4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Sep 10, 2026 02:24 PM IST
Nikita Porwal, India’s representative for the 2026 Miss World, may have missed out on the crown this year, but won hearts with her grace, conviction and heart at the 75th-anniversary edition of the pageant in Vietnam. The winner of Femina Miss India World 2024 was eliminated in the Top 40, missing the Top 20. Joheirry Mola Dominguez from the Dominican Republic won the title, beating Spain’s Elisabeth Reynés as the first runner-up and Malaysia’s Taanusiya Chetty as second runner-up.
Emotional note on social media
Following her elimination, Nikita Porwal took some “time to process everything” this journey gave her, and last night, shared a heartfelt note on Instagram thanking her fans, team and organisers. “I thought the hardest part would be coming home without the crown. I was wrong. The hardest part was finding words big enough for all the love that came home with me. Maybe that’s why it took me a few days to respond. I needed time to process everything this journey gave me,” she shared in the caption of her Instagram post.
Porwal hails from Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, and started her career as a TV anchor before moving into acting and theatre. Over the years, she has performed in more than 60 plays and has even written a 250-page play titled Krishna Leela.
Nikita in Vietnam. (Source: Instagram/@nikitaporwal)
From acting to pageantry
Porwal further shared in her note that the strangest and most beautiful thing about the pageant community is that sometimes you don’t know the faces behind the accounts cheering for you. “You don’t know who is making that edit at 2 AM, who is writing that long message, who is fighting for you in a comment section, who is refreshing a page waiting for an update…But somehow, you know their hearts,” she expressed, adding: “I went to Miss World hoping to earn a crown. Somewhere along the way, I earned a family I had never even met.”
On carrying India’s legacy forward
Porwal also talked about “the privilege of being called INDIA”.
“For those weeks, my name almost disappeared. Every time someone called out “India!”, something inside me stood taller. Of course, I wish I could have brought the crown home. I wanted it deeply. I worked for it deeply. I came home with growth, memories, friendships, love and a version of myself I am still getting to know,” she elaborated, finally concluding with: “And some victories do not sit on your head. They stay in your heart forever.”
Nikita channels Devi Meenakshi during the Dances of the World segment. (Source: Instagram/@nikitaporwal)
Social and cultural impact
Porwal’s Miss World journey reflected a strong social-impact focus. Through Project MAATI — Empowering the Keepers of Our Roots, her Beauty With a Purpose initiative, she worked with tribal communities in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha, focusing on education, healthcare, nutrition, hygiene, clean drinking water and livelihood opportunities. The initiative included support such as water filters and nutritional supplies for families, while also highlighting the importance of education and vocational training for tribal youth.
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The Ujjaini model also spotlighted her culture during the Dances of the World segment, turning Goddess Meenakshi of Madurai into her muse in a custom Torani ensemble.
This marks the ninth year India has lost out on the Miss World crown, since Manushi Chhillar’s victory in 2017. However, Porwal’s Miss World journey brought together theatre, Indian culture, fashion, and social impact — reminding us that a pageant journey can be about much more than the final title.
Miss World 2026 has been trending on Google for the past 24 hours.
