Mr and Ms Asia pageant to showcase cultural diversity

Sophomore Neerali Shah has never competed in a pageant. Her partner, Zain Jafri, has never performed on stage.

Tonight, Shah and Jafri will represent the Indian Student Association and the Pakistani Student Association in the Mr. and Miss Asia Pageant.

The pageant, sponsored by the Asian Student Union, seeks to bring together the Asian cultural organizations on campus to showcase their cultures for the IU community. The show is from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Indiana Memorial Union’s Alumni Hall.

“It’s a great way of bringing our cultures to the table and showing the greatest parts of our culture,” Shah said.

One man and one woman each from different cultural organizations on campus are competing in this year’s pageant. These organizations include the Asian American, Indian, Pakistani, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Taiwanese and Thai student associations.

The pageant comprises four parts. Contestants will model traditional costumes and clothing of their countries on the catwalk, answer questions about their culture and experiences, perform an eight-minute talent piece and participate in a mass dance.

Senior Dorrie Blando, a member of the Filipino Student Association, is one of the emcees for the event. Members of the association are acting as entertainers as a way of contributing to the pageant without entering contestants.

Blando has attended the show for the past four years and said the winners typically rotate among the participating groups. She also said students can win other honors, such as Mr. and Miss Popular and Mr. and Miss Congeniality.

Meng Yang, co-chair of the pageant, said the event is a collaboration among the Asian student organizations. She said parts of the pageant require contestants to work closely with their organizations, such as the talent portion.

Yang and her co-chair, Courtney Amelia, started planning for this year’s pageant at the beginning of the spring semester. Yang said a lot of the event planning would not have been possible without the help of the pageant committee.

Blando and other students emphasized the main purpose of the event isn’t to declare one organization a winner, but to bring together a diverse group of student organizations for a common purpose.

“It’s a good way to showcase minority groups on campus, and the cultural organizations work hard to spread awareness,” Blando said.