Manya Singh, runner-up of Miss India 2020, reveals prejudices she faced while growing up

The finale of VLCC Femina Miss India 2020 was staged on Wednesday and Manya Singh was crowned as the runner-up at the event. Manya is the daughter of a rickshaw driver and hails from Uttar Pradesh.The competition has seen her display her wit, presence of mind, and grace. The fact that she belonged to a humble background and stood undeterred at a nationally acclaimed stage has amazed netizens.The congratulatory post made by the official Instagram handle of Miss India saluted Manya’s “incredible journey” and expressed their pride in the runner-up’s success.See the postShe has been vocal about her struggles of making it to the pageant and dealing with several kinds of obstructions. Now her journey and achievement are shaping up to be the inspiration for hundreds of youngsters like her. In an introductory post for the pageant, Manya was described as a bright student and beloved child of her mother. However, her journey to the platform of Miss India had its share of disadvantages. There have been times in the past where she was not able to pay her school fees or afford her school books. Manya had to face prejudice for being an auto driver’s daughter and was neglected by her classmates. She had to deal with the idea of conventional looks in her childhood where she was called “not good-looking”. Manya was also “disregarded by others for not being able to speak fluently like others”.The post went on to say that Manya decided to focus on her development as a person instead of throwing in her gloves. She believes that this “very difficult time in her life” was what helped her to toil further and “pushed her towards her passion to work harder”.She came to the stage of Miss India after having won the crown of VLCC Femina Miss India Uttar Pradesh 2020.The recent event saw Manasa Varanasi from Telangana winning the title of VLCC Femina Miss India World 2020. Also, Haryana's Manika Sheokand was declared VLCC Femina Miss Grand India 2020.