for me to crack the top 15. The world can learn about Bangladesh via me, I feel, but more significantly, I wish to make a difference in Bangladesh and advance the beauty pageant industry for the sake of our women's empowerment," Ananna told UNB.