Rohit Khandelwal from India recently won the prestigious Mr. World 2016 Male beauty pageant held at the UK. He is already a well-known actor, model, and television personality in India and there is no doubt that this international honour will catapult him to greater things in life. With this title he also becomes the first Indian – and the first Asian as well – to have held the title. The pageant was organized at Southport Theatre and Convention Centre, Floral Hall, The Promenade, Southport on 19th July. Khandelwal also bagged a cash prize of 50,000 dollars in the event that saw 47 men from different parts of the world compete for the title. The 26-year-old celebrity was also in the hunt for several other subtitles that were part of the event proper such as World Multimedia Award, Mobstar People’s Choice Awards, World Talent, and so on.
Selection process for pageant
The contestants for this pageant were selected from among thousands of individuals who had applied from around the world. Events were organized for almost a year for the purpose for choosing the contestants for the Grand Finale. Before the finale, contestants took part in various competitions that sought to test their mettle. Here contestants are supposed take part in the challenge events — lasting over 12 days prior to the main event — such as Fashion & Style, Sports Challenge, Extreme Challenge, Talent Competition, and Multimedia Award.
What is the pageant all about?
Much like its more celebrated feminine counterpart, Mr. World is an event that tries to find a ‘Mister’ who is supposed to be the most desirable man in the world. It sees contestants give it their all in front of a live audience and an esteemed panel of judges in order to become the most coveted man of the planet. This year the event was hosted by Megan Young, Miss World 2013 and a proud daughter of Philippines, Jordan Williams, an erstwhile Mr. England and presently a professional singer, and Frankie Cena, who has won Mr. Canada title in 2012.
Why is this event important?
As stated by Khandelwal following his win, Mr. World aims to create a community that is driven by the purpose of empowering today’s youth – here the contestants from varied cultural backgrounds – to come together and work for global betterment.
Khandelwal’s CV
Khandelwal, who received the award from Nicklas Pedersen, who had won the honour in 2014, is a graduate of Aurora Degree College. He hails from Hyderabad. Before he started acting, he was an employee at SpiceJet. After this he worked as a tech support assistant for Dell Computers. He had also thought of pursuing an MBA degree. He has acted in some TV series in India with his most memorable roles being that of Sreedhar in Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya and Veer in Yeh Hai Aashiqui. He has appeared in an advertisement with Kareena Kapoor – one of his favourite ads – and also appeared in shows such as Million Dollar Girls, and Big F on MTV. He has featured in Channel V as well.
As far as winning beauty pageants for men is concerned this is not the first title that Khandelwal has bagged. He has already won Provogue Personal Care Mr. India World event in 2015 and it was this success that paved his way for the Mr. World title on a global platform. He has also stated that the Mr. Active Extreme Challenge was one of the toughest activities he has participated in.
He also won Provogue Personal Care Best Actor and Stay-on Mr. Active sub-competitions, which can be regarded as testaments to his talent and capability. He is held in the same regard as the likes of leading Bollywood actors such as Hrithik Roshan and Ranveer Singh and has indeed made a mark for himself in the country.
What does this win mean for Khandelwal?
The Male beauty pageant saw some of the most gorgeous men in the world take part in the event and to have emerged victorious from a platform of this stature is incredible. It is a testimony to the hard work that Khandelwal put in, in preparation for the event. It is said that winning such events can take years of determination, focus, and hard work and it is not unusual to see people quit because of lack of patience. It is a proof of Khandelwal’s immense mental fortitude that he kept going at it without ever giving up. The fact that he is the first Asian to have been bestowed this honour is also significant enough, when viewed in retrospect.
As he has said following his stupendous win, Khandelwal will now be looking to take this win forward and achieve greater things in mainstream media. He has no preference for medium – both big and small screen suit him well – and his ultimate aim is to one day become a director of the big screen. The self-professed dreamer has stated that he wants to act in challenging and meaningful roles and one day make good and believable fiction and non-fiction films.
His success also validates the hard work put in by some of the most respected names in India’s fashion fraternity in getting him ready for the global event. He was trained at Bodyholics and Kromakay. He received coaching on various aspects by the likes of Sabira Merchant, Supreet Bedi, Jamuna Pai, Amit Khanna, Swaroop Medara, Rukshana Eisa, and Dr. Sandesh Mayekar. As part of his preparation, he received circuit and football training. These helped him build up his endurance and excel at the various physical challenges during the competition.
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