From Abu Dhabi classrooms to Puerto Rico’s stage: 10 things to know about Miss Universe India Kaziah Liz Mejo

Dubai: When Gulf News tracked down Miss Universe India 2026 Kaziah Liz Mejo, the Abu Dhabi-bred law student was in Jaipur, caught in a whirlwind of rehearsals, photo shoots and media requests.

Her life had changed almost overnight. By her own admission, it still hadn't sunk in.

"Even now I'm having a little bit of difficulty digesting the fact that I'm now the representative of India at the world's biggest pageant," Mejo told Gulf News in an exclusive interview back in August, two days after she was crowned Miss Universe India.

The facts are easy enough to list. She is a 19-year-old law student, model and trained classical dancer from Kerala's Mavelikkara region, currently studying law in Bengaluru. She is set to represent India at Miss Universe in Puerto Rico, where the final is scheduled for 24 November 2026 at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan. Wikipedia

But behind the diamond-encrusted crown and satin sash is a young woman who believes Abu Dhabi prepared her for this moment long before she knew it was coming.

Here's what you need to know about her.

1. Abu Dhabi made her a global citizen

Growing up in the UAE capital, surrounded by different nationalities, cultures and languages, taught Mejo to feel at home anywhere.

"One of my strong suits at the moment is the fact that I have lived in a country which is so welcoming of every single ethnicity, of every single person, irrespective of your background, irrespective of what your journey was," she says.

For Mejo, the UAE gave her two identities that never had to compete.

"The UAE made sure that I was connected with my roots in India, while also being connected with the rest of the world."

It also gave her a view of India from the outside.

"The entire world sees India as a powerhouse, as an epitome of strength, of greatness, and that really gave me the courage to be that one representative of India internationally."

Her verdict on the country she grew up in is simple.

"I think UAE is just a country of endless possibilities."

2. She made Abu Dhabi a promise

Mejo left the UAE to chase her pageant dream, and she didn't leave quietly.

"I promised Abu Dhabi and I promised all my friends there, my school, my teachers that I will come back with the crown and I promise I will make you proud."

Now those teachers are getting back in touch, some from as far back as Grades 7 and 8. What touches her most is that they never laughed her dreams away.

"The best part is they never dismissed it. They never thought it was just a little girl with wild dreams. They saw it as a girl with a vision."

3. She was born for the stage (her words, not ours)

Long before pageants, Mejo was an Indian classical dancer, performing from the age of four or five. Her parents spotted something early.

"They realised that I smile differently when I'm on stage. My eyes glow differently when I'm on stage. I was born for the stage!"

4. Her parents didn't blink

Her mother took part in small pageants while growing up in Kerala, but Mejo insists there was no pushy-parent pressure. When she said she wanted to try, there was no lecture about a more conventional career.

"No questions asked. They asked me, 'How do you register?'"

"I truly pray to God that every girl out there gets a family like this," she says. "When you have that wind behind your wings, I promise you can soar so high."

5. One night in 2021 changed everything

The first Miss Universe she remembers watching was the 2021 edition, when India's Harnaaz Sandhu took the crown.

"I think that moment really changed my life," she says. "It changed how I saw the world, and it changed what I wanted to be as well."

6. The stars aligned, and then she screamed

Mejo beat 51 other women to the Miss Universe India title. Her final question was: what is the sound of silence to you personally?

It couldn't have suited her better. She describes a strange calm just before she steps on stage.

"My entire world goes blank, and I'm just there to enjoy the moment."

There was considerably less calm in the final two.

"My heart was beating out of my chest and the second that they called my name, I actually screamed on stage, like out loud. I screamed because I couldn't digest it."

She's still watching the viral video of that moment. When I call her her own biggest cheerleader, she doesn't argue.

"I think majority of the views that's coming in would probably be mine itself."

7. She ate pizza at 5am, and all through the pageant

If anyone imagines beauty queens surviving on lettuce leaves, Mejo would like a word.

Her first meal as Miss Universe India was pizza, at around 5am. She'd have happily added burgers and fries. And no, she hadn't been starving herself before that either.

"I had pizzas and burgers throughout the pageant," she says. Her order? "Extra cheese, extra patties."

She works out and stays active, but she believes food and fitness should come with kindness.

"If you have to starve yourself for a body, then that body is really not yours, right?" she says. "Your body is your temple. A burger once in a while is not going to do anything."

Then comes the confession, delivered without a flicker of guilt.

"Carbs, I love. I love my junk food."

8. She slept with her crown

Her first night as titleholder was just as memorable.

"The first day I won, I slept with the crown."

More precisely, she slept hugging the crown box and woke up with bruises from its pointed edges.

"I've worked so hard for it," she says.

Clearly, she's not letting it out of her sight just yet.

9. Kerala travels with her

Gulf News spoke to Mejo on Onam, and she turned up for the interview in a sari, hundreds of miles from home.

"I miss my sadya, I miss my Onam sari, but this is the make-do that I could do with what I have."

Expect plenty more of that in Puerto Rico.

"Even if I go to Puerto Rico, you will see me in sarees. You will see me in traditional wear, because this is the small ways in which you can carry India with you and showcase that to the world."

10. Bollywood (or Mollywood) is calling, but it can wait

The offers are already pouring in.

"I've been getting a lot of requests to be brand ambassadors, to have my debut in movies, and everything is just happening all at once," she says. "It's been one of my biggest dreams to join that as well."

But the movies will have to wait.

"My first and foremost vision is to bring the crown of Miss Universe back to India."

For now, the young woman raised in Abu Dhabi is preparing to walk into a room filled with contestants from across the world.

In many ways, she has been preparing for that room all her life.

"I'm so overwhelmed, but I'm so ready for it," she says. "I know that we're gonna make history."