Thomas TanThe first round of open call auditions for Petite Kebaya Queen Malaysia 2018/2019 pageant was held at Summit USJ shopping mall in Subang Jaya on 8 Sept 2018 and attracted many hopefuls.
Those auditioning took to the stage in front of a live audience to give a short introduction of themselves, do a simple catwalk and faced a panel of judges in a questions and answers session.
Miss Malaysia Kebaya (MMK) Organisation founder and president Jason Hee said MMK organised a new pageant category known as Petite Kebaya Queen Malaysia because of high demand from petite women who were rejected at pageants because of their height.
“MMK will give platform to these petite women who are 160 cm tall and below. We do not want them to lose out just because of their height and we will give them a chance to step into the limelight,” he said.
The Petite Kebaya Queen Malaysia pageant is opened to Malaysian single and married women between 18 and 50 years old, and contestants cannot be taller than 5′ 3″ (160 cm).
Jason said contestants must also be able to carry themselves elegantly and must not have diva attitude.
After the auditions, the finalists for Miss & Mrs KL/Selangor Kebaya 2018/2019 made a brief appearance and posed for a group photo.
At 4’ 11.8” (152 cm) tall, Noor Izwani Binti Mohd Salim looked confident and was just excited to be auditioning like the others. She hoped to make the cut.
“I found out about the pageant audition through Miss Malaysia Kebaya facebook so I came all the way from Kampung Gajah, Perak. I believe everyone has their own beauty in their own way. So I want to share and inspire others to love themselves. I also want to challenge myself to be confident with my own beauty and talent,” said Izwani.
“The standard requirement in the industry is ideal height. It is hard for us petites to survive and show our talent to the world. I feel very thankful to MMK for giving opportunities to us petite-sized ladies to participate in beauty pageant,” she added.
The 26-year-old accounts manager was named the first runner-up to the Miss Petite Inspire Malaysia 2017 and recently finished in Top 20 of Flavettes Glowing Star Search 2018.
“I really hope that I can inspire people especially Malaysians to ensure that we are always proud with our own traditional costume which is kebaya. And I want to gain valuable exposure, knowledge and experience from the pageant,” she said on her reason for joining the cultural pageant.
“To be honest I love traditional costumes very much and kebaya is one of my favourite attires because it can attract all eyes on you and to be the centre of attention. I will always wear kebaya to special occasions such as wedding and formal dinner.
“I will use the social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram to help promote kebaya’s charm,” she added.
Izwani is an inspiring woman who wants to contribute to society.“I hope that one day I will be a good role model to inspire people to see the good things about themselves and to believe in themselves whatever body type they have,” she said.
Izwani enjoys hobbies such as cooking and singing.
CJMY
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