Bhubaneswar: Cuttack-based Odia girl Ritu Santuka has won Dellywood Miss India Contest 2018 held at New Delhi.
Daughter of Itishree Santuka and Kamala, Santuka has made Odisha proud with her extraordinary achievement by winning over a thousand contenders who took part in the contest.
As many as 1500 participant were short-listed for the grand event. All the selected participants had to undergo a training to groom themselves for the participation.
“From the beginning, my aim was to be among the top five and win a sub-title in the beauty pageant,” claimed Santuka. Talking about the training ahead of the title, she said, “We used to work day and night. The training for the pageant used to start at 6 am and continue till 9pm. Miss World Manushi Chillar was present at the event and this motivated me to win the title”.
Ritu said she was determined to pursue a career in modelling, but the pressure of studies had dissuaded her to focus on the career for the time-being.
“Now, I am ready to forego my dreams,” she said in a lighter vein. “My next objective in life is to participate in the international pageant. Modelling is a profession which many people see with suspicion but I am fortunate that I have not experienced any hassles so far. My parents always supported me,” she adds.
After the crowning glory at Delhi, Ritu got a number of offers from Odia film industry but she turned down the offers. “At present, I am focused on modelling. I have to visit Dubai next month as part of pageant win and I will also stay in Mumbai for six months where I will do a musical album,” averred Ritu.
