Beyond the crown: How Dubai gave Ankita Jain Bhatia the freedom to dream bigger

In a city where networking can open doors and reinvention is practically a way of life, Ankita Jain Bhatia has discovered that the most powerful investment a woman can make is in herself.

The newly crowned Mrs UAE World has a glittering crown, a flourishing career in fashion, a supportive husband and a six-year-old son who is among her biggest cheerleaders. But beneath the picture-perfect exterior is a woman who believes ambition shouldn’t have an expiry date, particularly after marriage or motherhood.

For Bhatia, Dubai has been more than a glamorous backdrop to her success. It’s where she found the confidence and opportunities to expand her professional horizons.

“The UAE has given me the power, the strength, the freedom, and in fact, the UAE has turned my vision into my ventures,” she says in an interview with Gulf News. It’s a striking sentiment from someone whose career began long before she moved to the Emirates.

A journey begins

Growing up in India, Bhatia was fascinated by the world of fashion and modelling. Her first opportunity came while she was still preparing for her Class 10 board examinations, when a designer neighbour invited her to participate in a photoshoot. Encouraged by her parents, she eventually approached Elite Modeling Agency, beginning a journey that would span more than two decades.

When she relocated to the UAE following her husband’s career move, she wasn’t prepared to let that experience go to waste.

“When I moved here ... I just started training models here,” she recalls.

And that’s perhaps what makes her journey particularly relevant to women navigating new cities, careers and identities. Bhatia didn’t wait for the perfect moment to arrive. She created momentum through consistency.

“Not even a single day I stopped myself. Every day I had a target that what I’m gonna do today.”

For years, she helped aspiring models find their footing in the fashion industry. Today, she has stepped into the spotlight herself, trading her role as mentor for that of an international beauty pageant contender.

Yet Bhatia is keen to look beyond the superficial trappings of pageantry. For her, visibility is valuable only when it translates into influence and purpose.

“They are very empowering, and it gives you certain kind of voice,” she says of beauty pageants.

“It gives you certain kind of you know the platform where you can actually talk, and people will recognise you. People will listen to you.”

It’s an interesting perspective in an era when women’s empowerment is often reduced to fashionable slogans. Bhatia sees her crown as a platform to advocate for something tangible: women’s safety.

Making a legacy

Having grown up in Delhi, she particularly values the freedom she experiences in the UAE.

“Even you can step out at two at night, go to mall, take a taxi. Why here? Why not any like entire world?” she asks.

It’s a question that reveals the deeper meaning of empowerment for her. Professional opportunities matter, but so does the independence to navigate the world without fear.

She hopes to translate that conviction into awareness campaigns and educational initiatives focused on women’s safety.

“I’m not going to change it overnight,” she acknowledges.

Closer to home, Bhatia is equally determined to challenge the assumption that women must choose between their families and their ambitions.

“Of course. Married women have it all and how!” she declares.

Her husband, she readily admits, has played an instrumental role in her journey.

“I think it’s because of him that I’m sitting here next to you today wearing this crown and sash, all because of his support.”

Now, with Las Vegas beckoning and an international title in her sights, Bhatia is thinking beyond the next glamorous milestone.

“Not for me right now. For me, I have to make a legacy,” she says when asked about pursuing Bollywood.

And perhaps that’s the most compelling part of her Dubai story. In a city celebrated for its extraordinary success stories, Bhatia’s ambition is no longer simply about wearing a crown. It’s about using the opportunities she has found to grow, make her voice heard and, ultimately, help other women do the same.