Kerala's Kaziah Liz Mejo Named Miss Universe India 2026 at Jaipur Finale

Kaziah Liz Mejo from Kerala was crowned Miss Universe India 2026 at the grand finale held in Jaipur on Sunday, August 23. The 19-year-old emerged victorious from a field of 52 finalists who competed for the national crown. Her win secures her place as India's representative at the 75th Miss Universe pageant, scheduled to be held in Puerto Rico in November.

Kaziah, a law student and model from Mavelikkara, Kerala, has previous experience in international beauty pageants. She represented India at Miss Teen International in 2025, where she finished as the first runner-up. Her latest victory marks another major step in her pageant career and puts her in the spotlight ahead of the international competition later this year.

Vaishnavi Gannesh from Tamil Nadu was named the first runner-up and also received the Miss International India 2026 title. Anushri Satavlekar from Gujarat finished as the second runner-up. The finalists went through several rounds and events before the final competition, including introduction and speech sessions, a gala event, a sashing ceremony and a swimsuit round.

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The 2026 finale featured a jury led by former Miss Universe Sushmita Sen, who became India's first winner of the international title in 1994. The judging panel also included former Indian pageant winners Celina Jaitly, Urvashi Rautela and Rhea Singha. Film producer Pragya Kapoor, entrepreneur Visha Ladhia, Miss Charm 2025 Anna Blanco and dermatologist Dr Stuti Khare Shukla were among the other judges.

According to organisers, around 8,000 to 9,000 aspirants were considered during the selection process before the field was narrowed to the final 52 contestants. Participants were selected through regional state pageants, auditions, wildcard entries and an NRI category. The finalists subsequently underwent grooming and preliminary competitions before reaching the grand finale at Zee Studios in Jaipur.

The Miss Universe India pageant has been organised by the Glamanand Group since it took over the Indian franchise in 2024. Rhea Singha won the first edition under the new franchise, while Manika Vishwakarma was crowned in 2025. With Kaziah now holding the national crown, she will undergo further preparation and grooming before travelling to Puerto Rico to compete against contestants from around the world for the Miss Universe title.

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