Meet Ashima Sharma, the valiant dreamer who carved out her own path to success
It is often said that every achiever was once a dreamer, who worked tirelessly to make their dreams come true. Every achievement is an evolved form of a dream once envisioned by a hard working individual, who refused to give up. One such achiever that began her journey as a dreamer is the beauty queen, Ashima Sharma from Jammu. She has come a long way from being a girl-next-door to becoming an international beauty pageant delegate.
Ashima Sharma is one of the very few women in India that have won multiple beauty titles and pageant awards. A successful emcee and event presenter, Ashima Sharma’s journey to success was full of hurdles and barriers. However, with her determination and resilience, she turned very obstacle in her way into an opportunity to improve herself, and grow stronger. The confident and valiant girl that we see hosting events and beauty pageants in India, mentioned that her past experiences has her taught many valuable lessons and moulded her into the person that she is today.
Ashima Sharma lost her father when she was a teenager. He was the only bread-winner in her family. After his departure, all the responsibilities landed on her young shoulders. In order to support her family, she started working at a very young age. Alongside pursing her education, she started hosting events. Her interest in elocution gradually turned into her biggest strength as she moved ahead in her professional career. In 2010, she was crowned Miss Jammu and Kashmir. It was just the beginning of her journey that comprised several milestones. This victory brought her more recognition and her professional career received a major boost. Later, she was crowned Miss India IAWA 2016-17 and went to clinch Miss Himalaya 2018 title. After winning 3 titles, she went to compete at her first national pageant – Rubaru Miss India Elite in 2018. She became a finalist. This failure did not shatter her confidence and she returned to the same event next year with better preparations. In 2019, she was crowned Rubaru Miss India Elite 2019 (first runner-up) and also won Miss Talent special award. It was a big accomplishment for her however, she still did not feel that sense of contentment. In 2021, she again competed at the same event and this time ended up winning the top title. She won Rubaru Miss India Elite 2021 contest and created history by becoming the first candidate from Jammu and Kashmir to win this prestigious title. Apart from winning the title, she was also crowned Miss Congeniality 2021, an award bestowed upon the friendliest and most supportive candidate chosen by other candidates.
Along with winning this prestigious title, she also won the rights to represent India at the international beauty pageant – World Beauty Queen, based in South Korea. She might have taken gradual steps to success, however, with every step she took, she introduced a new milestone in her life. Currently, pursuing her master’s degree in mass communication and journalism, this strong-willed and confident girl that we see today has covered a very difficult journey to reach the place where she is today. She did not let any hurdles in her way diminish her confidence or break her. She dedicates her success to her family, and credits them as her biggest support system.
